In past articles, we have discussed the importance of list building and ways to go about it. One very popular way to grow your e-mail list is to offer a ‘freebie’ or ‘thank you gift’ for subscribing.

This free gift must be something of true value for your subscribers. However, it should also be something that you can automate.

List Building Ideas

There are a variety of items that you can create to entice people to share their email address. Some of the options include:

1. E-Books – E-Books can be almost anything that your audience would find interesting. From opinions, to motivation, to instruction, anything goes here.
2. Reports – Reports are generally information in nature. They discuss the features and benefits of a particular topic.
3. Guides – Guides tend to be more of a ‘how to’, walking the reader through the process of making or completing a task or action.
4. Workbooks – Workbooks generally have an interactive approach. They are informative, while allowing the reader to answer questions that eventually lead them to an end result.
5. Training Videos – Videos are similar to guides, except they are obviously more visual.

The one thing these all have in common is that they need to be created; but then can be distributed in mass quantities with very little additional effort on your part, i.e. the process is automated.

List Building Implementation

By using a subscription form and autoresponder service, you can have your ‘freebie’ arrive in your prospects inbox seconds after they subscribe without you lifting a finger. Plus, you can receive reports about who has subscribed, whether they opened your e-book or video, how many times they viewed it, etc…

Some such programs that we recommend to easily set up this automated process include (listed in order of capabilities and cost):

1. Mail Chimp – free and paid versions
2. Aweber – additional ‘sequencing’ abilities
3. 1ShoppingCart – integrated shopping cart and affiliate program options
4. Infusionsoft – comprehensive marketing and e-commerce solution

All of these programs offer many third party integrations such as segmented list and group options, the ability to establish multiple autoresponders, the ability to upload unlimited documents and images, and they allow you to easily import your contacts.

Over the next few weeks, we will discuss the process of list building, creating your giveaway, and implementing your subscription forms and autoresponders.

Stay tuned and feel free to post any questions or comments.