Welcome to Day 29 of the How To Get Your First Subscribers Challenge!
As you get started building your email list, it’s imperative that you work to avoid the problems others have with email marketing. Email marketing is not dead. Email marketing is still “where the money is,” and there is no doubt about that. The stats are clear. Email marketing will, when done right, produce a high return on investment of 38 to 40 times what you spend.
Mistake #1 Not Spending Time Writing Better Subject Lines
Each time you create an email, make it a practice to write at least ten potential subject lines. The practice of doing that will help you create more effective subject lines improving opens and conversions.
Mistake #2 Avoiding Two-Way Communication from Subscribers
The days of anonymity online is over. If you’re not open about who you are and allow two-way communication in the email, your audience will not trust you.
Mistake #3 Focusing on Promotion Over Education
Email marketing doesn’t have to be the hard sell. Instead, it should be a gentle way of educating, informing, and engaging with your audience. When you do that, they trust you and will follow your lead.
Mistake #4 Not Creating Lead Magnets for Each Stage of The Buyer’s Journey
A generic lead magnet or freebie is not going to cut it. You need to create lead magnets that speak to your ideal customer where they are on their personal journey.
Mistake #5 Not Sending Useful Emails Often
Once you get someone to sign up for your list, don’t ignore them. Welcome them, educate them, inform them, and pique their curiosity about your offers with the information you offer.
Mistake #6 Forgetting to Include a CTA That Makes Sense
Even emails that aren’t focused on making a sale should include a CTA such as “share,” “respond,” or go read that blog post or something to direct the reader what to do next.
Mistake #7 Not Understanding How All Your Content Marketing Works Together
Email marketing is part of your overall content marketing strategy. The content you create in email, your blog, and elsewhere can all be repurposed and used.
Mistake #8 Trying to Reinvent the Wheel
There are many experts out there who have already figured out the tricks to get the most out of email marketing. Don’t think you have to do it your own way. Instead, do it the professional way by studying what industry experts do.
Mistake #9 Avoiding the Numbers and What They Teach You
The data you collect with analytics is imperative to the success of your business. Use that data that you can collect to get things right.
Mistake #10 Not Building an Email List
Some people think you don’t need email today, but you do. Email marketing is an essential component of all businesses today.
Mistake #11 Not Setting Then Meeting Subscriber Expectations Early
From the day someone signs up for your list, you should welcome them and let them know what to expect. When you then follow up with what you said you’d do, they start to trust you more.
Mistake #12 Creating Unprofessional Sloppy Messages
While you don’t have to be an English professor to craft persuasive messages, do check your spelling and your grammar to ensure that your audience understands. Ensure it also looks appealing the way you have it laid out so that it’s easier to consume.
Mistake #13 Being Too Much Like a Stereotypical Used Car Salesperson
While there is a time and place for the hard sell in email marketing, most of the time, you want the messages to be a lot more subtle and not harp on selling but on information instead.
Mistake #14 Not Using All the Tools of The Trade
Don’t try to do email marketing with your personal email or your business email platforms. Instead, use a professional platform that is set up to automate that has a good reputation.
Mistake #15 Forgetting That Most People Use Mobile Devices Now
Most people check email now using their smartphone, not a PC. Your messages need to be readable on a small screen, and the CTAS needs to work that way too.
Mistake #16 Sending Too Many Images
Images are fine but make sure you use the alt text information so that if they have a slow connection, a description shows up around what the image is that encourages them to keep reading.
Mistake #17 Not Setting Clear and Realistic Goals
When you start building your list, you need to know why and what you expect the results to be. If you want to get, 1000 subscribers don’t just say 1000 subscribers without setting a time limit and a method for doing it.
Mistake #18 Not Monetizing Your Messages
If you don’t monetize your email list, you won’t earn money from it. At least every three or four emails, send something that can earn money from your subscribers that solves a problem for them.
Email marketing is the most effective form of marketing ever created. No matter how big or small your business, email marketing can make all the difference. Start building your email list now because, in the future, it will pay off exponentially.
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