So you’ve started an email list (high five!), you’ve added an opt-in box to your site, and you’re excitedly refreshing your email account waiting for that number to grow, grow, GROW!
And . . . it’s not.
You get 3 subscribers and then lose 2. Gain 5 more. Lose 1.
What about those hundreds of subscribers you were expecting? Why aren’t they showing up and sticking around?
Don’t panic. This happened when I started my list too. I dropped a “Subscribe to my email list” box in my blog’s sidebar and waited and waited and waited… A few people joined each week but my numbers were growing at a discouraging rate.
If your blog traffic and your social media following are growing steadily, then your email list should be too, but if that isn’t happening, one of these 4 things might be the culprit . . .
Not adding more than one opt-in box
Everyone has opt-in boxes on their blogs now (as they should) so your readers have probably gotten good at ignoring pop-ups, and X-ing out of welcome mats, and scrolling past announcement bars. It doesn’t mean you should skip those things, but you should make sure that no matter where readers end up on your site, the opportunity to join your list is readily available.
Your opt-in boxes not only gather email addresses but also serve as a constant reminder that your email list is rocking and people should get on it!
It sounds like overkill, but some of the pages on my site have up to SEVEN opt-in boxes. I add them into the site header and footer, post footer, two or three content upgrade boxes, and a pop-up or welcome mat. Because I offer maximum value with each one, having multiple opt-in boxes is more effective in growing my list than an annoyance.
Not segmenting subscribers
Next, for your list to be really effective, you can’t just dump everyone into one single list. You need to know what they’re interested in, what they’ve purchased, and what they’ve signed up for so you can send marketing emails they’ll actually read + take action on.
Mailchimp makes it easy to segemnt users who have downloaded content upgrades or to give them the option to tag themselves in your welcome email.
For me, it lets me know if readers are starting their busing, growing their business, working on building a business, growing their email list, or going for a serious boost in traffic.
From there I can automatically move subscribers into an email sequence loaded with value and point them in the direction of relevant webinars, eBooks, and products.
This is super important because if I send ALL of my emails to ALL of my list (outside of my Monday email), I might be sending business strategies to beginners and basic business tips to people who have been creating content for years.
Obviously people will stay on your list longer if they’re getting content they’re actually interested in. Don’t skip this step!
Not sending email weekly
When I first started my list, I wasn’t sending weekly emails. Instead, I would send an email once or twice / month, when I felt confident that I had something worthwhile to send. Not only was this detrimental to keeping subscribers on my list but it was also a total waste of money.
Why pay $20 or $50 or $100 every month if you’re not going to utilize those subscribers to grow your blog or your business??
Aside from just being the smart thing to do, sending email on a weekly basis keeps your subscribers interested, engaged, and ON YOUR LIST.
Most people in the beginning stages of list-building worry that by sending more than one monthly email, they’ll annoy people and everyone will unsubscribe. But this is the opposite of what will happen. Yes, people will download your freebies and unsubscribe all the time, but the majority of your subscribers REALLY want to hear from you.
Sending weekly email gets them used to you showing up in their inbox, which (because I know you’re working on some awesome content) will obviously be more exciting than annoying. And as long as you’re providing value with every email, it will actually keep subscribers on your list longer.
Not writing blog content that makes readers want MORE
And finally, this is a BIG ONE . . . you need to be writing blog content that makes people want to hear more. If your list isn’t growing at all, this could be your issue.
Have you ever found someone on Instagram or clicked through a pin into their blog and thought, “OMG, this person is so cool and so smart, and I want to see every single word and photo they post online!!”
You have to make your audience think that too!
Obviously it’s easier said than done, and sometimes takes months to accomplish, but I fully believe you have the goods to make someone fangirl/boy over what you’ve got going on. And once a few people start getting excited and share your content, others will turn into raving fans too.
Think of your blog posts as a trial run for your emails (and products + services). If you join my list, you’re going to get something very similar to what is on my blog (seriously – go join and find out), so enticing readers with great content FIRST makes it much more likely they’ll jump on your list than if your blog posts are kinda “meh” and your opt-in box has to do the convincing, right?
