How can my company easily and effectively collect email addresses?
A high-quality email list is worth its weight in gold. But growing an in-house email list may be surprisingly easier than you think, said Proven Systems' President, Marc Dube.
To boost sign-ups for your email newsletter or general mailing list, simply include an offer with an attractive benefit. Consider giving new subscribers a free report, product samples, promotional items or an initial consultation for your services. As another approach, you could promote intangible benefits like having access to the latest important company news, valuable industry information, discounts or even a contest entry.
But every business is different. So tailor your offer with a benefit that will make the most sense for your company and newsletter audience. Just be sure what you're offering has enough real or perceived value to motivate a positive response. Remember, your goal is to generate a fair, mutually-satisfying trade.
Exchanging benefits for email addresses offers multiple advantages. It can make your sign-up request more appealing, add intrinsic value to your email newsletter and drive valuable subscribers to your database. This type of value-added propositioning creates a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Whenever you ask for addresses in an email promotion, on your Web site or during a sales call, don't just say: "Sign up." Instead, say something like, "Sign up and receive …". Add value to your offer by explaining exactly what people will receive in return for their email address. Stoke their interest and whet their desire so they'll take action and subscribe.
What if you don't have a value-added eNewsletter? Unfortunately, attempting to grow your mailing list without one can be more difficult, Dube states. Here are three reasons why:
- It's difficult to create a clear and concise value statement without having a defined newsletter name or without knowing the value it brings to readers.
- Without knowing what information will be sent to their customers and prospects, members of your sales and other teams will be unsure whether it will help or hinder their efforts. As a result, they will be reluctant to participate in promoting your mailing list.
- There's no clear purpose for a mailing list. Once your team understands the overall intelligence behind the strategy of creating an email newsletter, they will quickly come on board and start collecting subscriber email addresses.
Once you've added new subscribers to your mailing list, don't stop there. Make it easy and worth their while for them to help you grow your database. Include a handy link or form, so subscribers can easily forward your eNewsletter to a friend or recommend others who may be interested in joining your list. Offer additional benefits to compensate them for their cooperation. Best of all, continue to find new ways to delight, educate and add value to your target market.
Easy List Building Strategies
Here are five tips for creating an effective sign-up offer for your mailing list:
- Keep it simple – Limit your offer to one or two items.
- Keep it clear – Tell people exactly what they will receive for signing up.
- Make it easy – Provide a link or sign-up box, so subscribers can easily respond.
- Make it interesting – Dangle a "carrot" that will be enticing to your specific audience.
- Make it valuable – While value is relative, your offer should have tangible or intrinsic worth and should be compensatory to the value of your sale.
The bottom line: if you market a tempting benefit with your sign-up offer, you'll find that 90 to 95 percent of your customers and prospects will be glad to cooperate. Don't worry about the ones who don't; their lack of response will give you a more pre-qualified list. Remember, attaching a value-added benefit to sign-ups is an inexpensive, easy and effective way to build your database. So don't miss out on the benefit of using this strategy with your email newsletter!
To learn more about how to use value-added offers to effectively collect email addresses, email Proven Systems Corp. or call 970-223-6565. |
