How To Make More Money With List Building

 

There is an old saying in marketing that “the money is in the list.” More accurately, the saying should be “the money is in the relationship” that a company has with their client and prospect list. List building is the art and science of growing an enthusiastic, responsive group of loyal and profitable customers.

Studies show it is much easier to make a sale to someone who has already purchased a product or service before. For that reason, it’s smart to create a variety of products and services at different price levels that engage customers at every stage of client development, the core of list building.

For example, a prospect visits a company website. They are encouraged to sign up for a valuable e-mail course by entering their e-mail address into a capture box. They receive a number of e-mails over the following days and weeks which provide lessons, tips, tutorials and advice that help the prospect.

The e-mails also introduce them to low-cost products and services that they can purchase to get more information and value. Those products deliver on their promises, and then the marketer suggests products and services at a higher price point, and so on. By gaining a prospect’s trust in small increments and investment levels, a business can grow their customer base steadily.

List building this way has many advantages:

• Educates prospects.
• Brands the business.
• Establishes business owner’s reputation as an expert and thought leader.
• Generates lead and sales.
• Deepens and strengthens buyer relationships.

The secret to building a relationship is to constantly offer value. Value is transferred through ideas, tips, and advice that prospects can use to build their business. A good way to do that is to offer a single tip for every single e-mail. This makes the information easy to digest and to put into action right away.

List building does not just always mean collecting physical or email addresses. When you build up your fan base at your Facebook fan page, you are list building. When you increase your Twitter followers, you are list building. Each of these platforms offers an opportunity to engage an audience and build a list.

The challenge is to bring them into the business at increasing levels of involvement by providing more and more value. For example, offer your e-mail list a free e-book that gives them seven ways to improve their business right away. At the end of the e-book, link to a video series that provides them even more value, information, advice and expertise.

At the end of the each video invite them to join a coaching program which provides even more value for them and profit for the business. The goal is to engage many people at the top of the funnel. Then, over time, grow with them by offering escalating levels of education, products and services. You are now a list building expert.