Try These 7 Strategies To Successfully Grow Your Email List

As much as we love to stay ahead of the newest social media trends and technologies, a holistic content strategy also includes capitalizing on tried-and-true methods that consistently perform.

And one of the most traditional and effective methods of digital marketing is email marketing. 

You may feel like you missed the boat on building an email list, or that it’s too competitive to stand out. But it’s still very much worth your time and effort to create a consistent newsletter and grow your subscriber base.

Below, we’ve laid out why email newsletters are highly effective for Creators and Marketers, with seven key strategies for growing your email list.

Why You Should Have A Newsletter

Still not convinced that a newsletter is right for you? Hear us out! There are plenty of reasons why newsletters are incredibly effective, beneficial marketing channels, and here are three reasons in particular:

1. It lets you directly communicate with your audience. 

Unlike social media, in which users can often miss posts due to timing or algorithms, email newsletters allow you to deliver your content and message directly into your audience’s inbox. This means your message is more likely to be seen, providing a higher level of engagement and interaction.

2. It’s an owned and operated channel. 

An email list allows you to essentially own your audience data. While social media platforms can change their rules and algorithms at any moment, potentially impacting your visibility and reach, an email list gives you a safeguard against those changing algorithms. If something happens to a social platform, you know you’ll be able to take your audience with you wherever you go. 

Owned and operated content, like newsletters, also give you more creative freedom. You can create the kind of content you love, that inspires you, and that fully addresses your audience’s needs without having to worry about whether it’s optimized for a specific platform’s algorithm. You can talk about more niche subjects that aren’t as popular on social media, and have a deeper conversation with your audience without the limited character counts. 

3. It’s a great way to drive affiliate sales. 

Email newsletters can be a powerful tool for affiliate marketing. This direct line of communication lets you send your affiliate links directly to your subscribers, bypassing social media platforms and letting them click these links directly from their inbox. 

And because of the deeper conversations that newsletters enable, you can take the time to explain your product recommendations and provide more value to your audience. Over time, this in-depth content can help foster more authentic connections and a sense of trust. 

How To Grow Your Email Subscribers

Now that we’ve established the value of email newsletters, let’s explore seven key strategies to help you grow your email list.

1. Feature Your Newsletter On Your Blog or Website 

Your blog or website is often the first point of contact with your audience, so include email subscription options in highly visible places, like in your header, in a sidebar, or as a pop-up. 

Make it easy and enticing for your audience to subscribe, and include a CTA (call to action) that shows them exactly why they should sign up. Will they get access to premium content, personalized tips, exclusive discounts? Tell them what they’ll gain by subscribing, and what kind of content they’ll receive. 

2. Use Social Media To Drive Sign-Ups

Just like your website, be sure to optimize your active social media profiles to drive potential subscribers. Use a social media link in bio tool, like  TapTo.Shop, to link to your newsletter and help convert your social media followers into email subscribers. And just like on your blog, give them a reason to subscribe!

You can also use your social media posts to promote your email list, like in Instagram captions, a link sticker in your Instagram Stories, your YouTube video descriptions, and more. Social media can serve as a “teaser” for your more in-depth email content; for example, you can tease three of your 10 must-have holiday gifts in your Instagram Stories, with a link to subscribe to your newsletter to find out the rest.

3. Answer Questions and Create Conversation

Since your newsletter lets you speak directly to your audience, and explore topics with more depth, use it to have a conversation with your audience. Maybe you have a hot take that doesn’t feel quite right for social media—like how you’re not a fan of the low rise jeans trend. Your newsletter can help you express your most creative, interesting ideas, and you can use that to gain a following of like-minded people who appreciate your candor. 

In fact, many fashion writers and critics from the publishing world have created their own newsletters as a way to dig into the type of fashion criticism they felt was lacking from the current social media conversations. And they’re gaining significant viewerships from audiences that want to be part of the conversation. 

Similarly, you can use your newsletter to answer your audience’s most burning questions. Use your social media channels, like Instagram Stories, to survey your audience and ask them about their questions, problems, and needs. Then, encourage your audience to sign up for your newsletter to view the answers to their questions. 

4. Offer Premium Content

Just like the “teaser” we mentioned above, you can save your premium content for your email subscribers, which will entice them to sign up. Popular celebrity gossip Instagram account, Deux Moi, is a savvy user of this tactic, promising to deliver its most interesting “blind items” to the audience’s inbox if they subscribe to the newsletter. 

Consider what kind of premium content you may be able to deliver that aligns with your niche and your audience’s interests. It might be as simple as more fleshed out versions of your social media posts. Or, it could be exclusive tips, discounts, or knowledge. Whatever it is, make sure to clearly distinguish it from your regular content so that your audience sees the full value in signing up. 

5. Give Away a Freebie Or Products

One surefire way to drive subscriptions is through a freebie or giveaway. A free course, a discount code, a template—these are all potentially valuable incentives to encourage people to subscribe to your email list. Consider what knowledge or expertise you have to offer that you can package as a “reward.”

Similarly, you can create a giveaway, and use email subscriptions as the entry requirement. Curate the products yourself, or work with a brand partner for a collaborative win-win that gets both of you new subscribers, and give away tempting products you know your audience will love. This may require some financial investment on your part, but your audience will love the opportunity to win a highly-coveted item!

6. Collaborate and Network

Collaborating with other Creators and brands can help you expand your reach. Like collaborating on a joint giveaway, as mentioned above, you can come up with some creative ways to feature another brand or Creator in your newsletter, and they can do the same for you. 

You could interview a fellow Creator, and ask them to include a link to your newsletter in their newsletter. Or, you could collaborate with a brand on an exclusive discount code that’s only available to your email subscribers, and ask the brand to post about it on their channels to drive sign ups. Just make sure you propose a win-win that helps your collaborator meet their objectives as well!

7. Use Automation and A/B Testing 

Do you feel ready for a more advanced tactic? Use tools like automation and A/B testing to learn more about your audience and further optimize your email list. 

Marketing automation tools can help you set up email sequences that welcome new subscribers, send specific emails to audience members who engage with a particular piece of content, and re-engage inactive users. It can take some time to set up, but once you create these automations, they can run in the background to give you consistent engagement with your audience.

Similarly, experimentation can let you deepen your marketing efforts. Use A/B testing to try out different subject lines, email formats, images, and content to determine what resonates most with your audience. For example, you might find out that your audience opens more emails when you include emojis in the subject line. You can use the results and data gathered from these tests to fine-tune your future content.

Newsletters are a long-term investment in your content and business. You can always start small, work on building your audience, and experiment with different content. Over time, as you learn and grow, you’ll start to figure out what works for you, and your newsletter can become a more integral part of your marketing strategy.