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List Building VS Product Creation, which is better?

by GlenPinvest
35 replies
Hi fellow warriors,

Now I've heard so many IM people saying the best way to make money online is to build your list as fast and as big as possible, while others say the fastest way to make money online is to create and sell your own products.

So tell me, which one is it?

Both have their own appeal but both come with challenges.
What I've found is, list building can be quite hard and expensive if you don't have the skill to build squeeze pages, get a domain and hosting and what if you don't have a product or service to give away for free at the start. Giveaways are a great way to get started but not only do you need all of the above, you need to promote them or get booted off. So you don't have a list to promote to, yes there's social media, but everywhere I look now theres marketers peddling their wares, so how do you start building your list with when you have nothing to start with.
Then there's product creation, sure it's free and some people say you can create a product in a few hours, but then what? You have this shiny new product with all the bells and whistles but what if your starting out. You don't have a list you can promote to, you find it hard to get decent JV partners because you don't know how to get them.

So for all the product creators and list builders out there, I ask you this. If you were starting up from the beginning, with very little experience and money, what would you choose - List building or Product creation?
It would be great if I can get feedback from people that have both.

Thanks in advance.
Glen.
#building #creation #list #product
  • Profile picture of the author travlinguy
    Which is better, coffee or tea? They're different and so are the two items in your question. All marketers should be building a list regardless of whatever else they might be doing. That way, by the time you have enough experience and smarts to create a valuable product, you actually have a bunch of people to offer it to right out the chute.
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    • Profile picture of the author Oliver Williams
      Originally Posted by travlinguy View Post

      Which is better, coffee or tea? They're different and so are the two items in your question. All marketers should be building a list regardless of whatever else they might be doing. That way, by the time you have enough experience and smarts to create a valuable product, you actually have a bunch of people to offer it to right out the chute.
      That's exactly right they both go hand in hand, I recommend building your list, gaining your experience and expertise then product creation in that order.
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  • Profile picture of the author kalens99
    The coffee and tea analogy doesn't work, because they are substitutes for each other. In this case, the two support each other. You build a list and can sell your product. Or you create a great product to sell your list. Lists are for marketing and product creation is for either monetizing your audience or building your list.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
    Originally Posted by GlenPinvest View Post

    Hi fellow warriors,

    Now I've heard so many IM people saying the best way to make money online is to build your list as fast and as big as possible, while others say the fastest way to make money online is to create and sell your own products.

    So tell me, which one is it?

    Both have their own appeal but both come with challenges.
    What I've found is, list building can be quite hard and expensive if you don't have the skill to build squeeze pages, get a domain and hosting and what if you don't have a product or service to give away for free at the start. Giveaways are a great way to get started but not only do you need all of the above, you need to promote them or get booted off. So you don't have a list to promote to, yes there's social media, but everywhere I look now theres marketers peddling their wares, so how do you start building your list with when you have nothing to start with.
    Then there's product creation, sure it's free and some people say you can create a product in a few hours, but then what? You have this shiny new product with all the bells and whistles but what if your starting out. You don't have a list you can promote to, you find it hard to get decent JV partners because you don't know how to get them.

    So for all the product creators and list builders out there, I ask you this. If you were starting up from the beginning, with very little experience and money, what would you choose - List building or Product creation?
    It would be great if I can get feedback from people that have both.

    Thanks in advance.
    Glen.

    They go hand in hand... Think about it - If you build a list you need to sell them something right? Well, create your own products and sell them to your list.

    When you create products you need buyers... so, seek out and find those people interested in your books and turn them into buyers.

    Start with the list... Give them killer information for free. Ask them what they are struggling with and create that solution. Build momentum and keep the products coming. Once your list has one solution they will immediately need to have a whole new set of problems fixed.

    If money were tight for me I would get an autoresponder service at Imnica Mail for $3 a month. Webhosting at HostGator for $10 a month and 1 domain name.

    Put up a blog and start conversing with your market. Share information and when you have your first product ready just create a sub-domain and sell it that way.
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  • Profile picture of the author Trevor M
    Why not start building a list by creating products? Kill two birds with one stone.
    Of course, as long as you have the experience to create a product.

    If so, create a product about a topic you have knowledge of.

