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One Week to 3500 Subscribers { How I Built My Email List }

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I am a smaller blogger, no doubt about it. I’ve got around 700 trusty readers and followers on Facebook. Not too shabby, but not BIG, by any means. Just a few months ago though, I had plateaued around 300 followers. My numbers grew slowly, if at all, and I began to look into how to reach more people.

Then, I heard about email lists.

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What’s the Big Deal About Email Lists?

According to blogging and social media gurus like Jeff Goins and Derek Halpern, your email list is the most important thing to focus on. The idea is that even if you’re not selling something, you’re still selling something – your content – and email continues to be the most direct form of marketing.

Even if your blog is a ministry, and you don’t receive any income at all from it, you have a message that you want to get out to the world. The hard truth is that your message isn’t going to get out there on it’s own, you have to market it. Sending out a monthly newsletter that includes exclusive content and a solid, relevant message is a great way to do that. Even if you’re not selling something right now, you may be in the future, and now is the time to build your audience.

Um, What IS an Email List?

I’m not talking about how many people sign up to receive your blog posts through feedburner. Email lists are built when people agree to give you their email address because they are interested in receiving what you are providing. They want MORE than just your weekly posts. Often, this comes in the form of a newsletter.

Ok, So How Do I Build An Email List?

First, you need a newsletter service. I love MailChimp. I’ve tried some of the more popular services, and this one takes the cake. Easy, effective, and FREE for up to 2,000 subscribers.

You can then install a sign-up form on your blog (MailChimp will walk you through that), and invite your readers to start signing up! Easy-peasy, you’ve got an email list going.

However, building your list that way takes a lot of time. And, honestly? People are more motivated to sign up for something when they get something out of it.

So, I wrote an eBook, and gave it away to subscribers. For free.

A year before, I had written a blog series on home management that turned out to be pretty popular. I took that series, revamped it a bit for the eBook, and included a complete set of home management printables. Sign up for my newsletter, get the eBook, including 30 printables, at no charge.

My goal was 1,000 subscribers.

I opened up the sign-ups for the newsletter, and launched my eBook on December 31. Word spread quickly thanks to a few blogging friends, and in six days I had 3,500 people sign up for my email list.

From zero to 3,500 in less than a week. I actually had to cut off the free eBooks because I had exceeded my goal, and needed to start charging for the book so I could pay for my MailChimp service!

My email list continues to grow, because the content I provide through my newsletter is exclusive and relevant. I try to throw a free printable in when I can, and share real, encouraging stories of faith and family. My newsletter sparks email conversations, and I am getting to know my readers on a more personal level than just through blog comments. Now I have a growing, invested audience, and a group of dedicated readers who will support my next project (like my book that’s coming soon).

Email lists. You need one. Give away something for free (anything you’ve got that is relevant and valuable!), and watch your numbers exceed your expectations. It will bless your socks off, I promise.

Blessings,
Kayse :: kaysepratt.com

 

*Disclosure: Affiliate link used.

Comments

    • I always need the “how-to”, don’t you? Take me step-by-step please!! Hope this helped in that way. And friend, you know I’ll help you when you want to set yours up!

  6. That is awesome! Apparently I haven’t found that magic book that everyone wants yet. I’ll need to make it a serious matter of prayer though.

    • I was talking with a friend about this last night. I think the free book (or resource) that you giveaway really needs to be fairly generic. Meaning it applies to many audiences. I don’t always write about home management stuff on my blog, in fact I rarely do, but I did one series on it and it got a great response from a wide range of people. So I turned it into an eBook. Is there something you already write that resounds with people? What can you put together that a wide variety of people would enjoy, not just your “niche”?

      • I have no idea : ) I offered one book as a freebie on my blog and I got maybe 50 new subscribers but then it goes on to make over 55,000 downloads on Amazon and becomes a best-seller. It’s all in God’s timing I suppose.

  8. How inspiring. I’ve got a newsletter/email subscriber option but I haven’t used it yet. I’m not sure why. Fear, maybe? I’ll have to add it to my writing goals. Thanks for sharing your journey. 🙂

  11. hi kayse, this is so brilliantly presented. thank you! a few questions– did you leave feedburner option on your site? once people subscribe, how often do you notify them of posts? I have a few blogs but one that has the ‘highest’ readership but I always want it to be more. your e-book looks pretty professional. did you have a graphic designer design it? how long is it? thanks so much. this is such helpful information.

