
You've worked on your messaging and got clear on who your ideal clients are and the result you help them with, maybe you've set up a website, started creating content and generally getting yourself out there... and you know you should probably start an email list too, buuuut you just haven't got around to it yet...
Well, I'm here to tell you that the time to start building your list is NOW. Your email list will be your GREATEST BUSINESS ASSET and the sooner you give it your focus, the sooner you can start to reap the rewards.
Not convinced? Ok, stick with me. I'm pretty sure I can change your mind... 😉
1) You Control Your List
Social Media will probably play a huge part in growing your business and cultivating your audience. BUT there is one pretty key drawback... All those followers that you've spent months building? You don't own any of it. Facebook does. Twitter does. Pinterest does... you get my drift. At any moment, they could flip a switch, change their algorithm and with it, the rules of the game. Even worse, they could shut down completely and all those lovely followers go 'poof'!
Your email list is yours.
2) You'll Make More Sales
Noah Kagen, the founder of SumoMe, says:
"Email is the most scalable way to make sales with new customers and build deeper relationship with customers. Let me give you a specific example: AppSumo.com is a 7 figure business and 90%+ of our revenue comes from emails"
Wow, right? In fact, stats from Campaign Monitor show that email marketing has a return on investment (ROI) of THREE times that of social media, with a massive $44 return for every $1 spent. That's insane - and if you're not taking advantage of that, well then YOU'RE insane.
3) Better Client Experience
I worked in many different roles during my 13 years in corporate, including customer service, customer complaints and customer relationship management (CRM). One common thread in each of these was a strong focus on customer experience. So when I came to work in email marketing, I was able to see what a great experience you can give people when you put the time and effort into getting it right.
Email allows you to personalise your clients' experience. Rather than reading your social media post that is directed at your whole audience, they can receive an email, addressing them by name and talking about topics they're specifically interested in.
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4) You can reach more people with your message
Time for a few more facts and figures for the stattos among you! According to Francisco Rosales, the founder of Social Mouth:
"Today, you’re able to reach an average of 1-2% of your Facebook Fans, the same way a very small percentage of your Twitter following sees one specific Tweet. ... according to studies, 22% of emails sent get lost in the junk or spam folders or are blocked by ISPs. But that still leaves you with an average of 78% messages delivered."
It's also worth considering the life-span of an email in comparison with something like a social media post. Generally speaking your social posts will have a lifespan of only a few hours (in some cases, just minutes!), but your email will sit in your subscribers' inbox until they choose to remove it. It can therefore continue to drive traffic and sales, long after you hit send.
5) It Generates Traffic
... Speaking of traffic... Your email list is a great way to generate more visitors and views on your site. Each time you create new content, you can send your list an email to let them know! Corey Dilley at Unbounce has said that their email marketing consistently drives 80-90% of landing page traffic each time they launch a new campaign. Not too shabby!
6) Deeper Customer Relationships
When someone hits 'like' on one of your social media posts, or even goes so far as to comment or share, that's pretty great. I mean it's awesome to see some sign that people are enjoying what you've shared. It's pretty meaningless though. I mean how much effort does it take to go 'huh! that was interesting/funny/sad etc' and click 'like'. Not much. There's no commitment there, it's just a fleeting show of support or appreciation.
When someone gives you their email address, that's a sign they're 'in'. They did more than find your stuff interesting; they want more of it! They want to get to know you and your business better and they're happy to put some skin in the game in the form of their email address.
7) Great Conversation Starter
We all know the importance of learning more about our customers, but sometimes that can be tricky. Sure, you can create a survey and post it on social media - but there's no real way to follow up (without coming across as a bit creepy) AND there's no real way to know that the respondents are actual ideal clients. With email, you can actually engage in a conversation. You can send out your survey or just ask a question in an email! Want to know more? Then you can just hit reply to respondent and follow-up naturally.
Getting started with email might seem daunting at first - and as a complete non-techy myself, I get that completely! The prospect of emailing a bunch of people you don't know might also feel a bit overwhelming or icky - and I get that too. All those feelings are natural, but they're NOT reasons to avoid getting started. You have too much to lose!
If I've convinced you to give it a go, but you're not sure where to start then just hit me up in the comments and I'll happily give you a helping hand 🙂
Want to Join MY Email List?
I'd love to come hang out with you in your inbox! I'd also love to send you my FREE Email Welcome Series Cheat Sheet. You can use it to create an awesome 5 email welcome series for your new subscribers. I'll tell you everything you need to include in each email so you can get started straight away!
free welcome series cheat sheet