    You don't need to have a list to advertise your product. If it's in the IM niche you can create a WSO in the WSO section of this forum.

    If you decide to create a product around a different niche, you can e-mail the owners of other blogs in that niche and ask them to advertise your product to their list for a certain commission.
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  • Profile picture of the author Henry B
    Create a IM report on something that you are interested in and give it away for free while asking for the individual to opt-in to your list to receive it.

    You will then know that the people on that list are interested in that particular topic. Then you can assist them with knowledge and products to satisfy their desire for more info in that area.
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    • Profile picture of the author Scott Henderson
      I agree with the responses.

      When it comes to list building I first started off by first creating a product, (actually I created 2 at first, one free report which was the list opt in offer and a paid product), this built my list through a variety of methods.

      To me having your own product is the best way to build a list. And the best list to have is a buyers list. So you do not necessarily need to go the route that you mention of free giveaways, building squeeze pages etc.. Do the research for a product that is in demand, come up with your own idea for a product in that market and create an awesome product and sell it. If it is awesome, trust me the list will come and it will be just what you want, a buyers list.
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  • Profile picture of the author thetrafficguy
    You should be doing both. You need people to sell to and stuff to sell. Can't have one without the other.
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  • Profile picture of the author JimWaller
    If you can do both, that can be where the magic happens.
    Why?
    Because you have something to offer that no one else can offer if you created it, and having that unique item, you can build a list around it.
    If you have the time and talent:
    1. Create a freebie to offer
    2. Create an autoresponder series on the same topic that builds trust and hopefully points toward the third thing...
    3. Create a unique product or service with the aforementioned autoresponder pointing toward the sales page.

    What do you need?
    1. a squeeze page for your freebie that leads to your autoresponder series
    2. an autoresponder
    3. a sales page for your main product
    4. a delivery system for your freebie and your main product

    What helps even more?
    1. a well researched domain that directly relates to your keywords
    2. your own hosting account
    3. an affiliate program you can use to entice others to promote your main product

    Then... there is the HOLY GRAIL...
    TRAFFIC!

    There are many ways to get traffic, there are many ways to market on the internet. You have to figure out what works best for you.
    I know I've sprinkled some glittering generalities here, I'm just saying you might be able to do both and be all the better for it.

    Hope this helps,

    Jim Waller
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  • Profile picture of the author Des Lau
    ^ WTF, lol

    Agreed that both go hand in hand. But IMO, building a list has a far easier learning curve so get started with that. It's a long term asset and investment, so build it as slowly as you want depending on what you have with your funds.

    PS. Don't rush anything.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Romaine
    This question doesnt make any sense.

    Which is better, ice cream or socks?

    Im a product creator and I typically pull a 5% conversion rate via direct email marketing to my list.

    1. If you really want to maximise sales, market to your list
    2. You dont need to be a product creator in order to build a list
    3. You need to sit down, have a salad, and a real good think about the definition of both, because obviously you're missing something.
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  • Profile picture of the author Shaun OReilly
    Originally Posted by GlenPinvest View Post

    If you were starting up from the beginning, with very little experience and money, what would you choose - List building or Product creation?
    IF I had to start from the beginning and could ONLY
    choose one, then I'd choose List Building.

    Why?

    List building is one of the most important skills to
    learn in Internet Marketing.

    Once you have a list, you own a source of traffic
    that you can send content and offers to.

    Sure, product creation is important, but you don't
    have to do that yourself at the very beginning.

    You can access ready-made products right away
    e.g. affiliate products, PLR, etc.

    I'd rather have a list and no product of my own
    than to have a product of my own and no list.

    That said, you'd be wise to develop your own
    line of products over time too.

    Dedicated to mutual success,

    Shaun
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Long
    First things first...

    Get the idea of instant profits out of your head.

    In fact, get the idea of "making money from your list" out of your head too!

    Sounds counter-intuitive, but please trust me on this, if you build a list with a mindset toward helping people, you'll eventually make FAR more money than you would by doing everything imaginable to build a big "burn and churn" list while focused only on making money.

    Commit yourself to building a list. If you think you don't have anything to offer, think again.

    You have yourself.

