Is there Really Money in the Email List?!
You may have heard marketers and business coaches say, “the money is in the list.”
But what the heck does that mean?
What is the type of list?
And why is there money in the list?
First, what is the list they are referring to? The expression refers to an email list. An email-list is people who have opted in or gave you their name and email address in exchange for your free offer/lead=magnent and agreed that they want to receive emails from you.
How is there money in the email list?
Because people on your email list are your ideal client, they are ready and willing to buy from you. As a matter of fact, HubSpot says, businesses typically see $38 in profit for every $1 spent on email marketing; that is a Huge ROI (Return on Investment), and from my years working behind the scenes, on average, every person on your email ist should equal to $1 per month or more in your bank account if you are marketing and selling the right products and services.
Your email list is one of the most profitable business assets you can build.
Why should you invest in building an email list?
Email marketing is effective because an email address is similar to having a post box that you receive physical mail-in; you are just receiving electronic mail instead.
Think about how much money has been spent over the years in snail mail-marketing, those flyers, and postcards you have received in your mailbox.
Why do businesses use that type of marketing? Because It worked, and it still does..but it is much more cost-effective to market via email
IF someone is online, they have an email address; you need an email address as soon as you set up your new devices now days. But you also need an email address to set up your social media accounts, leave a review, or set up online billing.
Many people (IE me…) have more than one email account; they might have a personal email address and another one for work.
And if you have an email address for your job or business, guess what they are checking it every day, and at that several times a day, and often from their mobile devices anywhere they are.
So what does that mean for you? It means you can easily be in front of your ideal client within moments of sending an email and potentially make a sale.
Why Email Marketing and Not Just Social Media
You probably have heard a rumor that email marketing is dead…especially in some marketing to market you the latest and great social media marketing tools or programs.
To put it simply, it is just not true.
Here is the problem with your followers on social media; you don't own them. In essence, you are “renting” space from social media accounts to get your marketing message out there.
So if Facebook don't like a post you put up, they can close your account down with no warning, even if you have 300,000 followers.
I have even seen “Spam” accounts take over and take down Instagram accounts for endless months as the business owner battles their account's authenticity. Even though this is beyond your control…they lose touch with their followers, and guess what that means?
You have to start all over from scratch, building your audience.
But with an email list- you have the contact information of your subscribers. IF your website goes down, if social media goes away, you will still have a way to make the sale and bring in the money.
How do you build an email list?
First, you will need to decide what service you want to use to store your subscribers' names and emails. ALL of the options below allow you to export all of your contacts if you ever decide to move email providers or even take a pause in your business.
Here are just a few options:
Some of these services will give you a free trial, but when you're just starting, most of these are under $25.00 per month (except Keap, which is a much more sophisticated program)
Can You Add Your Friends, Family to Your Email List?
Once you have an account and set up your list, you'll need to get subscribers.
But it is not as simple as buying an email list or even looking up email addresses online. I do not recommend that you import your contacts of family and friends to your email list. If you want to send them a personal email telling them what you are up to and inviting them to your website or opt-in page that is different.
The idea behind an email list is that they want to hear from you, learn from you; they are your ideal customer. And most importantly, they gave you consent to contact them via email marketing.
Also, most countries have specific spam laws, and if you do not follow those laws, your emails will more than likely never reach their inbox, and worse, you can get fined.
If you live within the US, familiarize yourself with the CAN-SPAM Act. If you are outside the US should check with their local legislation to see which regulations apply.
How do you get people on your email list?
Years ago, you could put a form on your website and just ask people if they wanted to subscribe for updates.
But then what started happening is people were getting so many emails, and those people who had nothing better to do with their time were sending a ton of spam mail (think of a physical email box stuffed with junk mail, definitely not as fun to go to the mailbox as it is when you have a letter from a friend or grandma or do you remember those free gifts you could enter to win and you waited for them to arrive in the snail mail)
So people started getting smart, and now they are extremely careful of who they share their email address with. This means your marketing to get their email address has to be smart too. You need to offer them something of value in return for their email address, kind of like a barter system.
You could offer:
- Exclusive Discount
- Ebooks
- Reports
- Video Course
- Quiz
- A worksheet
- A checklist
- a Video
- A planner page
- An affirmations list
- A list of tips or hacks
- Recipe
- Menu Plans
- Workout Video
When offering a free gift, the important thing is to make it relevant to your website and what you are selling.
For example, if you train animals to behave, and that is what your website is about, and the service you sell, the people visiting your website are not going to want a report on SEO.
Ensure your opt-in gift/(lead magnet/trust trigger) matches what you plan to offer later off to your list. If you want to sell a Weight Loss Meal Plans, try a sample meal plan with recipes. IF your opt-in /lead magnet/trust trigger)gift is relevant, you will attract potential buyers.
What Is an Opt-In Page Anyways?
The best way to get visitors to share their email address is to have a dedicated opt-in page. This is sometimes called a “lead magnet page or what I personally prefer a “Trust Trigger.” because often times it is the first experience your ideal client/customer has with you.
I know all these names might be confusing you, but basically—it's still a free gift you're offering subscribers.
Your Opt-In Page should be pretty simple, a picture of the gift, a paragraph or two describing the gift, or maybe a video and a place for the visitors to the page to enter their name and email.
I have found the simpler pages have a higher conversion rate.
Your Opt-in Page should not have a normal navigation area. (Home/Blog/Services etc.)
The only option a visitor should have on the page is to signup, or click away. Remember, a confused mind does nothing; we want to make it stupid simple for them with no distractions on the page.
Your Submit button should not just be “submit”; it should give them instructions like “Yes, I want immediate access!”
What is a Good Optin Gift/Trust Trigger/Lead Magnet?
The best thing you can use is something that will help them reach their goals and makes them wanting more.
If you are a Life Coach, you will want to offer them something too simple to consume that they can apply in their daily life right away. This might be one of my favorites (and one of the highest converting) a checklist. That checklist could then reference a $27 product that is a self-help program you have created.
When you have a good opt-in gift, it makes them want more and lead your subscribers to your next offer. EVEN if the next offer is FREE like a webinar, it really depends on your audience.
IT has been said in the past, and I still believe it is true most sales come after 7 touches, meaning they have read your emails, watch your videos, downloaded your free offers, and attended your webinars at least a total of 7 times before they purchase
Your opt-in gift shouldn't give them everything. But it should make them excited!
Here are a few of my favorites:
- Quiz
- A worksheet
- A checklist
- a Video
- A planner page
- An affirmations list
- A list of tips or hacks
- Recipe
- Menu Plans
- Workout Video
- Exclusive Discount
- Ebooks
- Reports
- Video Course
Most of these gifts are easy to make and don't require a lot of time to create. In fact, your worksheet could be as simple as 3-5 questions.
Canva makes it super simple and has tons of templates to help you create a beautiful Opt-In gift within minutes.
How do you make money with your subscribers?
Once you have your Opt-In page and your amazing gift created.
You can start to build an email list on the service you chose. Your list might build slow or fast depending on how much time you put into marketing or if you do paid marketing, but that is another post.
But the goal is to turn subscribers into buyers.
Check Out these post to help you learn how to make money from your email list
