- By Cathy Goodwin
- Published 04/18/2009
- Writing for the Web
Online marketers have one major goal: increase your opt-in list. We measure success by list size. A big list *usually* means you are doing something right. A big list won’t do much good unless it’s also a targeted list. That means you have a list of subscribers who will stay with you when you send solo mailings, inviting them to buy a product or attend a teleseminar. They won’t run away screaming when your headline has a typo or your link doesn’t work, unless it happens a lot. All five solutions depend on having what I call an irresistible freebie: a giveaway to thank visitors for signing up. We also assume you display your privacy policy. “We respect your privacy” is the phrase of choice. Technique #1: Create a Squeeze Page: When visitors go to your home page, they see a sales letter for your no-cost ezine. A squeeze page forces them to sign up or leave: they’re “squeezed” into a decision. In some markets, the squeeze page works really well. In others, you will turn away your most promising leads. Typically, squeeze pages work best when you provide some content instead of just a sales pitch. You also have to think about returning visitors. They’ve already subscribed. Do they have to re-subscribe? Or is there a button to click to enter the site? Of course, you have to write good copy for your squeeze page. You need to demonstrate strong benefits and you need to understand the problems that motivate your visitors to seek solutions. You can also try a hovering pop-up. I have them on both my sites and they work. But I would test against a page with no pop-up, just a subscription box. Technique #2: Add a graphic to make your virtual ezine look like a magazine. These days people are visual. They like to see images. So if your opt-in page isn’t converting, make your ezine seem tangible.
This technique works for many markets,
assuming your ezine has a strong name. But it can backfire in other markets. I tested my opt-in page with and without the “sleepy-cat” logo. The plain ugly page got a higher conversion rate. Technique #3: Integrate your blog, articles and ezine. Send blog visitors to your ezine and vice versa. Some ezine authors post recent blog article titles in each issue. Of course your article resource box will link to your ezine, too. Typically visitors judge your ezine by what they read on your blog. Or they like an article and want to learn more. Article marketing offers a strong resource for opt-in lists because you’re most likely to get targeted traffic. They know something about you. In contrast, people who go to your pay per click (ppc) ad may be fishing. Nearly everyone who adds subscribers from ppc or exchange list reports feeling disappointed. You’ll get subscribers but they won’t be high quality. Technique #4: Buy advertising in ezines that also reach your target market. This technique works if you identify high-quality ezines that target your market. You also need copywriting skills to create ads that motivate readers to click over to your site. Good ezine ads may cost a few hundred dollars or more,. But they can be far more effective than a year of networking at rubber chicken lunches. Technique #5: Develop joint ventures. This technique will skyrocket your numbers if you can make everything come together. Here’s how it works. You offer a gift to someone else who plans a promotion. Your gift gets seen by everyone who buys the target product. Your gift description will be seen by everyone who visits the landing page of the venture.
This technique works only if your joint venture partners reach the same target market that you are trying to reach. If you’re a business coach, you won’t benefit from a joint venture with a weight loss coach (unless the coach works in companies). If you’re trying to reach a highly spiritual target market, you need to partner with others who share your specific vision.