    Let people get to know you. Give people an idea of what you eventually want to share with them.

    Perhaps most importantly - build that list and then...

    Ask your list what they would like you to produce for them!

    Your list will feel like they matter because you are interacting with them and will be more inclined to stick with you, you now have the foundation of a product to build, and it will sell well to your list because you're giving them exactly what they wanted.

    Be patient, build it right, and before you know it, you'll have both.

    -Mike
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  • Profile picture of the author Ashish Poonia
    Banned
    Originally Posted by GlenPinvest View Post

    Hi fellow warriors,

    Now I've heard so many IM people saying the best way to make money online is to build your list as fast and as big as possible, while others say the fastest way to make money online is to create and sell your own products.

    So tell me, which one is it?

    Both have their own appeal but both come with challenges.
    What I've found is, list building can be quite hard and expensive if you don't have the skill to build squeeze pages, get a domain and hosting and what if you don't have a product or service to give away for free at the start. Giveaways are a great way to get started but not only do you need all of the above, you need to promote them or get booted off. So you don't have a list to promote to, yes there's social media, but everywhere I look now theres marketers peddling their wares, so how do you start building your list with when you have nothing to start with.
    Then there's product creation, sure it's free and some people say you can create a product in a few hours, but then what? You have this shiny new product with all the bells and whistles but what if your starting out. You don't have a list you can promote to, you find it hard to get decent JV partners because you don't know how to get them.

    So for all the product creators and list builders out there, I ask you this. If you were starting up from the beginning, with very little experience and money, what would you choose - List building or Product creation?
    It would be great if I can get feedback from people that have both.

    Thanks in advance.
    Glen.
    I prefer list building as it provides a source of passive income.
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  • Profile picture of the author gasman
    Product creation can actually help you build your list faster. Whether you are using PLR materials or you are creating your own products, when you sell them get an email address. You can also build your list much faster by giving some of your products away for free. Then market your products that cost money to your newly developed list.
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  • Profile picture of the author IMHunter
    Well both have it's advantages. In List Building you can build a huge list and start earning right away. But there are more problems with Product Creation, if you don't have a list to market to then it is very hard to promote your product.
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  • Profile picture of the author sundown16
    they go together like bacon and eggs
    every product you promote should lead with a capture page
    lead generation should NEVER leave the thought of any online marketer
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  • Profile picture of the author braincandy7
    Why is does one have to better than the other?

    They go very nicely hand in hand to compliment each other.
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    You should do both.

    Now if your question was, "Should i do list building or lead visitors straight to my sales letter page?"... my answer would be different.
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  • Profile picture of the author nicholasb
    You actually want to use the two of them together. They go hand and hand and I have personally used them both very well together to create more than just a small fortune.

    The first thing you want to do is create a great product, one that actually helps people in some area of their life.

    Then you want to create a squeeze page to start building a list of people who would be very closely targeted to that offer.

    The way I do it is to create a webinar or a free report on the 3 things you must know or the 7 things you must avoid to accomplish whatever goal ETC....

    You then drive all of your traffic to the squeeze page, they get the free material and then are presented with the offer to buy for even more help.

    I personally like selling products in the $197-$997 range for the most profit.

    You can't make money by just building a list, it is a way to effectively market your products online.
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  • Profile picture of the author Asher
    Hi Glen,

    You should re-read veterans like Mike Hill, Mike Long
    posts to your question.

    Personally, I think you should focus on building a list
    first.

    Because once you have a list, it is an audience. You have
    gathered a bunch of people who have first of all, given
    you consent to contact them and secondly, have proven
    intent of finding out more about what you can offer.

    As for the freebie giveaway, you can actually "give" nothing
    but that'll depend on your squeeze message.

    If you were directing it to a video salesletter, you can
    use the "free video" approach. But if you want to increase
    the goodwill factor or... just to do what everyone has
    already done (which is giving a freebie), you can give a
    quick PDF report.

    This pdf report can be a simple PLR report you get.

    Sure, the quality may not be there... but it gets you started.

    Once you've the list, you can swap out that crummy
    PLR report with a high quality one you've created or
    made significant changes with.

    As thetrafficguy, John Romaine, nicholasb (and others) stated --
    the product and the list pretty much come hand in hand.

