Compared to SEO and social media, email marketing seems old school. But email is still a powerful tool if used the right way. In the overcrowded digital world, users closely guard their email. No one wants more junk mail. To capture a potential customer’s email, you really have to work for it. So, how do you capture email sign-ups?
- Know What Makes Them Tick.
- Take Advantage Of Their Interest.
- Tempt Them With Locked Content.
- Test & Tweak Your Sign-ups.
- Don’t Make It Too Hard.
Know What Makes Them Tick
The first rule of marketing is to know your audience. What sets their heart aflutter? Is it early access to your latest drop? A great deal? Or, making a difference in the world? Depending on your niche, zeroing in on a problem your users have and then solving it for them can get you loads of new email sign-ups. For example, a potential customer may be on the fence about making a purchase. Help them out and take the guilt out of buying those new shoes with a discount code.
Don’t just address the core issue and call it a day though, you need to up your game. If you’ve addressed what your customer is after but still aren’t seeing many new sign-ups, add value to your offer. If a freebie article on healthy eating isn’t getting emails, then offer a free course such as “How to Lose 10 Pounds in 10 Days.” Then, follow through by sending a 10-day meal plan in the initial email then a daily workout and a daily dose of encouragement thereafter. Actionable offers are always more enticing than knowledge only offers.
Take Advantage Of Their Interest
If your site has a blog, take advantage of the interested reader. Place a sign-up at the bottom of each blog post or article. If a reader reaches the bottom of your post, congratulations. You’ve managed to hold their interest long enough for them to stop and consider signing up for more of your content. If you’re a non-profit, place an opt-in at the bottom of your Mission and Volunteer pages. If a visitor to your site is interested in the work you do, give them a place to sign up for more of your world-changing philosophy.
Tempt Them With Locked Content
Give a preview of your article, then lock the rest. To gain access, a user must enter their email to read the rest. For this strategy to work, your content must be compelling and well-written. You’ll only have the first few lines to hook your readers, so write to wow them. Don’t overdo this strategy though. Every article on your site shouldn’t be locked. Site visitors need enough info to know what your site is about and to understand your brand. Try locking your high value pieces, the ones that promise readers something they truly want.
Test & Tweak Your Sign-Ups
Run A / B testing on your sign-ups. Which one do potential customers prefer? This sign-up button or that one? Test button copy, color, and placement. Research shows that using first-person pronouns in your sign-up buttons can increase your sign-ups. “Get My Free Trial” garners more takers than “Get A Free Trial.”
Your copy matters, too. Look at all of your copy but especially the button copy. That’s where you want to pack your punch. The generic button copy is “subscribe now” or “book today.” Action verbs perform best. Subscribe and book both qualify as action verbs, but you can do better. Craft button copy that encapsulates your brand and helps you standout from the competition. If you want readers to subscribe to your healthy eating blog, your button could read “subscribe now.” Or, it could read “become a better you.” Because isn’t that what users want if they choose to subscribe to a blog about making healthier food choices? To be better? To be healthier? I think so.
Here are some great examples of CTA sign-up buttons:
Give Me My Discount
Make Me A Believer
Grow My Money
Teach Me Your Ways
Yes, I Need It
I Want It Now
Don’t Make It Too Hard
You’ve got a well-crafted site with amazing content. Your social media is on point. The lead magnet is superb. You’re getting plenty of traffic, so why aren’t you getting sign-ups? Maybe because you made signing up an ordeal. First, be sure that you are offering visitors plenty of chances to enter their email, but don’t overdo it. You don’t want to overwhelm potential customers.
Here are a few places to add an email sign-up:
- The landing page (this is a given)
- A pop-up box
- Facebook, Insta, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.
- During checkout
- At the bottom of blog posts
- The Contact page
- Sidebars
- In headers and footers
With each sign-up, make it as simple as possible. All you need is the user’s email and maybe their first name. If you ask for too much contact info or ask too many questions, people will navigate away because it’s too much trouble.