However, email remains one of the most powerful forms of business communication. That\u2019s why just about every social media platform requires you to have an email to sign up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this post, I\u2019ll share compelling reasons why and how you should build your email list. More specifically, I\u2019ll talk about these 2 topics in detail:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Why Email Marketing Is Still Effective<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- How to Build Your Email List (Step-by-Step)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
Related Content<\/b> Email Marketing vs. Social Media: Which One Is Better?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why Email Marketing Is Still Effective<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Let me share my personal experience with email marketing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I dabbled with email marketing a few years ago when I was freelancing for one of my clients in the SaaS domain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Growing an email list from scratch was daunting, especially since I was more adept at helping other clients build their content marketing strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I knew an email list would pay us off handsomely in the long run. So I partnered with other in-house marketers working for the company to start building their email list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our first attempt at an optin form was, well, let’s just say underwhelming. A generic \u2018subscribe for updates\u2019 didn’t exactly scream value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, after researching email marketing best practices<\/a> and testing different approaches, I created a lead magnet<\/a> (a free eBook) that resonated with our target audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The results were great!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Email signups skyrocketed a few weeks after we launched. More importantly, the leads we attracted were highly engaged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This early win solidified my belief in the power of a good email marketing strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Later, I helped the SaaS client set up different campaign types, list segmentation strategies<\/a>, and even launch an email newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There have been a few bumps along the road. A few subject lines landed with a thud and a poorly timed campaign once clogged inboxes and resulted in a few unsubscribes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To be fair, even experts confess that they make email marketing mistakes<\/a> early on in their careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But those experiences have been valuable lessons that I\u2019m willing to share with you today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For most business owners, email lists can yield dramatic rewards. According to Litmus<\/a>, email offers $36 for every marketing dollar spent<\/a> on average. That means email marketing drives a higher return on investment (ROI) than any other marketing channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You certainly can\u2019t say the same about your social media marketing campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s one of my favorite case studies on how email offers the best ROI:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before using OptinMonster, Stays.net<\/a> only converted 1% of blog visitors to their email list. However, after the brand succeeded with its email list, it converted an average of 39.74% of visitors into trial users<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This campaign on their site, for instance, converts 37.21% of abandoning visitors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"mailing](\"https:\/\/optinmonster.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/email-list_stays-min.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Besides high ROI, email marketing also has 3 distinct advantages over other communication channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Email is direct:<\/strong>\u00a0Every person on your mailing list receives an email the same way that they would receive a mail piece. It\u2019s much different than finding a piece of content in a newsfeed, even if it\u2019s personalized.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Email is necessary:<\/strong>\u00a0You can go for a few days without checking social media or video chatting with your friends and family. But\u00a028% of people check their inbox more than 10 times a day<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Email is highly customizable:<\/strong>\u00a0You can create a direct mail campaign on any subject, and add all kinds of bells and whistles to get the job done.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s also incredibly inexpensive and well-documented by email marketing experts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Secret To a Great Marketing Campaign: A Great Mailing List<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
You can\u2019t just start emailing people randomly and expect to see great results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The best campaigns start with the best lists, so building a targeted mailing list should be your #1 priority. Even great email campaigns<\/a>, with brilliant design, engaging copies, and unique value propositions can fall short if your mailing list isn\u2019t in order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You should have 3 main priorities for building a quality list. These include, in this exact order of priority:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Quality:<\/strong>\u00a0You want real information from real people who check their email frequently.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Relevance:<\/strong>\u00a0These people should be genuinely interested in your brand and industry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Volume:<\/strong>\u00a0If the first 2 priorities are squared away, you can start focusing on quantity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
A Word of Warning<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Based on what I said in the preceding section, you might get ahead of yourself, thinking that the faster you build a big list, the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You may even turn to an online source that promises you thousands of email subscribers for a relatively small amount of money. Don\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Buying email lists from list brokers is a bad idea<\/a>. You rarely get what you pay for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most of the subscribers will have old or fake email addresses, and the few who don\u2019t probably aren\u2019t interested in your services. Add in the possibility of getting flagged as a spammer, and you can see plainly why it\u2019s almost always a bad investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Interested in learning more about what email marketing is and how it works? Here\u2019s a great video by my colleague Timothy Johnson<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Relevance:<\/strong>\u00a0These people should be genuinely interested in your brand and industry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Email is necessary:<\/strong>\u00a0You can go for a few days without checking social media or video chatting with your friends and family. But\u00a028% of people check their inbox more than 10 times a day<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- How to Build Your Email List (Step-by-Step)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n