Last Updated on February 3, 2023
If you’re reading this, you’re probably looking to start an email list for your business. And let me tell you, having an email list is essential in today’s digital world. It lets you connect directly with your audience, build trust and credibility, and, in the end, sell more.
I know, starting an email list from scratch can seem like a big task, but trust me, it’s not as complicated as it seems. In fact, you can have your email list up and running in no time. And the best part about starting from scratch? You have full control over your list, and you can customize your email marketing strategy to fit your target audience.
In this blog post, I’ll guide you through the steps of building an email list from scratch. We’ll cover the following:
- Defining your target audience
- Offering incentives to encourage sign-ups
- Choosing the right email service provider
- Creating a sign-up form
- Promoting your sign-up form
- Sending emails
- Monitoring and refining your email list.
By the end of this, you’ll have a solid foundation for your email list and start seeing the results of your email marketing efforts. So, let’s get started!
🔑 Key Takeaways (TL;DR)
- To build an email list, start by defining your target audience and creating a buyer persona.
- Offer incentives such as freebies and exclusive content to encourage sign-ups.
- Choose the right email service provider that fits your needs and integrates with your website.
- Create a simple and attractive sign-up form and promote it through social media, guest posts, and referrals.
- Develop a content strategy and start sending emails, monitoring and refining your approach over time.
- Be consistent, genuine, and transparent with your subscribers; segment your email list; and use A/B testing to refine your approach.
- Building an email list takes time and patience, but by following these steps, you can grow a strong, engaged email list that drives results for your business.
🚀 Define Your Target Audience
The first step in building an email list from scratch is to define your target audience. This is crucial, as it helps you tailor your email marketing strategy to their needs and interests.
Identifying your ideal customer is the first step in defining your target audience. Ask yourself questions like, “Who would benefit from your products or services?” Who would be interested in your content? Who are your current customers, and what do they have in common? This will help you get a clear picture of who you’re targeting and make it easier for you to create content that resonates with them.
Once you have a clear picture of your ideal customer, it’s time to determine their pain points and needs. This involves understanding the challenges and problems they face daily and how your products or services can help solve them. For example, if you’re selling skincare products, your target audience may have skin issues like dryness, acne, or aging. Understanding these pain points will help you create content that speaks directly to them and shows them how your products can help.
Finally, create a buyer persona. A buyer persona is a made-up version of your ideal customer based on what you know about them so far. This will help you clearly understand your target audience’s needs, interests, and pain points. When creating a buyer persona, give them a name, age, occupation, hobbies, and any other relevant information. This will make it easier for you to create content that resonates with them and makes them feel like you understand their needs.
🚀 Offer Incentives to Encourage Sign-Ups
Alright, let’s talk about offering incentives to encourage sign-ups. When you’re trying to get people to join your email list, it’s helpful to give them a little extra push by offering something valuable in return. This way, they’ll be more likely to hand over their email address and become subscribers.
So, what kind of incentives can you offer? A popular option is to give away freebies like an e-book, checklist, or discount code. These should be related to your niche and provide real value to your target audience. For example, if you’re all about skincare, you could create a free e-book filled with skincare tips or a checklist that helps people get the best skin of their lives. These freebies will not only attract more subscribers, but they’ll also help you build trust and establish yourself as an expert.
Another way to incentivize sign-ups is by offering exclusive content and offers. This could be anything from early access to new products, behind-the-scenes looks, or special promotions. This type of content is not only valuable, but it’s also exclusive, which makes it even more enticing. People love to feel special and like they’re getting something that others aren’t, so exclusive content and offers can be a powerful tool for getting more sign-ups.
And finally, you can offer access to a closed Facebook group. This is a great way to provide a sense of community and connect with your subscribers on a more personal level. In the Facebook group, you can share content that is only available to subscribers, answer questions, and talk with them. This builds trust and gives you a place to talk with your subscribers and keep them interested.
🚀 Choose the Right Email Service Provider
The next step in building an email list from scratch is to choose the right email service provider (ESP). An ESP online platform allows you to manage your email list, create and send emails, and track your results. There are many popular ESPs to choose from, so it’s important to do your research and choose the one that’s right for you.
When comparing popular email service providers, you’ll want to consider factors such as cost, ease of use, features, and integrations. Some popular ESPs include Mailchimp, ConvertKit, AWeber, and Drip. Each of these ESPs has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it’s important to compare them and choose the one that best fits your needs.
When choosing an ESP, there are several key features to consider. For example, you’ll want to look for an ESP that offers an easy-to-use email editor, allows you to segment your email list, and provides robust reporting and analytics. You’ll also want to choose an ESP that offers good customer support and a good reputation in the market.
