Email! It’s everywhere and everyone has one. It’s not the new kid on the block and it seems like you should focus all your attention on Social Media. But what if I told you, the money is in the list?
In today’s episode, we’re talking about email marketing, the dos, the don’ts and what you need to get started. If you’re writing a book, starting a blog, or wanting to make money online, you need an email list. This list will be your gold card and each person on your list becomes your most loyal follower.
When I started blogging in 2009, I didn’t think I needed an email list. I thought I would build my following on Facebook. Today, that has changed. I feel as if I’m starting from scratch and building my email list from nothing. But the fact remains, this list drives more traffic to my blog and has purchased my books.
When I launched my previous book, I gained a few followers. I marketed the book heavily, but it was my email list that purchased my book. I made more money from those on my email list than the cold buyers on social media. That was the day I realized, I needed to build my list.
So why should you focus on your list?
1. Collect email addresses, and give them something valuable. Email is gold. People guard their email address and don’t hand it out to just anyone. This is why we should offer something of value in return for their email address.
This single action of getting someone to opt-in to your email create a valued member of your community. If someone is getting your regular blog updates in their email inbox, they’ll be more likely to read your posts than those on Social Media. People are looking for value in their lives, and if you can provide that value through email, they’ll be your most loyal follower.
2. Email followers tell you your message is valued. When someone joins your mailing list, they’re telling you “I care about your message.” They want you. It’s like dating and you finally muster the courage to ask her to marry you. If she says yes, she’s devoted to you. That’s how I view the email follower. When they sign up, they’re giving you access into their lives via the email inbox.
3. Email grows slower than social media followers. I”ve often been frustrated that my email list isn’t growing as fast as I want. The reason, email eliminates those who don’t care. I want high-quality followers. And having an email list allows me to weed out those who don’t care. Email gives me the power to enter someone’s life and give them deeper value.
Your list will grow slow. Social Media is like wind, it’s always there, and there’s a lot of noise. Email is closer to rain. It arrives in its time, but its life-giving water brings growth and nurturing. When someone’s on your mailing list, nurture them and give them something deeper than just your weekly blog posts. Help them grow as an individual.
How do I get started?
1. Sign up for an email marketing solution provider. When I started with email marketing, I had no clue I needed a provider. I thought I’d just collect email addresses in Gmail and email from there. Which is what I did. This is a bad idea, in fact, it’s illegal.
If you don’t want to be on the wrong side of the law, you need an account. There are several options available, but the one I highly recommend is ConvertKit. For the low price of $30 a month, you get access to one of the most powerful email marketing providers on the internet.
It is from this provider you send emails to your list, telling them about all the great things you’re doing, and the best part, they can forward and reply back to you, just like regular email. The other thing, according to law, they can unsubscribe if they desire. With Gmail, they can’t unsubscribe and if Gmail catches you marketing using that account, they’ll close your account. So, to avoid that, sign up with ConvertKit.
2. Get a P.O. Box. All email marketing emails require an address at the bottom of every email. In 2003 Congress passed a law called the CAN-SPAM ACT. The idea of this law was to eliminate or help widdle down the amount of junk mail. This is why all emails need to have an unsubscribe link and a physical address.
This is why I highly recommend a P.O. Box, otherwise you’re home mailing address will be available for everyone on your email list. I decided to keep my home safe and protected by getting that P.O. Box and they’re cheap. I pay $60/year.
3. Create an optin freebie. Sure, you can simply ask people to sign up for your email newsletter, but the majority of people want something in return for their email address. I offer a few different free things. You can choose between them, or sign up for all of them.
The main thing, I’m giving people who sign up something in return for their email address. I suggest taking your most popular blog posts and creating a free ebook download. Whenever someone signs up, they get that download and you get their name and address.
4. Place an optin form on your website. Companies like ConvertKit or MailChimp – which is free for 2,000 subscribers allow you to place a little bit of code on your website to give you an optin form. I suggest using simply a name and email. You don’t need anything else. You can even make it simpler and just do email.
a simple form on your site gives visitors an easy way to sign up for your emails. It’s free to add these to your website and I recommend you place them in several locations: Sidebar, Footer, and every blog post. This gives people plenty of opportunities to sign up if they want.
Whatever you do, get some from of email marketing up and running. If you sign up for ConvertKit, you get a 30-day money back guarantee. This one thing will change your blog and will give you loyal followers who will be dripping with anticipation with every word you write.
[reminder]Have you ever thought about email marketing before today?[/reminder]
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Jason (J.B.) Sisam. Best-selling Amazon author of the Christian Early Reader book, 
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