How To Make Money From Blogging – Create A Mailing List
In today’s article about how to make money from blogging, I am going to talk about how you can create a mailing list.
We will also talk about what such an email list is and why you should have one as an online marketer.
If you have missed the previous parts, you can check them out here:
Part 1: Write Articles Every Day
Part 2: Find A Business Partner
Part 3: Become A Trusted Influencer
I highly recommend going through all those articles if you are new to blogging.
You will find many tips and tricks about how to get things done faster with higher efficiency.
Now, let’s get to our topic at hand…mailing lists:
What Is A Mailing List?
A mailing list is a list of people’s email addresses you collect over time.
Those people have to be interested in your topic or niche.
That’s why you should never buy such lists. It is better to collect them yourself, so you can be sure that they are really interested in what you have to offer.
Once you have collected email addresses from a few people, you can start sending them emails more or less regularly.
Those emails can be simply newsletters to keep your readers up-to-date.
But you can also send them emails with promotions.
Mailing lists are a very strong tool, every online marketer should take advantage of.
There are loads of marketers that make most of their money with a list.
That’s why you will hear “the money is in the list” very often when you are talking to other marketers.
Benefits Of A Mailing List
So, what exactly are the benefits when you have a mailing list?
1. Drive More Traffic To Your Site
With a mailing list, you can increase your traffic immensely. Just send them regular emails with links to your latest posts.
Many of them will read what you send them.
So even if you are not promoting something, always send out your emails.
Only if you send them regularly, will your list stay alive.
2. Build A Longterm Relationship With Your Customers
You know what is better than selling a product to a person?
Selling products to that same person again and again!
There is nothing better than having customers that buy from you regularly.
Those customers already trust you. You don’t have to convince them anymore.
Have a list with thousands of addresses and a new product release?
Just send it to your list and you can make thousands of dollars with just that one email.
3. No Need To Rely Solely On Organic Or Paid Traffic
This goes hand in hand with my first point here.
If you have a big list, you don’t have to rely too much on organic or paid traffic.
Traffic that comes from a good list is laser targeted and converts better than traffic from any other source.
Trust me, you want to start growing your list as early as possible.
How To Create A Mailing List
There are different ways of creating or growing a mailing list.
Here are the most common ways:
- Collect email addresses with a landing page
- Collect email addresses with an opt-in form
I usually use an opt-in form that is either located in the sidebar of my website or pops up after some time.
But I know that landing pages are great for collecting addresses.
No matter which way you are choosing, you should offer something for free in exchange for their email address.
You can say something like this:
“Sign up here for free and get immediate access to my Getting Started Course”
or
“My new ebook is now available. Type in your email address below so I can send it to you straight away.”
You get the idea.
If you want them to sign up to your mailing list, you have to offer them something in return.
In rare cases, a simple opt-in form in the sidebar is enough, but it is thousand times faster when you have a free gift for them.
Which Email Marketing Provider Is The Best?
I can’t really say which one is the best, but I will give you the most common ones.
Most of them have a free trial.
Once you have reached a certain limit of saved email addresses, you have to pay a monthly subscription in order to use their service.
Here are the popular ones:
Which one you choose is completely up to you.
I quite like Mad Mimi, but am using GetResponse as well.
Just take a look at them yourself and try them.
Everybody has his own opinion about such things.
How To Create A Free Offer For Growing Your List
There are many things you can do, to create an offer your visitors can’t withstand.
The most common ones are e-books.
Either write a short e-book yourself or get one that you are allowed to pass on to others.
You can also offer a short course in form from PDF files.
I have written books and created PDF courses and both worked pretty well.
You don’t need to put too much time into this.
It needs to have value, of course, but don’t spend days on this.
Examples of courses or e-books you can offer in exchange for email addresses:
- My Top 5 Tips To Make Money Online Fast
- My Top 5 Tips To Rank Better On Google (step-by-step guide)
- How I Started A Six-Figure Online Business Out Of Nothing
Don’t you think people would love to give me their email address for such an e-book or course?
Think out of the box and be creative.
Putting together such an offer can be done in just a few hours.
The benefits from a big list are huge! It is absolutely worth it!
How To Lose Your Mailing List – Don’t Do These Things!
Always read the terms and conditions when you sign up for an email marketing program!
They are mostly the same for every program, but you really need to know what you are allowed to do and what not.
I am sure you don’t want to lose a mailing list with thousands of addresses, right?
Here are the things you should never do:
1. Put Affiliate Links In Your Emails
Never ever do that. This is the quickest way to get kicked out of GetResponse, AWeber, etc.
Even if you cloak them, should you never put them in your emails.
That’s not how it works.
Always send them to a blog post or landing page.
On the post or page, you can put your affiliate links or buy buttons.
I repeat, never put those affiliate directly in your emails!
2. Don’t Spam Your List
There are marketers that send the same stuff three or more times a day.
In most cases, the provider doesn’t have a problem with that, but the people on your list might have a big problem with that.
I have unsubscribed from many lists for that reason. I just don’t want to get the same email multiple times a day or within only a few days.
If you want to create hype, there are better ways than this:
When you have a new product, you can start teasing them a few days before release.
Do that every day, but always with a new email.
That’s a good way to create hype that really converts.
3. Don’t Sell Your List
Yes, there are people who sell and buy lists.
Never do that.
Selling a list betrays the trust of your followers and is not even legal in most cases.
The same is true for buying lists.
You just can’t be sure if those addresses are even real if you didn’t collect them yourself.
Don’t try any shortcuts.
Build up your business and list in a genuine way.
It might take longer, but the rewards will be so much bigger and last longer.
Can You See The Power Of The List?
Mailing lists are extremely powerful! You can extend your reach immensely and increase your income with a good list.
You even can choose to rely completely on email marketing.
I know enough people who are just doing that!
If you haven’t started collecting emails, then you know what to do next.
Choose your email marketing program and start collecting email.
Combine this with the best beginner-friendly training for online marketing, and you are off to a great start!
What Is Your Opinion On Email Marketing?
You know my opinion by now.
I would like to know how you feel about email marketing.
Do you think it is difficult to create a mailing list?
Or do you already have a list and love it just like I do?
Let me know in the comments below and we’ll have a chat about it.
Have a great day,
Moritz