It’s also important to choose an ESP that integrates well with your website. This will allow you to easily collect email addresses from your website visitors and add them to your email list. You’ll also be able to create and manage your opt-in forms and landing pages from within your ESP, making the process of building your email list much easier.
🚀 Create a Sign-Up Form
Okay, let’s talk about creating a sign-up form. This is one of the key elements in building your email list from scratch. You want your sign-up form to be super user-friendly so that people will actually fill it out and become subscribers.
First, let’s talk about design. You want your form to look good, right? So, make sure it’s visually appealing and matches the overall feel of your website. And keep it simple! The easier it is for people to fill out, the better. Also, don’t forget a clear call-to-action to encourage sign-ups.
Next, placement is crucial. You want your form to be in a place where it’s easy to find, like the header or footer of your site. Consider putting it on multiple pages, like your homepage, about page, and blog.
Lastly, it’s important to optimize your form for conversions. This means making sure it’s not asking for too much information and that it’s easy to fill out. It’s always a good idea to try out different versions of the form and see what works best. Continuously make improvements over time.
🚀 Promote Your Sign-Up Form
The next step is to publicize your sign-up form. In order to get people to sign up, they need to know that your form exists. And that’s where promoting it comes in.
Social media platforms are a great way to get the word out about your form. Share the link to your form on your social media accounts and encourage your followers to sign up. You can also run social media ads targeting your ideal audience to drive more traffic to your form.
Utilizing guest posts and collaborations is another effective way to promote your sign-up form. Reach out to bloggers and websites in your niche and offer to write a guest post for their site in exchange for promoting your site. You can also collaborate with other businesses and offer each other’s email lists as a bonus for signing up.
Offering exclusive bonuses for referrals is another great way to promote your sign-up form. Encourage your subscribers to sign up for their friends and family by giving them a discount code or access to exclusive content for each successful referral.
🚀 Start Sending Emails
Now that you’ve built your email list, it’s time to start sending emails to your subscribers.
First off, let’s talk about the kind of content you’ll be sending. What do you want to share with your subscribers? What will they find valuable? You can send all sorts of things, like blog posts, updates, exclusive offers, and promotions. Just make sure you have a solid plan in place so your emails are always on-brand and align with your subscribers’ interests.
Next up, how often will you be sending emails? Will it be daily, weekly, or monthly? You don’t want to overwhelm your subscribers with too many emails, but you also want to make sure you’re staying top of mind. It’s a delicate balance!
And finally, let’s talk about personalizing and segmenting your emails. This is where you get to use all your information about your subscribers, like their location, interests, and behavior, to make your emails super relevant and effective. You can even send targeted messages to specific groups within your list. This way, your subscribers feel like they’re receiving a message just for them rather than a generic one.
🚀 Monitor and Refine Your Email List
Alright, the last thing we need to talk about is monitoring and refining your email list. It’s important to keep track of how your emails are performing and make changes as needed.
First, you’ll want to track your open and click-through rates. This will give you an idea of how well your emails resonate with your subscribers. If your open rates are low, it might be time to rethink your subject lines. If your click-through rates are low, maybe you need to make your calls-to-action more compelling.
Next, you can use A/B testing to refine your approach. This is where you test two versions of an email to see which one performs better. For example, you might send one email with the subject line “Get our latest update” to half your subscribers and send another email with the subject line “Don’t miss out on our latest news” to the other half. Then, you compare the open rates of both emails to see which subject line was more effective.
Finally, it’s important to keep your list clean and up-to-date. You’ll want to remove inactive subscribers and ensure all of your subscribers’ information is accurate. You can even use an email verification service to ensure your list is accurate. By keeping your list clean, you’ll be able to send more targeted and effective emails.
✍🏽 Conclusion
Building an email list from scratch takes time and effort, but it’s worth it. Consistency and patience are key. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see immediate results; it takes time to grow a strong, engaged email list.
Here are a few final thoughts and tips for success:
- Be genuine and transparent with your subscribers. They signed up because they trust you and want to hear from you.
- Segment your email list based on subscriber behavior and interests. This will allow you to send targeted, relevant emails that your subscribers will be more likely to engage with.
- Experiment with different email formats, subject lines, and calls to action. Find what works best for your audience.
- Keep your emails short and sweet. Your subscribers are busy people, so make sure your emails are easy to read and get straight to the point.
And there you have it! Building an email list from scratch may seem overwhelming at first, but by following these steps and being consistent, you’ll be able to grow a strong, engaged email list that drives results for your business. Good luck!
