lding an email list takes time, but time is something a lot of business owners and startup founders don’t have.
As a result, you might be tempted to hire “growth hackers” who claim they can grow your email list by 100% in just a few days–albeit using questionable email scraping tool and techniques.
A better option would be to find experienced growth marketers who can experiment testing scalable, predictable, and repeatable tactics to legitimately grow your email list. (Hmm, sounds a lot like us here at Ladder ?.)
However, if you’re more interested in the “Do It Yourself” approach, I’ll show you 10 effortless ways to grow your email list. Keep in mind that these tactics aren’t one-size-fits-all, so set up A/B tests to collect enough data to help you determine what works (and what doesn’t) for your business.
Let’s not waste any more time and get right into these email collection tactics, pulled directly from the Ladder Growth Marketing Playbook!
This tactic doesn’t require media budget
You can put a static email signup form on the sidebar of your blog or website. Unlike popup forms, an email form in the sidebar is unobtrusive but still noticeable, and it’s one of the most appealing ways to drive activations from your website or blog content. The design of this box and the copy you use is of the utmost importance, and you’ll want to test it multiple times to find the best combination.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Add a link in the description of your YouTube videos to click back to your email list signup page or other CTA. It’s a great way to capture emails of prospects who saw and enjoyed your videos. Similarly, you can also include a link to a promotion or sale in a video annotation and consider referencing it in the video itself with a graphic.
Pro Tip: Use our URL builder template to help you generate trackable URLs for your email list landing page.
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This tactic requires media budget
A Facebook Lead Ad is a social media ad format that allows you to capture emails without the user having to enter anything. You can use this one click opt-in ad encourages users to sign up for your email list in exchange for a valuable piece of content, exclusive discounts, or registration for an upcoming event. Read how we used Facebook Lead Ads to grow our own email list.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Use a transparent email capture that shows your website in the background to grow your email list. When users see the email capture, they’ll get some of your content in the background and become more likely to sign up. Make your copy and CTA stand out with color and sizing tweaks while keeping the transparency layer clear enough to have your landing page shine through.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter will allow you to pin a post to the top of your feed. Use this functionality to pin a email signup post with a link to the top of your page. Whenever someone visits your profile, the very first thing they’ll see is your pinned post, and they’ll immediately be primed to sign up with an easy-to-find link.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Whenever you’re on the phone with a current or prospective customer, ask them if they’re on your email list. If they’re not, ask them for their email and sign them up on the spot while you’re on the phone. Whether it’s a newsletter, whitepaper, or any piece of content, by the end of the call you’ll have a new sign-up for your content.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Put a prominent email signup box directly on your homepage. Influencers like Noah Kagan (OkDork), Bryan Balfour (CoElevate) and Neil Patel (Kissmetrics) all employ this method as it works very effectively to drive more activations and attract more newsletter subscribers. If a user isn’t ready to sign up yet, they’ll just scroll down and click through to blog posts, but after seeing the homepage prompt a couple of times they’ll be more likely sign up for your email list.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Give potential and current users a number they can text to opt into your email list. This tactic work especially well for networking events, conferences, and brick-and-mortar stores. Moreover, multiple studies show that text messages have higher engagement rates. For instance, SinglePoint found that text messages have a 99% open rate; and Nexmo found that text verification rates are consistently around 200% higher than email verification.
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Many Email Service Providers (ESP) have tools that allow you to build a custom landing page for your email list. This is a great way to preserve your marketig budget and technical resources. This is also a great way to gauge whether people actually want to sign up to your newsletter before you commit resources to it.
Difficulty:IntermediateMarketing:
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This tactic doesn’t require media budget
Add an email capture form (or checkbox) during your checkout process. Most users are already pretty happy with your brand if they’re ready to buy from you, so adding a (checked) email opt-in box as part of purchase rarely interrupts the flow. In fact, this is so common that many users would be confused to buy something from you and NOT get your emails!
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