Mastering the Art of Email List-Building

(Photo : Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay )

The term email list building refers to the process of collecting email addresses from visitors or users of a website. Learn how to do it right in this post. 

In any marketing endeavor, it is extremely common to get swept up in the trivial details rather than concentrating on the essential stuff that matters. And this is true for list building as it is for anything else in the ever-eventful world of business.

If you find yourself here, you've already made the wise decision to use, or at least consider, email marketing as part of your growth strategy. That's great, but where and how do you start? How do you flare up the fervor of mastering the art of building email lists?

Before becoming proficient at email conversations, we believe that understanding the nitty-gritties of effective list building will refresh your marketing strategies. This will ultimately help you reach potential and existing customers in more active ways.

Here are five practical tactics that can really add zest to your email list-building strategy. 

1.  Paper + Pen

Most of you may think that the paper and pen strategy is outdated, but it is a tried and true method that still works in online spaces. Today, our online and offline lives continue to be intertwined more than ever before. We continuously meet our clients and potential clients already having some type of offline presence.

Regardless of the type of business you are running, you have, in one way or another, connected with your prospects through your in-person work. Cultivating these relationships offline can turn out to be one of the most effective strategies for building email lists.

Consider collecting emails and business cards during business meetings, conferences, and even at social conventions, and grow your list.

2.  Offer Lead Magnets

Customer lead magnets, as the name suggests, are incentives you provide to your existing customers to keep them coming in exchange for personal data such as email addresses. This is particularly an effective way of connecting with prospects and raising awareness about your brand.

For small businesses, prize giveaways have traditionally proven to be really effective for email list-building. Other examples that fall under the umbrella of lead magnets include premium content, discount coupons, product samples, cheat sheets, eBooks, checklists, podcasts, case studies, free trials, and templates, among others. 

When formulating the most effective lead magnets for your brand, it's vital to keep in mind two things. First, your lead magnet should be perceived by your target audience as very valuable, or they will be hesitant to provide their email address. Make sure that the CTA or the content that surrounds the lead magnet is clear and briefly describes the promise of value.

Second, most people will sign up for lead magnets when they are looking for a quick response on whatever they are looking for. As such, ensure that as soon as they provide their email, you respond right away with the promised content. This provides an assurance that you are committed to what you are offering. 

3.  Utilize Proven Email-Building Tools

For most business firms, websites and landing pages are where email list building begins: from specific lead capture pages to dynamic popups and overlays or static embedded opt-in forms. But, the best bet in maximizing the full potential of email marketing is to integrate proven email building tools with their intuitive user interfaces and easy setups to add new subscribers to specific segments.

With a first-rate contact list-builder tool such as bookyourdata, businesses can now search, order, and download an email database with just a few easy clicks and reach their targeted leads. This means that you have the ability to find and download premium contact information from a wide range of levels and industries. Such actual data files can be integrated directly into your CRM software affording you a heightened deliverability rate with your contacts.

4.  Include Opt-in Fields at Checkout

Most of us know the value of the embedded sign up forms. They are probably the most traditional strategy of attracting email subscribers to websites. But, today, most smart businesses with an online presence appreciate the value of opt-in fields at checkouts. Most prospects are now expecting checkouts to take personal information such as emails and phone contacts.

When making purchases, some customers feel secure if they receive confirmation of their order through text or email. They also feel more secure and assured if your business is making an effort to update them on the order progress.

This provides a great way for you to collect and build an email list, provided that the checkout environment is secure and includes an option to join an email list in a non-invasive manner. By adopting this strategy, you will also be covering your legal basis, ensuring that you are not spamming your customers.

Another way of doing this is by including an exit popup. You know how to visit a website, and a popup form comes up if you try leaving without signing up or buying? While most people dread this, experienced marketers identify this as an effective way of building lists. Most actually agree that you can salvage up to 35% of otherwise lost prospects with exit popups.

5.  Make it Easier to Sign Up 

While this may seem like an obvious tip, it is quite common to see websites with the subscribing form tucked away somewhere difficult to find. In order to get more potential clients to join your email list, it is vital that you make the entire process easier.

All of these previous tips won't work effectively if the signup forms aren't displayed at prominent places on your website, along with a precise call to action. Along with conspicuous popups and check-ins, you can as well place the signup forms at other high-converting spots on your site. Some of this may include the content pages, feature box, or navigating bar.