10 Ways To Grow Your Email List

I’ve written many posts over the years on email marketing because it remains one of the most effective ways to market your business. As the pandemic changed how we work and live, the volume of marketing emails dramatically increased because marketers needed to explore every avenue to stay connected with their customers.

In today’s post I’m looking at ways you can grow your list whether you’re just getting started in email marketing or whether it’s something you’re actively engaged in but would happily look at growing your list further.

Your website – make it easy to find and complete your sign-up form, too many questions might deter people so keep it simple and available throughout the site. All of the email service providers should offer the option for you to connect your system with your website so as a person is added they automatically join the list.

Customer reviews – there are many apps available that integrate with websites which enable people to review a product or service they purchased from you, some of these will allow you offer the option to include an email subscription box at this point too. In some instances you may have the option to follow-up a sale with an email requesting a review, offline this might be a review card – both with an optional email sign-up included.

Email signatures – think about how many emails you send in any given week? Are you using that space for anything more than just your contact information? If not, now’s the time to look at how you might ask for email sign-ups, a simple link to your sign-up form is very easily implemented and while there are apps that enable you to do this in most cases you should be in a position to do this for just a few minutes of your time.

QR Codes – these have become increasingly popular again in recent times, in the past week alone I’ve subscribed to a loyalty programme by simply scanning a code in a large retailer. You can use them in adverts, print materials, posters or window displays, on packaging or any place that potential customers might see a simple call to action where they need to scan the code to sign up and subscribe.

Your blog – if you’re not blogging now might be the time to start and once you’ve written some content that’s relevant to your audience and products or services, finish up with a simple call to action that asks readers to subscribe to your email list.

Referrals – with many of the email programmes you can share an email with a friend, to ensure that their privacy is protected the sender won’t see who you sent it to but the recipient who is that friend of your subscriber will have the option to sign up too. Often this isn’t used as fully as it could be and where price is a determining factor such as in the case of a special offer, that simple request to share can work more effectively than you might expect.

Lead magnets – you might know them as giveaways, freebies, downloadable, or incentives, essentially though these are items that can be anything from a video or podcast to a PDF or a mini-course that somebody who has the potential to become your customer wants and is happy to hand over their email in exchange for. It should relate to your business as this is your opportunity to have people learn a little more about what you offer or how you work so that they may look at what else you have on offer.

Competitions – yes you can ask people to like and share on your social media but the more effective competitions will give you as a business owner something more than a whole lot more comments or even some more likes on your account. Competitions should always relate to your business, tempting as it is might be to give away the latest gadget to generate interest if your business is professional services are you likely to attract people who are interested in your brand? If your competition is planned properly you can ask for email as part of the entry conditions with the option for people to opt into your mailing list.

Social media – add a sign-up button to your Facebook page, share a link on your Twitter account. Let people know you have an email list and what can be expected if people subscribe to it.

Offline – as we move forward throughout 2021 and into 2022 we will get back to events such as trade fairs, a prime spot for making connections, and where, if you’re organised you can ask people to sign up for your list. Another prime spot offline is your physical business location, use comment cards or a prize draw as a way of asking anybody who passes a point such as your reception.

There are many more options available and of course, where you can spend on ads to support your activities in this area you should see your list grow faster. However, today’s suggestions are places to get started and for little more than your own time in many cases.

When it comes to building a list there are regulations in relation to GDPR and Data Protection that you need to be mindful of, every person on your list for example must have given permission to join the list – an email service provider is invaluable in this area as they ensure your subscriptions are compliant with legislation. You can also speak with somebody who is familiar with this area too, even if you have to pay for a consultation it’s an investment that could save you a lot of headaches or worst case, fines, in the long term.

If you’d like to find out whether email marketing is a fit for your business, feel free to schedule a complimentary consultation with us at this link.

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