Build a List The S.I.M.P.L.E Way

Building a list of targeted subscribers early on in your journey as an online entrepreneur is the best way to ensure that you get to communicate with your audience on a regular basis.

This means you’ll be forming a bond with people who are interested in hearing what you have to say, and you’ll be able to cater to their needs with products and services that serve as the best solution to their obstacles and for their goals.

Using the S.I.M.P.L.E strategy, you can make immediate moves that will grow your list quicker than if you had to build a blog, wait for it to be indexed and hopefully generate some organic traffic.

These tips will jumpstart your list building measures so that you can position yourself as an expert and develop loyalty from your subscribers by treating them with respect and meeting their needs.

Strategic Product Launches to Turn Customers Into Subscribers

Product launches can be a great way to boost your list numbers simply by releasing an eBook or video series that people pay a small sum for. This doesn’t have to be a high-ticket product.

In fact, you’re likely to gain more subscribers by keeping costs low for the consumers. Once someone purchases your product, many platforms will give you the ability to integrate your autoresponder with them, so it will send the buyer a confirmation email about getting on your list.

Now some buyers won’t want to do this until they have gotten to see (and like) the quality of the product they just bought. Once they do, they might be more inclined to sign up to your list.

So make sure you have a link to your sign up page inside the product with a call to action about following the link to download a free gift. You can do as many product launches as you want, but list building is going to come from the affiliate side of your launch efforts.

Because you may not have an audience yet, no one will know about your product unless other people send targeted traffic to it. So you’ll not only want to create a stellar product, but spend time crafting high-converting sales copy and a funnel that will make affiliates want to promote (and profit) from it.

Incorporate Multiple Opt-In Forms on Your Site

The opt-in form(s) that you create can be varied, depending on where you place them. You might have more room on a landing page dedicated to the lead magnet copy than you would in the sidebar of a blog.

You can design different styles and copy for the opt-in forms, but you want them to show up in a multitude of places to give people every chance at getting on your list without fail.

Start with a landing page that you can drive traffic to that has nothing else on it but the headline, a few bulletpoints or benefits of the freebie, possibly an image of it – and the form – all above the fold.

Then put an opt-in box in the sidebar of your blog so that it’s seen on every post and page, regardless of where the reader enters your site. You also want it at the end of each blog post, in case they have scrolled past the sidebar option.

If you want to, you can play around with pop-up opt in forms, to see how people respond to those on your site. You can have one appear after a few seconds when they arrive – or when they move their mouse to close the window, for example.

Make Arrangements to Send Competitors’ Subscribers to Your List

You may not have a list yet, but others do! Your competitors, believe it or not, will be willing to send their subscribers to get on your list if you make it worth their while. This means meeting a need they have.

Some of your competitors who take pride in their blog would love a break from blogging, but they don’t trust just anyone to do it for them. If you can create a unique (not used elsewhere), pillar blog post that is likely to get them ranked well in the Google SERPs (search engine results pages), they might be willing to let you guest blog in exchange for a byline where you drive traffic to your landing page.

Another way you can get competitors to send their list your way is by creating a special, exclusive (and private) launch of a product just for them. They want to absorb all of the earnings of a product launch without any competition.

If you only create a front end and a single upsell, this will often be enough of an enticement to get them to agree to blast their list and promote hard for you. You can even ask them if they’d be interested in having advanced promo opportunities with the product launch opening up to others 48 hours after they get first dibs (as long as you’re upfront with other affiliates about the arrangement).

Promote Your Landing Page on Social Profiles

Social media can prove to be a powerful force for generating targeted leads to your landing page. You can use a variety of media formats for your social content, and get on multiple platforms to send people to get on your list.

For some platforms, you might have to instruct followers to see the link in your bio, but for others, you can create a clickable hyperlink directly to your landing page. Some of the most popular platforms for list building include YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and more.

Be consistent and share snippets of valuable information like tips, hacks and advice and watch your follower count swell, and your list numbers soar. With consistency and good content, this will be a game-changer for most newbies who currently don’t have a list.

Leverage Different Slants for Your Lead Magnets

Not everyone will have the same immediate needs in your niche. Even for the same general topic, like Internet marketing, there will be those who need help with list building, but not with blogging – or vide versa.

You want to set up multiple lead magnet offers and watch your analytics to see which ones perform best. You can split test traffic and send people to a variety of slants and topics to see what the most pressing need is for your soon-to-be subscribers.

You might have people who are needing beginner-level information, and those who are looking to level up with their knowledge. So your slants might cater to each of these demographics.

You might have a free gift that’s an eBook, one that’s a cheat sheet, and another that’s a video series. Or, you might test out a freebie where you drip-feed a series of emails out over the course of 14 days or so.

Events That Will Grow Your List Quickly

There are certain events you can participate in that will help you grow your list, too. Giveaway events, where multiple sellers each give away a freebie and everyone drives traffic to the same page of listings for the freebies, are popular with online entrepreneurs.

You can also host or co-host a webinar event that is designed to showcase your knowledge and expertise, but requires people to register for their spot, which puts them on your list.

Building a list doesn’t mean you have to sit and wait for your time to come as a leading expert. It means you have to be resourceful and willing to put in the work to get the ball rolling, and then you repeat the process over time to bring new subscribers onboard.