Why You Need An Email List And How To Build It

by | May 17, 2022

Having an email list is a must for every business. Let me explain why…

With billions, yes billions of people using the internet around the globe, email marketing is still one of the most effective tools for building trust with prospective customers — and eventually earning their business.

An email list is one of the most effective ways to ensure that your clients [current and potential] will hear about sales, new products, and other relevant news.

Let’s face the facts: building an email list from scratch is hard. But it doesn’t have to be.

The most effective way to start building your email list so you can grow your audience, nurture leads, and turn followers into customers is to create a lead magnet.

Think about this: You’ve created a killer piece of content. You’re ready to use it to build an email list, but you’re unsure how to get started. You create a lead magnet, and prompt visitors to opt-in in exchange for it, but what should you offer? Do you give away a free checklist or something more substantial?

Remember, lead magnets are a clever way for a ‘freebie’ to become a lead generation tool.

The goal of every inbound marketing campaign is to generate leads, and to ensure you can capture these leads over time you’re going to need a series of well built lead magnets. You’ll want to ensure your lead magnet offers more value than just something that’s centered on your business.

Have you ever wondered what lead magnets work best for you? Are they PDFs, checklists, cheatsheets, or something else entirely? Need some help getting started  – Reach out. Let’s identify which one would work best for you and your business.

Easy win: if you have an existing product that is doing well and generating a lot of traffic, then it may be more worth your while to write up some additional content on a less exciting topic (but related) to present to the fans of your product (or service). This is especially true if you can create great content that adds value for your customers (and potential customers), such as a tutorial or other resource that gives them more ideas on how to apply your product.

Still not convinced you should start building an email list? Here’s why: according to Custora E-Commerce Pulse, email accounted for 19.8% of all transactions – trailing only paid search (19.9%) and organic traffic (21.8%).

If you’ve read this entire blog and you’re sitting starring at the screen trying to compare email marketing, social media marketing and content marketing — let me be clear…none of these methods are mutually exclusive. By themselves, they are not very powerful. When combined though, the magic happens. But that’s a conversation for another time.

So, you created a lead magnet. Now what? Tell people about it. Don’t sit back and hope that potential customers stumble upon it.

Of course there are welcome emails to write and catchy subject lines to craft — if you have an email list but don’t send emails or worse yet, send emails that no one opens, well that’s another conversation for another day.

Allow yourself to embrace the challenge. I’ve yet to meet a person who doesn’t enjoy a good challenge. Overcoming obstacles is deeply satisfying. Check your ego at the door and let your mindset be one of growth.

Remember, whether you are a small business owner or a big brand, emailing subscribers is one of the most powerful ways to nurture leads and turn fans into customers.

Feeling overwhelmed? If so, don’t be. I completely understand where you are at, because there are so many questions and options for lead magnets, it can be tough to decide where to start. I’ve been using lead magnets for awhile now and would be happy to help you out. We’ll talk about your pain points and where you’re struggling with a lead magnet. We’ll also make sure we understand your goal with a lead magnet and how it’s helping that particular goal. Go ahead and book a 15 minute discovery call.