Why Having an Email List is Like Owning a Goldmine

What would happen to your business if your social media account reach dropped or an algorithm shift buried your content and less people began to see it?

Or worse, you were banned for some unknown reason.

It may sound hard to believe, but these are common occurrences.

According to Hootsuite: “Instagram has shifted away from the “algorithm” altogether, and instead [instagram] states that AI systems are used to determine ranking.”

While you may say isn’t that a good thing? Instagram is shifting away from likes, comments, and shares and moving towards how long a viewer watched your videos, clicked on your profile, and how likely they are to share your content, making it harder for businesses to be seen.

Even more, users are beginning to experience ad fatigue and are scrolling past ads before they start.

Time is a small business’s most valuable resource, so it's understandable to focus on the areas that bring the most bang for your buck NOW.

And while there are so many moving parts when building a business, considering starting an email list may be one that should be at the top of your to-do list.

Today we’ll uncover the costs of not having an email list, the numerous business building benefits of owning one, and how you can start one yourself.

The Costs of Not Owning an Email List

Starting an email list can be an easy task to push aside when you have mountains of other tasks you need to focus on. 

Many small businesses rely on social media ads to drive traffic to their website and turn viewers into buyers.

And while your business type plays a vital role in your approach to social media ads, many people rarely go on social media with the intention of buying something right away.

Yes, you may get sales, but you may also be leaving money on the table too.

People go on social media to watch funny videos, see the latest news, and keep up with family and friends.

Visitors may stumble upon your ad and be interested in what you offer, but many may not be ready to buy just yet.

And if they aren't ready, they may end up forgetting about you and buy from your competitor once they're ready.

As consumers are becoming more risk averse, they’re taking more time to buy because they’re more skeptical than ever.

According to Neil Patel, this is roughly the amount of times consumers interact with a brand before making a purchasing decision:

Figure 1.1

And on top of that, the amount of touch points increases as the price goes up.

Like in this image from Neil Patel: 

Figure 1.2

But it doesn't stop there…

Not having an email list makes filling your future sales pipeline tough. You may constantly be engaging a cold audience which can be an uphill battle (and costly). 

But by sending interested prospects valuable emails on a predictable and reliable basis, you can build trust and nurture them until they’re ready to take action.

The Benefits of Owning Your Own Email List

According to Omnisend (an email marketing software company): “According to multiple studies, the average ROI for email marketing ranges from $36 to $40 for every dollar spent.”

When people sign up to your list, these are high-probability prospects because they’ve virtually raised their hand and indicated interest in what you offer.

There can be a range of reasons your customer may not be ready to buy today so this allows you to build trust by nurturing them via value-driven emails while they decide whether or not you're the right option for them.

Having an email list is a great marketing asset and a terrific marketing strategy because when you launch a new promotion, product, service, etc. you already have a list of engaged leads that you can promote your offers to.

You’re not consistently engaging a cold audience every time you launch a new product or promotion.

Think of it like this: instead of climbing up the hill to get to the other side every time you launch a promotion, you start at the top each time.

It makes filling your future pipeline of sales a lot easier when you have a tribe of past customers you’ve nurtured (and sold to) in the past.

Like Allan Dib, author of The 1-Page Marketing Plan said: “These kinds of prospects make up the majority of all prospects and are crucial to filling your pipeline of future sales.”

How You Can Start Your Own List

Setting up and driving traffic to your email list is a relatively simple process to get started.

There are multiple ways to do this. Here are a few options to get you going:

• Set up a subscribe box on your website.

• Offer a lead magnet/opt-in offer.

• Create ads on social media promoting your free lead magnet.

• Promote your sign up links on social media.

You should use an email service provider because personal emails aren’t designed for bulk sending and can cause deliverability issues or account flags which can result in your email getting shut down.

Popular Emailing Services You Can Use

Each of these different providers have loads of features that are worthwhile depending on your business type, so it’s good to research and see which fits your business best.

Here are some of the top-rated email list platforms you can use to start generating some leads:

• Kit aka Convertkit (I use this one and they've been great. They’re easy to learn and have a lot of videos to help you overcome any tech issues). Kit is best for creators, bloggers, YouTubers, artists, writers, course creators, etc.

• ActiveCampaign (best for small to medium size B2B and e-com businesses)

• Klaviyo (best for B2C brands)

• Omnisend (best for e-com businesses)

They all range in pricing so do your research as to which fits your budget and business best.

There are many other alternatives than those that are listed here, but be wary because some may be less expensive, but can oftentimes be worse in performance and customer service.

Wrap Up

So there you have it. 

While your approach to social media ads depends on your type of business, an email list should still play an important role in your marketing strategy.

Owning your email list is like owning your future sales pipeline.

It gives you direct access to the people most likely to buy from you and the sooner you start building it, the sooner you’ll have an asset that grows in value over time.

Social media is a great place to drive traffic, but one that can be costly when it comes to being the primary source of sales. 

But with that being said…

While there are many benefits of owning an email list, there are also challenges that come with it such as:

• Getting your emails delivered to a primary inbox instead of the spam folder

• Getting your email opened

• Getting your email read

If you’d like help creating a lead magnet, building your list, and getting your emails read, I’d love to use my expertise in copywriting to help you get interested prospects onto your list so you can grow your audience and make more sales.

Feel free to contact me using my contact page.