Sales & Marketing Authority, Bestselling Author & Business Motivational Speaker

How to Build an E-mail List

When I first started out in business I was impressed at the effectiveness of e-mail marketing, but I soon realized that even the best laid out plan will be ineffective if there isn’t a list of e-mail addresses to use in the campaign. Sadly, it isn’t a matter of simply compiling a list of all of the e-mail addresses you can find. I quickly learned that putting together an effective e-mail list takes a good bit of quality time and effort.

It is important to remain professional and ethical when compiling a list of names for your marketing list. There are dozens of companies who pride themselves on tricking potential clients into joining because those people don’t realize that they have to opt out in order to not be included. These companies will follow one of two main methods, both of which are sneaky but likely things you have seen before:

• Their forms will have a list of documents and newsletters and you’ll have to check the box if you do NOT want to receive them. Most people think they have to check boxes to opt-in, so they usually misread the fine print.
• They’ll have a checkbox asking if you want to opt in, but it will be pre-filled and you’ll have to notice and uncheck the box to stay off the list.

This is NOT an effective way of building an e-mail marketing list. You want clients who are interested in what you have to say, and you’ll only be wasting your breath if you end up compiling a list of people who are going to be frustrated at seeing your “junk mail” in their inboxes everyday.

There are a few simple things you can do to effectively build your e-mail list to include people who want to hear what you have to say:

• Ask politely. This may seem silly but it’s the easiest thing to do. “Would you like to sign up for my e-mail list? I send an educational newsletter once a month – no spam!”
• If you are using offline forms, include a box that needs to be checked on your regular forms or leave a signup sheet in a high-traffic area of your store or office.
• Place a signup box on your website and/or include an unchecked box on your order page so that your clients have the option of receiving even more of your FREE and valuable information!

List building will take some time and effort, but if you ask for e-mail addresses the right way you’ll get better results and eventually have access to a relatively large targeted niche group. Now that’s marketing!

Happy Marketing!

Sean

Sean McPheat

Marketing Consultant - Internet Marketing Consultant - Sales Expert