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Have you been drowning in Facebook groups and social media posts but still feel like you're hardly seeing any new visitors to your website? Social media may be the center of attention these days, but email marketing has consistently been a powerhouse when it comes to driving traffic and maintaining relationships with your customers.
So What is an Email List?
An email list is all of the email addresses your website has collected through opt-in forms. Don't have an opt-in form on your site? Now is a great time to add one! This list can be used to send offers, discounts, and any other information you want directly to your audience's inboxes.
Since the people on your email list have opted in to receive these updates, they care about your products or services. You'll find that your click-through rates are much higher in email than on social media because of this. The overall average of email click through rates in August 2020 was 7.17% vs a mere 0.9% for Facebook Ads. That data is an average across all industries, so your particular business may have a slightly higher or lower click-through rate, but the return on investment (ROI) power of email campaigns is undeniable.
What Are the Benefits of an Email List?
With 3.9 billion email users worldwide, your audience is definitely out there, checking their inboxes every day. According to Statista, this number is set to grow to 4.3 billion by 2023. If that's not enough incentive to start reaching out through email, here's a few more:
They are an inexpensive way to market your business.
Your audience has opted in. You know they are interested.
Customers check their email daily. An average of 20 times a day!
You can automate your emails, making less work for you.
Email marketing success is super easy to track.
It is simple to get started.
They reach your audience almost instantly.
Can You Buy an Email List?
The short answer? No. While it may seem incredibly tempting to grab a list with a lot of names on it from a website online, realistically the chances of that list being of any value to your business is very low. You'll see a large number of unsubscribes and higher bounce rates quickly.
Why?
Because an email list is compiled from groups of people with a common interest. Say you buy a list that belonged to an online graphic tee company that specialized in goofy pop culture shirts with a cartoony style. And your business makes high end, expensive dresses that one would wear to formal events. Sure it's still the clothing industry, but those are two completely different audiences.
Not only will you not be reaching consumers that actually want to buy your products, but the people you do reach will associate your business with bad practices. They'll wonder why they are receiving mail from someone they didn't opt in to. Nobody wants a bad reputation spreading around. It's important to build trust, and that begins with genuine, organic list building.
How Do You Build an Email List?
There are quite a few ways you can use to gather more emails for your list, and you can combine and test different methods to see what engages best with your target audience.
Opt-in forms on your website- I recommend having a form on every key page of your website so visitors see it no matter where they enter.
Posting info about your email campaigns on social media- Share your newsletters and updates on your Facebook business page and let people know what value they'll get from subscribing.
Engaging pop-ups on your website and landing pages- Catch the eye of consumers as they browse your site with images, surveys, or special offers for signing up.
Lead Magnets- Create a free offer packed with valuable information or small products that readers can get just for subscribing.
For some great tips on growing your email list, I recommend checking out Amy Porterfield's free podcast Online Marketing Made Easy available on Spotify. She has an informative video on the topic that can help generate ideas.
What Platform Should You Use to Build Your Email List?
There are a ton of platforms to choose from out there, both paid and free. It's important to consider the needs of your business and weigh the pros and cons of each before choosing the platform that is right for you. Here are a few I would recommend taking a look at.
1. Mailchimp
2. Drip.com
Are You Ready to Build Your Email List?
With so many ways to market your business it can be difficult to decide where to begin, but building an email list is an amazing and inexpensive tool that every business should take advantage of. Compiling an email list of consumers that are interested in your products or services and creating strong, well-targeted email campaigns can create a steady stream of revenue for your business.
No matter what stage you're at in building your business, it's never a bad time to start. Need ideas to kick things off? Get with a professional to make sure your message meets the right ears (or eyes) and makes them click that opt-in button. Don't wait, start building your email list today!
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