How to Double Your Signups In Just a Few Months

Email is a great marketing technique. As long as you have an audience to talk to…

As a marketer, you should always be looking for new subscribers. In fact, growing your mailing list should be a top priority.

As tempting as it may be, please don’t buy any existing lists. Too often, they are full of wrong addresses and don’t contain the right contacts anyway, the people who will be interested in your content, products and services. In the end, you may just get blacklisted by email service providers.

The best way to grow your email list is to do it organically. It takes time, but if you follow the advice below, you will soon double your signups and – believe me – you won’t regret the efforts.

1. Make it easy to sign up

Has it happened to you yet? You’re scrolling a web page. The content is interesting, you’d like to get some more. But it’s impossible to find where to subscribe.

First explanation: there is no opt-in form, and that’s such a pity. Don’t do that! On your website, you should have one opt-in form, at least on the homepage.

Second explanation: you suffer from “e-blindness.” Meaning: the signup form is not where you expect it to be, so you don’t see it. Well, you’re not the only one. It happens to your visitors too!

To make your signup forms visible to everyone, use bright colors and big signs. Also, don’t hesitate to place these forms in several locations. That way, it’s easy to find them. You can do like Kevan Lee (Buffer) and multiply email capture opportunities. On Buffer’s blog, he created seven areas for signups: slideup, HelloBar, homepage, postscript, and sidebar. In only one month, he more than doubled his email signups. Nice, isn’t it?

One last technique is the popup. This is a controversial one. As a user, I hate popups. As a marketer, I can’t ignore them: they can trigger a 50 percent increase in signups. There are ways to make them less aggressive, though. For instance, you can time them to appear whenever the visitor reaches 60 or 75 percent of the page and is already engaged with the content.

2. Promote yourself

Now that you have your signup form link ready, it’s time to share it with your contacts.

Put it in your email signature and ask everyone in your company to do the same. An even more efficient way is to send a note to your contacts asking them to please sign up.

You should also encourage your existing subscribers to spread the word about you. You can add a postscript in your emails. Ask them something like that: “Did you find this post interesting? If so, please forward it to your friends.” If the content is valuable, they’ll do it!

Finally — and this is no surprise — you should promote your newsletter on your social channels. They’re great tools to expand your audience! If someone is following you on Facebook or Twitter, they’re probably interested in what you have to say. You can share your posts and ask them to subscribe. On your Facebook page, it’s quite easy to add a signup form. On Twitter, the Lead Generation card will let you share your tweets with your subscribers.

3. Create amazing content

I know you are all aware of this, so here’s a gentle reminder. If you don’t create valuable content, nobody will ever subscribe to your emails. So, your priority should be to create content that appeals to your target. And of course, send emails at a regular pace, so your readers don’t forget you!

4. Give people a good reason to subscribe to your emails

At first, people might be wary of what you’ll send them. It might be commercials only and they don’t want that, for sure. That’s why you should emphasize the value of your content.

It can be by telling your readers what type of information you’ll send them. Also, show them that they aren’t alone! It can be by disclosing your numbers to your subscribers, if they’re high enough, or by including testimonials. Believe me, this will reassure many of your potential readers.

Here’s how Kevan Lee does it on his Buffer’s blog:

5. Offer freebies

Everyone loves a present, so go for a freebie! In exchange, just ask for an email address. Most of your visitors will be happy to give it to you. This is how Noah Kagan built his email list, and he now has over 1 million subscribers.

The good news is that you don’t have to give money (phew…). Yet, the offer has to be something valuable. For instance:
— An actionable checklist
— A spreadsheet
— A calendar
— An e-book (for instance, a compilation of your posts on a specific topic)

It’s time to act!

If you go step by step and put yourself in your readers’ shoes, you’ll get there! With work and patience, you’ll manage to double your signups and build an active and engaged audience.