    But the list is the one that has the wallet.

    So, in my opinion, go with list building first if you must
    choose between one of the two. If possible, do both.

    Asher
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  • Profile picture of the author IMSince2003
    Start building your list asap. After you have a large list, you have a captive audience to market your first product to.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ben Gordon
    Start off with building your list then once you have a list create your product. Meanwhile you can market to your list as an affiliate. If you have a product but don't have a list or good advertisement methods (e.g. JV partners), you won't be able to successfully launch you product.
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    • Profile picture of the author Lena
      I would build a list first because that way you can start promote affiliate offers right away. Product creation takes time & knowledge.
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  • Profile picture of the author trilogy9013
    Like others above have said, it doesn't make any sense to consider them alternatives to one another when in reality they go together like a burger and fries (sorry im a little hungry).

    The point is, one of the greatest and most lucrative ways to build a list very quickly is to have a product that requires an opt-in form before the product can be downloaded, viewed, etc.

    In other words, if you create a product and build a list at the same time, you will have created 2 sources of potential income in the same amount of time that you would have only created 1 if you had chose just one or the other. Work smarter not harder!
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  • Profile picture of the author Irwin Dominguez
    You should definitely do both; build a list to sell your product.

    They have been plenty of good comments already that pretty much mentioned what I was going to say.

    I would honestly start with building a list first - and build the list with the intention of helping people on that list; don't think about $$$; this will help you in the long run.
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  • Profile picture of the author jacksonlin
    When you own a product, you are able to recruit affiliates who build your list for you!

    So you do BOTH in one go!
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  • Profile picture of the author ExpertSEOServices
    Why not go with both?
    I have launched several services, and am building a buyers list at the same time!

    I have just launched my first WSO and have notified my list. I will also keep building my buyers list from there offering them all excellent value, offers, and discounts.

    Would definatly go with both as my answer
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  • Profile picture of the author John Z
    Try to do both
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    Thank you

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  • Profile picture of the author paul nicholls
    they both work hand in hand with each other

    if you were to create a product but didnt build a list you would be absolutely nuts

    you can still build a list with no product though, just offer a quality free offer to build your list and then sell affiliate products but doing it this way your not building your own buyers list

    paul
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    • Profile picture of the author CesarWarrior
      well, as a fellow newbie, I find list-building to be allot more work than product creation! Not only do you need to build a list, you need to keep that list 'warm', by emailing them regularly. Yeah I know you can set up autoresponder etc, but after 'thanks for signing up', I can never think of anything else to say!
      I say go with product creation. At least then you own something - you have something to sell. There are tons of places to sell stuff without a list, amazon comes to mind. But everyone here does say that the money is in the list, and most of these guys do well, so there's got to be some truth in it. But I think building a list is a really tedious task. Just my 2 cents.
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  • Profile picture of the author marcuslim
    Product creation is a good skill to have if you're doing any sort of list building. If you want to get people to sign up to your list, you need a product to give away. Even if you are an affiliate, you still need to offer bonuses to entice people to buy through you. In all cases, you need to know how to create a product.
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    • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
      I totally agree with Mike Hill and some of the others. The OP's question in the subject line demonstrates a serious lack of understanding of the fundamentals of business and marketing. It just makes NO sense at all.

      As someone else said, it's like asking which is better: ice cream or socks. Huh??? :confused:

      First, you need to have something to sell. This can be your own product or someone else's. But regardless of what you're selling or what your niche or target market is, you DO need a list of customers and prospective customers. List-building and nurturing is a fundamental business strategy for ALL businesses.

      IM CAN be very confusing and overwhelming. Believe me, I know! Been there, done that.

      Clarity is a HUGE part of IM success. It's so simple when you know it -- and darn difficult when you don't! I owe my mentors a world of thanks for bringing this clarity.

      IM is actually pretty simple: you can sell only one of two things:

      1. Products
      2. Services

      That's it!

      And selling products or services online happens in the same basic way for everyone, no matter what they're selling:

      Traffic > Opt-in page > Autoresponder series (or e-zine) > Sales page

      That's it! It's just that simple. (We IMers tend to overcomplicate things.)

