If you have been on the internet for long enough, chances are you have read at least one “Email is dead” article. Email is indeed old and un-sexy compared to those social media channels, but it is not dead.
Emails are the most direct line of communication you have with your customer and your best chance with converting leads to sales.
Email lists are often overlooked. Most businesses don’t realize the importance of it when they’re starting. They usually realize their mistake when they see the impact of an email list on someone else’s traffic and revenue.
If you are considering starting an email list and still not convinced why you need it. This article is for you.
In this article, I will show you 10 reasons why should start building the email list today. We will have a look at what you need to start an email list and how you can get started today.
What’s an email list?
An email list is a collection of email addresses that your business can create by engaging with potential customers through lead-generating campaigns.
You can grow your email list as your business collects contact information from the website visitors and it will shrink as the members unsubscribe from the email list.
Why list building is important?
Everything you do – the social media posts, blogs, PPC ads, SEO, remarketing, and the videos are intended to bring visitors to your website. When they get your site you need to continue communicating with them. Instead of those overcrowded social media platforms, you need something superior, something personal.
Here’s are the 10 reasons why you should start building your email list
1. You own your email list
You don’t own your followers on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter. You have no control over those companies. A change in their policies or an algorithm could break your business overnight. Unlike those platforms, you own and have absolute control over your email list.
2. Email is personal
A person’s email inbox personal to him. There is no middle man. No algorithm prevents them from getting your message. No ranking system to limit your reach and no one can shut down your account take them from you. It means a lot if they allow your email to be in their inbox.
3. You can send targeted emails specific to audience interests
You can send targeted emails to your subscribers based on their interest criteria. This makes your emails personalized and more relevant to your subscribers. These segmented emails can be based on their location, gender, interests, purchase history, and much more.
4. The easiest way to keep in touch
You want to make sure your audience receives what you’re sharing with them. Not everyone checks your blog every day. But your audiences are probably checking their emails every single day. You need to be in front of them, not the other way around. Emails are the easiest way to share anything with your audience and keep in touch.
5. Engagement is higher
Comparing with the social media platforms emails have a higher engagement rate. The average click-through rate for Twitter rarely tops 1.64%. According to Campaign Monitor, the average click-through rate for emails are from 1% to 5%. Combining with the fact that triggered emails get an average 45.70% open rate you can see why emails have higher engagement.
6. Your list expects to hear from you
If you’re worried about sending emails to your customers too often, you should know that your customers expect to hear from you. They’re happy to hear from you via email. According to Statista, 49% of consumers said that they would like to receive promotional emails from their favorite brands every week.
7. Higher ROI
Even though social media gets a lot of attention, the email list is the most valuable digital channel. Emails beat every other form of online marketing in terms of ROI. DMA estimates, for every $1 you spend on email marketing, you have an average return of $42.
8. More likely to buy from you
When someone subscribes to your email list, they sign up for your emails on your website and (probably) confirmed that subscription on another email you’ve sent them. They dig you and they mean business. They’re not some faceless account on Twitter. They are real and they might be interested in whatever it is that you’re selling.
9. Made for business
You are competing with fun on social media platforms. Whenever someone checks their Instagram or Facebook they want to see pictures, videos, and fun status updates from their family and friends. Their timeline is filled with updates users don’t mind seen publicly. As consumers, we tend to be more receptive to things in our email inbox because it is filled with things that we elect to see with some privacy.
10. More popular than social media
According to Ipsos, nearly 85% of people who use the web will use email, compared to only 62% who use social networking sites. This 62% is all the social media platforms combined, which means individual platforms have less audience than you think.
How can you start?
Now that you know what’s an email list is and why it is important for your business let’s have a look at how you can start one.
You will need 3 things to start your email list
- A Website
- An email marketing service
- An irresistible offer
A Website
The website is the place where your potential list members will assemble.
You can easily create a website with WordPress by signing up with hosting solutions like Bluehost or WPengine.
If you don’t want to have a huge website you can just start your email list with a landing page. The landing page is a single webpage with an opt-in form to signup for the email list. You can create landing page websites with landing page builders like Leadpages and Unbounce.
An email marketing service
You are going to need an email marketing service to communicate with your email list. There are a lot of email marketing services out there but every platform has 2 simple purpose
- Organize your email list
- Send emails
As your email marketing grows, you’re going to need a lot more features like sequencing, segmentation, and drip campaigns, etc. For starters, you need to focus on collecting the address safely and legitimately.
You can start with simple and inexpensive platforms like Mailchimp and Mailerlite.
An irresistible offer
Regardless of your offer and industry, people need a reason to join your email list. You wouldn’t want to give your email list unless you get something in exchange.
Your offer must be something your audience wants. The best offers are your best free resources. You can give your website visitors a report, an ebook, or something else that gives real value.
That’s it you’re ready to start collecting email addresses.
Conclusion
Emails are universal, widely used, and still the most important platform where the business is conducted online. No matter what type of business you operate, an email list is the most important element of a successful marketing strategy. With that list, you can share your story, promote your business, and showcase your products, all while turning subscribers into paying customers.
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