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[H893]How To Build Email List

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Having a customer email list for your online business is an absolute necessity. This will allow you to stay in touch with customers and inform them of various specials and additions to your business. While it is vital that you build up a large customer email list, it is even more critical that you do it the right way.

With the internet being as competitive as it is today, there are businesses and small business owners that are willing to do anything to create a large customer email list. This includes tricking someone to join the email list. While this may momentarily raise the number in your email list, it will also increase your dropout rate.

By tricking people into joining something they want nothing to do with, you are wasting your time and theirs. The whole point in having an email list for your online business is so you can keep in touch with customers with the hopes of them purchasing again. If you get a bunch of people with no interest to join your list, you will only be setting yourself up for failure.

Because this is a waste of your time, you are better off to generate a customer email list honestly and ethically with proper advertising. This will allow you to create a list that has potential and will benefit you and your business in the future. So where do you start?

The first step to creating a list is advertising and getting your business seen on the internet. The more advertising methods you use, the greater chance people have of seeing your website. Therefore, you should accommodate as many advertising methods into your scheme as possible.

There are a number of ways you can advertise your business and specific products you want to promote. Some do cost money to spread the word, but there are a number of free methods as well. Some of the more popular advertising methods on the internet include article writing and submitting, posting on forums, and pay-per-click advertising.

After you begin to see some traffic to your website, you can promote your email list. You should have a comment or post about your email list somewhere on the home page of your website. This will ensure that everyone who comes to your website sees it. Remember, you want people to have the option of joining if they want to. You do not want to force anyone into joining or trick them.

One of the easiest ways to get people to sign up is to approach them after they have purchased something from your site. You can either have a pop-up or screen giving them the option, or you can personally offer them through an email. Regardless of how you do it building a customer email list for your online business needs to be done honestly.

• They are low cost - even no cost in comparison to paying for paper, printing, envelopes, and postage.
• They are instantly deliverable directly to the desired recipient.
• They are created with ease and minimal fuss.
• They are environmentally friendly - no paper or transport to distant subscribers.
• They allow you to stay on the radar of qualified prospects and existing customers in a low-key, non-threatening way.
• They position you as an expert, authority, and credible resource in your industry.

Little wonder that so many businesses are jumping on the bandwagon with aggressive list-building tactics. The choice between right and wrong becomes paramount, and your ethics, credibility, and reputation all come in to play when you choose how to build your list.

The wrong ways, while not yet illegal, are currently under review and challenge by both the European Union and the United States of America. Some dodgy tactics include:

• Buying databases and mailing lists from vendors who sell them
• Adding every contact you meet at networking events
• Mining other databases like Chamber of Commerce member lists and the Yellow Pages
• Using 'Opt-out'

(Please note that I am NOT talking about occasional ad hoc emails, I am specifically referring to adding these names to your regular E-zine subscriber list)

Doing so will add thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of names to your list.

What is the point of a subscriber list of thousands who never asked to receive your information, probably will never even open your messages, and certainly will never do business with you? It's a case in point of quantity rather than quality.

How will unsolicited SPAM position you as credible? How will it draw prospects to doing business with you?

As an example, recently I received an email from a local Law Firm that I have never had any dealings with. Somehow I have landed on their subscriber list. (You'd think a law firm would lead by example!)

The email is addressed: 'Dear Client'. Ahem - I am not, never have been, and now certainly will never be. They have completely blown their own credibility in my eyes.

At the end, they have their 'Opt-Out' clause: 'This newsletter is sent in accordance with the EU Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive. If you no longer wish to receive it please send an email to **** to unsubscribe'.

Why must I have the hassle of asking them to remove me from a subscription service that I never asked to be a part of in the first place? The next one I receive will be flagged as SPAM. They will learn the hard way when the ISPs blacklist their outbound emails. (NB: If you are having problems with sending outgoing emails, and have an email newsletter with subscribers who haven't subscribed themselves, you may want to check your 'blacklisting' status with your Internet Service Provider.)

Do you even trust Unsubscribe links anyway? How many times have you tried following one and then either being asked to log in (eh? With what details??) or received a 'successfully unsubscribed' message only to find you continue receiving the newsletters anyway?

The above tactics only serve to destroy your own credibility and reputation. Rather than being on the radar in a non-threatening way you may be pushing your prospects away.

Don't despair: There are better ways!

There are many reputable businesses and E-zine publishers who are getting the process right. In so doing they are growing their lists with warm, qualified subscribers who have a much higher likelihood of becoming paying clients in time. Look at what they are doing so you can emulate their techniques as well as their success.

Here are some of the ethical, honest, and best-practice methods that they (and we) use:

• Use verified opt-in services. It will take longer to grow a list this way, but each and every person on that list has chosen to be there. They have qualified themselves in, are expecting to hear from you, are most likely to open and read your messages, and have an even higher likelihood of doing business with you when ready. The best way to do this is to use one of the reputable list managers in the market. Get recommendations. We love Aweber (http://aweber.com/?298402).

• Have a clear privacy policy. Email addresses are like gold. Let your subscribers know that they can trust you to treat theirs as such. Make is clear that you will not rent, sell, or share their information with any third parties. Also make it clear what you will do with their subscriber info. For example read Zee2A's Privacy Policy at http://www.zee2a.com/privacy.html.

• Only send relevant information. Set expectations upfront about the kind of information you send your subscribers and then keep your promises. If you offer a Tax Consulting service your subscribers will expect information relating to that. They don't want emails from you marketing Time-Share in Spain. Here at Zee2A we help our clients grow their businesses, so our emails will always contain articles, hints, tips, and suggestions on doing just that. Not the latest Make-up and fashion trends!

• Make it easy to get in touch with you. The internet can be a vast, impersonal, black hole. Show your subscribers the real 'you' behind the website and the E-zine. We always include a photograph to make it more personal and so that you can put our names and faces together. We also include contact information (http://www.zee2a.com/contactus.html) so that you can write, email, or call us.

• Make it easy to unsubscribe. If your readers choose to no longer receive your newsletters they should not need to jump through hoops to have their wishes granted. There should be no shenanigans. Your privacy policy and use of a reputable list manager will ensure integrity in this matter.

Keep an eye out for my follow up article, coming soon, in it I will outline various tried and tested methods to grow your E-Zine list with quality subscribers who look forward to hearing from you.

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Vanessa Deakin has sinced written about articles on various topics from Marketing, Fishing and Marketing. Vanessa Deakin, Operations Director at Zee2A, works with Professional Service Executives frustrated and disappointed with their current growth rates, marketing efforts and business profitability. She helps them to skyrocket their results and break their o. Vanessa Deakin's top article generates over 60500 views. to your Favourites.