It seems that just about every online business understands (or has at least heard) that email marketing is important. The problem is, too many you just stick an email newsletter signup form on their wordpress site and figure that they’ve got email marketing taken care of. And honestly, that is the biggest mistake you can make.
A successful email marketing campaign needs to be carefully planned, setup and optimized for maximum performance. There are many aspects of an email marketing campaign that need your serious attention – opt-ins, messages, deliverability, open rates, etc. I am going to give you the secret to increasing you email opt-in rate.
I want to cover three keys to a high opt-in rate that every online business should constantly work to improve. (For the purposes of this article, it does not really matter if your campaign is primarily a newsletter or autoresponder.)
Secret #1: Your Offer
The first step to maximize email opt-ins is to offer your site visitors a strong value in exchange for subscribing. In most cases, just offering a newsletter is not enough offer – you need something with a much higher perceived value.
One of the best offers is to give a free eBook to subscribers. It does not have to be extensive – oftentimes a 5-10 page eBook that is filled with solid, valuable information will work very well. Make sure that the free gift that you offer subscribers will be appealing and offer value to each major segment of traffic that visits your website.
Secret #2: Install a signup form into your Facebook page
Using the facebook app static FBML you are able to include html into the sidebar of a facebook page, or into a tab.
As long as your form is HTML, you will be able to install it into your facebook page using the static fbml app.
**You can also add a sign up form to the sidebar of your personal Facebook profile using the app profile box.
Secret #3: A Great Opt-in Form
The opt-in form on your website should be crafted and optimized to convert as many visitors as possible into subscribers. The form should be:
- Prominent – Place the opt-in form above the fold on your website and ensure that it is easy to see. You should split test various locations, colors, and designs.
- Compelling – Typically, you will have a small space to present your offer and opt-in form. Take the time to craft compelling copy for your opt-in form. Split-test different headlines, images, submit button texts, etc.
- Easy – Make sure it is as easy as possible for visitors to opt-in. Do not ask for more fields than you need (usually just name and email address should be enough) and make sure each aspect of the opt-in form is easy to understand and use.
Personally, I am a fan of the lightbox that is offered by Aweber. But recently I found another tool that increased my opt-in rates. It’s Pop Up Dominator. Pop Up Dominator is affordable at $27 and will take your opt-in form to the level of what top online marketing gurus are keeping secret. You can see it on Sportscardigest and Entrepreneurs Journey. I highly recommend this wordpress plugin.
Secret #4: Create a great Newsletter
I know you’ve heard this before, but content is king! When you produce a great newsletter, it will go viral. That means friends will forward it to friends, business associates and other contacts. And make sure you include a subscribe link within your newsletter. A subscription link will make it easy for new readers to subscribe.
Secret #5: Landing pages
Believe it or not, landing pages work. The one and only purpose of the landing page is to get the user to sign up for the newsletter. If they have no other option, they will sign up for your newsletter.
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