You’ve heard that list building is one of the best ways to grow your online business, whether for getting more clients or selling more products.
And it’s true!
Your email list is brimming with people who have signed up because they want to hear what you have to say. In fact, most are waiting for you to offer them a solution to their specific problem so they can hire you.
When you have a healthy email list (keep reading for what I mean by “healthy”), you have a personal line of communication with those people who need what you have to offer and want to hire you.
But there’s a catch…
List Building Must Be Done the Right Way
If you focus on building a healthy email list — one that’s filled with your ideal clients whom you regularly contact — then list building is by far the best way to build a profitable online business.
But if you regularly focus on quantity over quality and take any subscriber you can get, even if they aren’t the right fit, it won’t help your business grow.
Growing your email list and honing in on the exact right clients for you is the basis of my tried-and-true list-building approach.
Read on for the secrets to my approach so you can grow your list the right way.
Secret #1: List building starts with attracting the right people
First, you want to find people who are looking for the solution you provide and they’re experiencing trouble with it right now.
Second, you want to hone in on the exact right people who will get the most out of working with you — the people who love your process, your personality, and how you show up for them. You want to find more of those people and draw them to your site.
Third, you want to find people you would love to work with! Remember this is your dream business you’re creating. Think about the type of clients who get you giddy. What do they all have in common?
When you know what their common qualities, desires, and challenges are, you can use that information to craft an offer that speaks directly to them.
If you’re struggling with this, here are some posts that can help:
The First Five Steps to Getting Clients
If You Don’t Have a Niche, You’re Working Too Hard
Truth Time: I Haven’t Been Fully Practicing What I Teach
How to Get Your First 10 Clients
Secret #2: If you have a lot of social media followers, you still need to focus on list building
Even if your social media accounts are rich with fans and followers, nothing compares to having direct email contact with your ideal clients.
Think about it this way. The average person might get around 100 emails per day. That same person might see thousands of social updates per day. The chances of them seeing, and engaging with, your email are much higher.
The other thing to remember is that we aren’t in control of what Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (or whoever) does today or tomorrow. They could disappear! But with an email list, you have DIRECT control over your marketing audience.
To learn more about how list building can grow your business, check out these posts:
One Email That Could Double Your Client List
6 Emails That Bring in More Clients
Words That Sell (or Destroy) Your Offers
Steal This! My Social Media System for Building Your List
Secret #3: Determine how many subscribers you really need
As I mentioned earlier, quality is more important than quantity. A thousand subscribers is typically the tipping point to a very profitable business — but depending on your specific services and financial goals, you may require more or less.
So what’s the exact number you need?
It depends on what you sell and your specific price points. There’s a lot to consider when it comes to determining your ideal list size, so I created a free worksheet to help you calculate your ideal list size.
The Best Time to Focus on List Building
As soon as you’re ready to communicate with your target market, you’re ready to focus on list building.
Notice that I use the word “focus.”
When I got my first 1000 subscribers, it wasn’t by accident and it wasn’t random. I had the intention to grow my list. It’s important to dedicate time and energy to list building if you want to see success.
And remember, list-building is something you’ll do for the duration of your business, so don’t think that it’s something you can check off your to-do list and be done.
Get Started with List Building
If you’re ready to learn exactly how and where to find your people and get them excited to subscribe to your list, start with our series, List-Building Basics.
The #1 List-Building Mistake That All Overthinkers Make
How Big Should Your Email List Be?
Steal This! My Proven Plan to Hit 1000 Subscribers
The Sure-Fire Way to Get More Clients