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You Need An Email List

Have you started your online business yet? Great!

I’m so excited for you! Your online business will change your life!

Here’s another question:

Do you have a way of capturing your readers’ information and turning them into a raving audience? You know, the people who are the most likely to buy your products?

If you don’t, you should.

No matter what anyone says, you NEED an email list. You needed one in 2006, you needed one in 2012, and you need one in 2019.

Not only that, but you need one from the start.

Do not pass go. Get on that right now.

Why?

Read on!

Your Email List: Everyone Has An Email Address

If you use a computer, there’s a chance you have an email address. My grandma has an email address. She doesn’t like using a computer and hates having a smartphone, but she has an email address. My almost-90-year-old grandfather has an email address. I’ve had an email address since I was 12. My nieces, who are both under the age of 8, they have email addresses.

According to a 2018 Radicati Group study, there were more than 3.8 billion email users before the start of 2019.

For comparison, there are 1.74 billion mobile active users on Facebook.

That’s more than twice as many email users than there are Facebook users.

Convinced yet?

And here’s another nugget: when someone signs up for your email list, they’re consenting to have you email them. They’re saying, “Hey, I want your emails coming to my inbox. My private, personal inbox.”

It may not sound like a lot, when all it is, is a few numbers and letters attached to an @somedomaminhere.com, but that’s really something HUGE to offer you. It means someone is inviting YOU into their life.

Your Email List: It’s Is Yours And Yours Alone

Remember that your email list is a thing that you own.

You don’t own your Twitter following, your Facebook fans, your Pinterest followers, your Instagram followers, or whatever other platform people are hanging around in these days. And one day, one of those platforms might just disappear. Poof. Gone. And your access to all those people following you? Also gone.

But your email list? That you own. In fact, it’s something you pay to maintain. It is one of the greatest investments into your side hustle. And no one can take it from you.

All the people who choose to be in your email list are there because they want to know more about YOU. They want to know how you can help them, they want to know what you have to teach them.

Your Email List: You Audience Is Most Likely To See Your Content

Along with not owning your platforms, you don’t have control of who sees your content on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. The mythical secret algorithms control that.

The perfect example is what happened a couple years ago on Facebook. Originally, it was incredibly easy to grow your following there, be it through pages or in groups. If you decided to follow a page, then you would see that page’s content, I’d say about 90% of the time.

Unfortunately, it’s not like that anymore.

Because one day, Facebook changed its algorithm. In a snap not unlike what Thanos pulled in Infinity War, people went from seeing 90% of a page or group’s content to seeing MAYBE 10%. It was pretty much overnight.

And people flipped out.

On the other hand, if someone decides to join your email list, they’re saying, “Hey, I want to see your stuff.” All you have to do is send an email. And that’s that.

Your Email List: People Check Their Email First

When you wake up in the morning, what’s the first thing you do?

Before I changed up my morning routine, and especially back when I was still working in sports, the very first thing I would do after my alarm went off was check my email.

Now, I save that for after my morning journaling, meditation, and yoga, but my morning routine is another story I’ll cover later. I will say that you should totally take some me-time first thing in the morning before looking at your phone, but for today I’ll leave it at that.

It’s still one of the first things that I do, and it’s one of the first things most people do.

That’s why, when I send an email to my list, I make sure it goes out as close to first thing in the morning as possible. Now, there are a lot of different philosophies on when you should send emails to your list, but I found that that’s what works for me.

This way, when my audience wakes up (or is going through their morning routine if they’re an early riser) then they’re going to see my email.

Your Email List: You Can Foster Engagement

Your email list is one of the best ways to get to know your audience. Sure, you can get a ton of quality interaction out of Facebook and Instagram comments, but your email list is that place where you can engage with all your readers.

Run short on ideas for blog content ideas? Well, first of all, sign up for my free email course, Content Explosion, where I walk you through planning 12 months of content in just one day.

But if you’re still short on blog post ideas, send an email to your list and ask them what they want to know. It makes them feel like they’re part of the action, a part of building the content that you provide. That helps build the trust factor between you and your audience. They KNOW that you’re here to serve them. You’re here to teach them what you know, and show them that you know what they’re looking for.

Your email list is also where you can give them a glimpse behind the scenes of what’s going on in your business. You can give them sneak peeks into upcoming projects, events, courses. Give your list the opportunity to give you input, let them show you what they need from you.

Your Email List: It’s There For You When You Need A Cash Injection

For those of you who have monetized, or are just getting ready to monetize, this is going to be big.

When it all shakes out, the value is estimated to be at about $1.00 per email. Naturally, if you have a large list, that means high value.

Now, I’m not saying that the only thing you should be doing is bombarding your email list with sales emails. That’s the fastest way to make people run to the unsubscribe button. But if you’re looking to launch a digital course, sell an ebook, or offer one-on-one coaching, a majority of those buyers WILL come from your list. Your list will have a much higher conversion rate than selling on any other platform.

That’s where you can take advantage, offer discounts to really encourage your subscribers to become buyers.

Your Email List: Start Immediately

One of the biggest mistakes many bloggers and side hustlers make is that they didn’t start growing their email list as soon as they started. As I started my side hustle journey, I have lost count of how many big-time established bloggers—you know, the ones who are making full-time to multi-million dollar incomes—have talked about how much they regret not starting their email lists sooner.

In fact, you can (and should) start growing your email list BEFORE you launch your side hustle.

All you need is a way to capture emails (think Convertkit, MailerLite, ActiveCampaign, etc). Share it out to friends and family, put it out to your social media accounts that you’re creating something new and awesome, and that if they want to follow along, they should subscribe.

It really can be that simple.

Your Email List: Ready To Invest In The Best?

Now, I will go much deeper into this in next week’s post, but if you want to start things off on the right foot with your email list, and have the cash to invest, then I highly recommend starting off with an email service provider like Convertkit. With Convertkit, you can create a form in minutes, along with email sequences and automations.

I originally started off on Mailchimp, because it was free, but with free comes…less. I go deeper into the nine reasons why I made the switch, which you can read here. You can sign up for the You Can Do It Too Newsletter, and you’ll get an email with insider tips and tricks and weekly action steps to take your side hustle to the next level.

If you’re interested in trying Convertkit on for size, they are offering a free, 14-day trial for new users (that’s my affiliate link). I will be honest, I was sold after day one. In fact, I wish I had made the investment (you get 12 months for the price of 10 if you pay annually and have under 1,000 subscribers) right off the bat.

If you already have an email list, Convertkit can help you import your list, and it’s seamless. They also have a handy checklist that walks you exactly through the steps you need to take to create your first form, first automation, first sequence. It all takes minutes, and they offer detailed video tutorials to walk you through each and every step.

Your Email List: But First, You Need A Website

Don’t forget to get hosting (plus a free domain) for as little as $3.95/month through Siteground. You can read why I choose Siteground to host my websites in my post, 6 Reasons I Host My Side Hustle On Siteground (And You Should Too).

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