      But no matter what your niche is, or whether you're selling a product or a service, do you know what your business model is?

      A business model is the framework or skeleton of your business. Essentially there are three types of online business models:

      1. Membership-based model

      A membership-based business model allows you to build a community of people (your members) who are as passionate about your subject as you are. Your membership fees can be monthly or annual, but either way, you're building recurring, passive income.

      There are a lot of resources and information out there to help you build a membership-based business if you're interested in doing this.

      2. Product-based model

      Selling products allows you to maximize your time and effort by selling items over and over again. This can be hard goods or it can be information products. Information marketing is it's own business model under the product-based model. Information marketing allows you to take your brain to the bank by creating a product ONCE based on what you know and selling it over and over again.

      Affiliate marketing falls under both models. You can choose to market either products or services as an affiliate.

      3. Service-based model

      Selling services can be great for 1) generating quick cash (as in the case of article writing or video producing) and 2) establishing your expertise and getting testimonials.

      However, in the long run, your goal should be to offer services at a PREMIUM. The biggest advantage of IM is LEVERAGE. You're able to leverage your time, money and expertise exponentially online. We all have just 24 hours each day. Time to get ruthless about what you expect for those hours you spend in IM each day. Expect more of yourself and more from your business friends, clients, partners, etc.

      What results are you getting for those hours you spend online each day? Ultimately, your services should be at the bottom of your funnel and cost the most since they involve your time and personal attention. (We all have a limited amount of time each day.)

      The fun (and confusion) comes in with all of the endless mix-and-match possibilities of the above models. If you're just starting or still struggling to make money, keep it simple:

      Pick just ONE!

      1. Pick ONE niche. (Something you're interested in and know something about.)

      2. Pick ONE target market for your product or service. (Who will buy what you're offering? The more specific you are, the more you narrow it down, the more successful you'll be.)

      3. Pick ONE business model.

      Now that you're clear about what business you're in, FOCUS! (And stop buying any info not related to your niche and target market, period!)

      F -- Follow
      O -- One
      C -- Course
      U -- Until
      S -- Successful

      And remember: build a list, Build a List, BUILD A LIST!

      In IM, it's easy to put the cart before the horse. Take a deep breath, step back and consider what type of business you're REALLY want. Don't worry about getting traffic or buying that expensive traffic product until you know 1) what your business model is, 2) what niche you're in and 3) WHO your target market is!

      Successful business people will tell you that MARKETING is more than half the effort that's needed for success anyway. So pick a niche, target market and business model. Then spend most of your time and effort marketing it.

      If you DON'T have a solid plan or system, THAT'S when it's hard. A good system will shave YEARS (and save you big $$$) off of your learning curve

      That's why I recommend investing in at least one good, comprehensive IM course (or mentor who will give you such a system) instead of jumping from one $37 e-book to the next. A lot of people here complain about not being able to make any money. But neither are they willing to invest in their business. (Buying a random bunch of $37 e-books doesn't count.)

      The best thing I ever did was invest in a comprehensive IM course aimed at REAL business owners, not just other IM wannabes. Yes it was $1500. (It's no longer available.) But it was truly some of the best A-Z IM info I ever bought. Everything else I've learned (from the $37 e-books) since has simply been plugged into this system.

      Get a solid plan or system and then work the plan!

      Hope this helps!

      Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author WebPen
    You can do both...

    There are a few courses out there that teach you

    First- how to create an awesome product
    Second- how to use that product to build a list

    Granted- you can do it the other way around as well, but I usually see it as

    Build a product -> Use it to make a list

    The tough thing is getting affiliates to promote your product. If it converts well, that'll help.
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    • Profile picture of the author advertisethis
      It's definitely not an either/or scenario. Most of the products you're LEGALLY ALLOWED to give away are crap. But you need a quality product to give away as an opt-in magnet that builds trust towards sales rapport and long-term list retention.

      Once you develop the skills involved in creating your own products, you can also modify your opt-in magnets based on accumulated customer insights as well as eventually creating complimentary bonuses and upsells. You'll also have more opportunity for affiliates to get on board down the road when they see you know how to put together quality products rather than more me-too rehashed s. And SURPRISE, affiliate sales will help you build your list further.
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