  13. YAY!!! Great job, sweet friend! I am so happy for YOU and also so appreciative of you sharing these wonderful tips! I would love to make an eBook, but …. I’m not really an expert on anything so I’m just not sure what readers would like. Any suggesitons? (When I think about it by myself, I just hear crickets….) 😉 Have a wonderful day, sweet friend!

    • Lol! Melanie, I am NOT a home management expert. I have a load of laundry sitting in the washer that I have to rewash for the third time this morning. But the system helps when you’re following it, and I love *trying* to be organized. I was really excited about putting my own book together, so I wrote about it. I think that’s a big thing – what are you passionate about? Is there a series on your blog you have already written that you could expand and turn into an eBook? (That’s what I did with this one!) Message me if you want, I’d love to brainstorm with you!!

  14. This is so helpful, thank you! I would love to do something like this but I don’t have anything “extra” to offer readers like an ebook or printables. Any suggestions?

    • What is your most popular post? Most popular series? Is it something you can turn into a resource for readers? Printables can be as simple as a Bible verse made beautiful on picmonkey. Who is your audience, what do they need? Meet that need, and you’re golden. 🙂

  15. Good for you, Kayse! I’ve been in the process of getting an email list going for a while now but have been waiting until I have a product. Perhaps I’ll launch with a monthly newsletter first. Thanks for the push.

    • Julie, I actually launched the newsletter first, letting people know that early sign-ups guaranteed a free eBook when it released. I had 600 sign-ups before release day. That’s a great way to create interest!

      • That’s great, Kayse! My biggest stumbling block is feeling comfortable with my blog design and that I’m conveying my focus well. Because then I would add that look to my newsletter, etc. Perhaps it is an excuse to moving on …

  19. This was so full of amazing tips and you made it seem so doable – while being honest up front about the work/time it requires! I have been blogging for years with pretty much no audience, which was fine in the beginning but I am back at it regularly and have been thinking I will need to deal with the business side of things soon if I want to grow my readership! This is very helpful! Bookmarked for rereading and implementing soon! (I found your post via the WestCoast group on fb!)

  20. hi kayse, this is so brilliantly presented. thank you! a few questions– did you leave feedburner option on your site? once people subscribe, how often do you notify them of posts? I have a few blogs but one that has the ‘highest’ readership but I always want it to be more. your e-book looks pretty professional. did you have a graphic designer design it? how long is it? thanks so much. this is such helpful information. (originally posted further down as cat but wanted to know if you reply – which I hope you will!)

    • I totally wrote out an answer to this earlier, I have no idea why it’s not showing up! Let’s try again. 😉

      1. I left feedburner on. Feedburner is for my RSS feed, daily posts either delivered to readers or to inboxes. My newsletter is different, and only comes out once a month. It has other content, freebies, etc., and is marketed as more “exclusive”. The content is only accessible from the newsletter, not the blog itself. Does that make sense?

      2. I did have a designer do my cover! I highly recommend Mindy from Simply Designs (http://simplydesigns.org). She’s fabulous and fills my every graphic design need (including my entire blog design). I formatted the book myself, but Mindy did the cover and ad/grab buttons for the book.

      3. My eBook is 57 pages long, but only 27 of those are written (and there are pictures in there too). The last 30 pages are all customized home management printables that you can print off and use immediately.

      Hope that helps!! 🙂

  21. You ARE a big time blogger in my book for many reasons. I would be thrilled with one hundred readers. Love this! And I’m so proud of you!

  22. Well I’ve done that before but never got that many subscribers. Maybe I didn’t give something away that was “good enough”.

    • You know, having a launch team really helped me. I asked 30 or so bloggers to help me get the word out, and that was fabulous!! I’d suggest maybe trying that with a re-launch!

  23. Kayse, you are so sweet, such an encourager. Thank you for your super-helpful post, and, especially, for the way you give of yourself so beautifully.

  25. Kayse, thank you for sharing one more way we can have our socks blessed off. Love your encouragements. They are helpful and inspiring. Even to those of us who might not have even considered an email list before!

  28. An inspiration Kayse! I love the part about even if your blog is a ministry you have important things to tell people! Thanks for sharing your words of wisdom.

  30. Great tips- and so true! I really truly need to “professionally” fix one of may pdfs and make it a special treat for subscriptions.
    They are just “for free” on the website, but probably don’t get taken advantage of much because no-one can see them. Man, more work to do- thanks for the inspiration.

  31. Thank you for this! It is food for thought and gives me some confirmation on some things I was already thinking about 2 months ago and then push aside because of the learning curve and my blogging schedule already.

  32. I have been searching the internet for ideas on what to offer my readers when they subscribe to my newsletter. Do you have any other suggestions besides ebooks and printables?

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