Email Marketing - Mailing List

What is Mailing List?

A mailing list is simply a list of addresses to which the same information is being sent. If you were a magazine publisher, you would have a list of the mailing addresses of all the subscribers to the magazine. In the case of an electronic mailing list, we use a list of email addresses from people interested in hearing about or discussing a given topic.
There are two types of Email Mailing Lists −

Announcement Lists

These are used so that one person or group can send announcements to a group of people, much like a magazine publisher's mailing list is used to send out magazines. For example, a band may use a mailing list to let their fan base know about their upcoming concerts.

Discussion List

It is used to allow a group of people to discuss topics amongst themselves, with everyone able to send mail to the list and have it distributed to everyone in the group. This discussion may also be moderated, so only selected posts are sent on to the group as a whole, or only certain people are allowed to send to the group. For example, a group of model plane enthusiasts might use a mailing list to share tips about their model construction and flying.

Collection of Emails

The very first task for email Marketing is to collect email addresses of those who would like to listen from you. There are many ways of collecting data in detail, but for this tutorial, I will just give an overview of various ways.

Formula for Growing Email List

In analyzing the websites and techniques of some awesome email list builders, a certain formula started to emerge. If we could break down the process of building a massive email list to just its most basic parts, then it would look like this −
Can it really be that simple? I think so.
Basically, everything begins with content. People will find your site because of your amazing content. They will keep coming back for this amazing content. Your content will be the foundation of what you email to them, which will be the reason they stay subscribed (or not). It all starts with amazing content. If you have got amazing content, then start asking for emails. People who are interested would like to receive that content as often as you create, delivered straight to their inbox.
The CTA (Call-to-Action) is your final instruction to the reader.

Strategies to Grow Email List

Multiple CTAs − It seems like those who build lists design their web, blog best and calls-to-action. You cannot escape their calls to sign up. There might be a signup in a popover, a signup at the top of a blog post, another one at the bottom. Basically, the design assumes that people will view the site differently and that in order to maximize the chances that a potential subscriber sees a signup form you’d best put sign up forms everywhere.
Give & Take − Attaching something valuable to your email signup form is a surefire way to create interest in readers’ mind. Basically, give something away for free, for the price of an email address (which we all know is worth way more than free to the site that gets it). For example, you can attach E-books, Cheat sheets, Email series, Video, Private blog content, and Early access to new features.
Handy Opt in Links − Bear in mind that people can sign up to an email list in places other than an email capture form. You can get the link and share it in a huge number of different places like email signatures, social media messages, and guest blog bios. Depending on your email software, there is likely a landing page devoted to acquiring email signups. Once you have the link, keep it handy. You never know when you might have a chance to use it. How to get that Link? We will be discussing it shortly.

Disclose Your Social Strength

Would you be more apt to join an email list, if you knew 80,000 other people were already signed up? The concept of social proof says yes, which is why you see many sites advertise the size of their email list on their signup form.

Create Remarkable Email Content

Your content needs to be amazing, if you want people to stay subscribed and forward your emails to their friends, family, and colleagues that aren't already on your email list.

How the Best Sites Gain Signups?

Now that you’ve seen that there are many different ways to grow an email list, I’d love to show you how some of the top sites implement these ideas. Here is what my favorite sources for email collection are −

• Here is the trick for gaining more email signups with this link. Reply to each mention on Twitter, often starting a conversation with folks who have shared your content. As a part of this conversation, you’ll drop in an offer to sign up for his email list, sending over the direct link to do so.
• Encourage your current email subscribers to share and forward your emails by including social sharing buttons and an "Email to a Friend" button in your marketing emails. At the bottom of your emails, include a "Subscribe" CTA as a simple text-based link, so that those receiving the forwarded emails can easily opt-in, too.

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