3 truths about growing your email list

You’ve tried everything you know to grow your email list.

Wordle So where, exactly, are your thousands of online customers or donors?

The truth is, most of us struggle to grow our email list.

And even if you have 1,000 or 25,000 email addresses, it’s tough knowing “what to say” in emails.

I know.

The three biggest online marketing challenges I hear from my readers and clients are:

It’s a struggle to grow my email list

I don’t know what to say to people in my emails

Facebook (Facebook being code for “all social media”)

Sound familiar?

Email marketing is actually GROWING as one of the best ways to attract new customers or donors and build donor loyalty to buy or donate again and again.

There’s definitely a learning curve — and some key do’s and don’t’s.

What used to work doesn’t anymore.

But it’s not as hard as you think.

Plus, not all new email addresses are created equal.

Starting today and over the next three days I’m giving you some tips on your top 3 online marketing challenges.

Growing Your Email List

Truth #1: Email marketing is stronger than ever

Email open rates are 18% – 30%. Your first email open rate is closer to 58%.

People don’t buy or donate on Facebook, but they’ll share an email address with you via Facebook, which is HUGELY VALUABLE, because they *do* buy, and donate, via email.

The return on investment (ROI) for email is almost $41 per $1 spent, according to the Direct Marketing Association.

Email has nearly 3 times as many user accounts as Facebook and Twitter…combined. Email is how we do business.

Truth #2: You must provide value in exchange for an email address

First the bad news: Your newsletter subscription is no longer the “hot ticket” that will drive thousands of subscriptions. (Sorry)

The good news: Offering something of high value IS working like hotcakes to acquire an email addresses. What’s valuable is “what’s valuable to your target audience.” It might be a 20% off coupon, or free training webinar, or a training video, or a “cheat sheet,” or a free trial, or a video from the field showing the impact donors really have. High value doesn’t necessarily mean “high cost” to you. It just means valuable enough that your target customer will pony up their email address to get it.

The even better news: Some of these email opt-ins can be set to run on auto-pilot, so you’re collecting email addresses while you sleep. Targeted campaigns to acquire email addresses work, but it’s really nice to have a steady stream of new leads coming in and converting 24/7.

Truth #3: You have a lot of list-building choices that run the gamut from “low-cost to high-production”

All of these email opt-ins are working for entrepreneurs and nonprofits, RIGHT NOW. Some work better than others and how you implement these strategies makes or breaks your opt-in rates.

See any that would fit for you, and especially fit for your target audience?

Want to learn how to choose the right list building strategies to grow your list fast?

I’m holding my last FREE online training workshop this Thursday (tomorrow) at 9:00 am MT.

Download your workshop Action Guide here so you get the most out of Thursday’s workshop.