4 Proven Ways To Grow Your Email List Fast

by Giorgia Guazzarotti

The money’s in the email list, they say.

Well, I didn’t make any money. Didn’t even reach 100 subscribers. I think I had a grand total of 36 when I called it quits in frustration a year later. But, I couldn’t let it go. Your email list is your golden goose. Here’s why:

You own it: Your email list is yours. Even if Google and FB change their algorithms every month, you’ll still have an email list full of fans who can’t wait to hear from you.

They want it: Your subscribers have given you permission to email them. They love what you’re doing and want more of it. That makes them far more likely to buy your products than any random followers you can attract on Instagram.

It’s unmissable: Sure, you should promote your offers on all your platforms, but it’s so easy to miss a FB update. An email lands directly in your inbox. Who doesn’t check that every day?

I knew I had to master the email list game. It took me a few years of trial and error, but I’ve finally found a few strategies that skyrocketed my email list. I know they can do the same for you:

1. Create An Awesome Incentive

This is the ABC of list building, but so many people get it wrong. I did, too. With my first newsletter, I offered the chance to win a random skincare product. Now, they get access to my free resource library, full of ebooks and cheat sheets to help them achieve flawless skin. That’s something they badly want and are willing to give me their email address for.

If you’re a coach or offer ecourses, create a 7-day challenge that gives them a hint of how good your work is. If you sell physical products, try a discount. The trick is to figure out what they TRULY want and fulfill their wish beyond their wildest expectations.

2. Get Creative With Opt-In Placement

Pop-ups are great. And you already have an opt-in form in your sidebar. But, that’s not enough. People are so used to them, that they don’t even notice them anymore. Get creative and put your opt-in forms where they’re bound to get their attention. The sweetest spots are:

Your About page
In your post excerpts
Your “404 page”
Your navigation bar
Right under your headline

You don’t have to put a form in all of these spaces. But choose at least two or three. It does make a difference.

3. Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

Yes, it’s 2017 and there are still websites out there that aren’t mobile-friendly. These days, half your traffic comes from mobile devices. Make it a pain to view your website on your phone and people will leave in frustration instead of signing up. And they won’t be that likely to come back, either. You get only one chance. Don’t blow it.

4. Run A Contest

This is tricky. You don’t want to attract freebie lovers who will never return to your site again. But, done the right way, one or two giveaways a year can give your email list a much-needed boost. First of all, make the prize so awesome people will want to go out of their way to get it. For example, if you teach people how to blog, put together the perfect toolkit complete with blogging courses, cameras, stock photos, and product discounts.

Then, get Gleam.io (Rafflecopter and KingSumo work, too). It’s an app that helps your giveaway go viral. Your readers get an extra entry for every friend they share it with. And another extra entry for signing up to your email list. See the power of it now?

Growing your email list doesn’t have to be hard. Add value, get noticed, and watch your prospect sign up in spades!

Giorgia Guazzarotti is a beauty blogger obsessed with skincare. She loves dissecting ingredient labels and debunking marketing claims to help women find the best products to achieve the beautiful and glowy skin of their dreams.