How can you grow your list?

• Place a “Join my email list” sign-up box on your website
• Have a Website Contests—give away something of value, tickets to concert, samples of your products etc. to get people to join. One of my clients offer people who subscribe to their list a 10% discount plus 3 free sample packets of their face cream.
• Encourage your customers or members to spread the word - Give prizes to active members who forward the newsletter to friends and get them to sign up.
• Have a raffle @ a trade show - tell customers they will be placed on your mailing list.
• Run an internal contest to get all your employees involved
• Collect email addresses everywhere Are there organizations or businesses you could cross-promote with? find some and do so!

Here is a sample sign-up form.

Here are places that you can place this handy form:

• Place them Near cash registers - as customer make their purchase, you can invite them to sign up.
• At registration counter - as guest check in and out, the form will be right there.
• At a fundraising event - participants will want to hear from you.
• At places of worship - as people leave the service, they can opt in to receive your newsletter.
  

How to get your e-mails read

Many of us have a big problem with e-mail marketing - how do you get the recipient to open and read your e-mails. I know I delete e-mails without actually opening them and I am sure there are millions of users who do the same. Here are some things you can do that may get your e-mails opened and with luck, read and acted upon.

News: Use breaking news as your subject. News headlines create curiosity with the recipient and will lead them to opening the e-mail and reading the contents.

How To: Providing solutions in the form of how to’s, or perhaps get better use out of a product are always popular.

Questions: Turn your statements into questions. If you ask the right questions you will spark the curiosity required to get your e-mail opened and read.

Command: Command your reader using language that directs them to open your e-mail. Time sensitive commands can work well for example; ‘act now’, ‘last day’.

Challenge: A challenge can often spark curiosity in an e-mail. Challenges use key words such as ‘dare’, ‘are you game’, ‘do you have what it takes’.

The one common thread amongst all five subject lines is curiosity. E-mail marketing relies on sparking that curiosity that is within all of us. The best way to spark curiosity is to use an emotional hook. Tug on the emotions and your campaign will at least get read.