Why the F*** Are You Not Building A List...?

Couldn't agree more

Your list is your best asset you own it 100%. So if you get banned from Adwords, Slapped from Google, suppended from Youtube... Or whatever... You'll always have your list that'll make you money on demand

James

I always hesitate to build lists because I know that I personally NEVER buy anything off of lists. In fact, I delete / unsubscribe from all the emails I get from lists, every single day.

There must be another way, right? I know that conceptually it is important to build a list, but do you think this absolutely works for everyone, and basically I need to just get over it? I would be interested in your insight.

Thank you for posting, and good luck and good wishes ... but it just isn't possible to explain this to people who don't want to hear it.

In a thread here yesterday, a member asked for comments on his affiliate site, which was aimed at selling an information product in a highly competitive market.

There were about 12 replies, mostly pointing out (entirely correctly and reasonably and politely) the various things that were wrong with his site. I know that my post in that thread explaining simply that he was wasting his time without an opt-in to build a list will have fallen on stony ground. What people need to hear and what they want to hear are two different things.

I don't expect the person asking to take much notice, in those situations, but I was surprised that I was the only person replying who commented on this, because it really did make all the rest of his concerns about his site almost irrelevant: it was just one he was not going to be able to sell (worth talking about) in that way without building a list. But you can't tell people this, apparently: the ones who understand don't need to hear it and the others ignore it. :rolleyes:

It's a numbers game. You might not be the type of person to read/buy things from an email but there are obviously people that are, judging by the fact that spam is a zillion dollar operation.

Also, you've got to build your value with a mailing list, not just buffet them with affiliate offers.

woaaow great post. I totally agree with you. I found it very easy to create a fanpage and start getting people to my page. Never seen something so easy and with a proper viral plugin you can get traffic very fast and build good relationship and add value to other people.

I view building a list of buyers and prospects like a mutual fund; except that it pays better and a lot faster. I like using the mutual fund analogy because I used to sell mutual funds. The selling points were that you could, as an example, dollar cost average into a mutual fund on a monthly basis, and with compound interest, could potentially earn a very nice ROI over a period of time. List building is very similar, in principle.

Some people get a little frustrated when they first start out with their list building efforts, but are usually amazed at what an impact it has on their business a year later. In some niches that I'm in my list of targeted buyers accounts for 90% of our profits. That's not a typo. Ninety Percent.

So if you're able to make $1,000 buckaroos without a list, imagine how much MORE you'd be making if you had started one from the beginning. I wrote more about it here recently.

RoD

Yes, they can. Which is why you should always back up your lists daily. More often if you have a high volume of opt-ins coming in.

Equally important, you should build a relationship with your list and not just bombard them with offers as that will give a more effective LTV (Life Time Value) for your customer base.

RoD

Just to add one some small - but important - idea to the discussion: list building for offline businesses. Not many people doing it, so the ones doing it can achieve more profits. Beside, people can create lists for any market...

That's right... I have a list of over 10,000 subscribers now but I only started building my list 1 year after I went into IM full-time... imagine how many more subscribers I would have now if I started right from the start!

I think that regardless of how high Facebook is held up by certain marketers, it is going to meet its demise as did Myspace. But email marketing will be around for a long time. Everyone uses email and it will always exist in some form.

Wow. Another "You're an idiot if you don't have a list" thread. 5 of these exact threads pop up a day.

We got it already. Thanks anyways.

I do actually have some great lists and realize it's not the be-all end-all there is for making money online. Yes, it's a great source of potential revenue. Hell, sometimes its fun just to give my lists something of real value because I like to, not as a sales pitch.

But it's not the ONLY way to make money, nor is it "leaving money on the table", that old chestnut people like to throw around.

Why?

Because I make A LOT more money by developing and ranking my affiliate and CPA sites than I do by trying to sell to my list all the time which is what 99% of the lists I'm subscribed to do. As such, my time is better spent having these sites developed and ranked.

So can we stop with the threads about "You're a retard if you don't have a list" already?

We get it already, and there ARE other ways of doing things.

You are right but a lot of us are aware because we heard it several times a day. A list is important guys.

Cuz I don't know what to do with it after I built it. The giving people valuable content versus trying to sell them something confuses me. And I wonder why I don't just put that 'valuable content' on my web site, rather than sharing it with the few people I have on a list.

I did start one time and got so few sign on that it just wasn't worth it.

A list? Yeah, I've heard that a time or two or three....anyone going to recommend any good resources from the forum here to help people get a list going?

I agree Cool Hand Luke....lists aren't the end all/be all.

Instead of focusing on "Lists"....focus on being an innovator and creator of unique ideas. I've made millions over the past 10 years by making innovative, unique products. I only have a list because its one of the pieces that complete the pie. I have never used my list once.

People don't apprectiate spammy affiliate crap.

Well the votes are in! An email list is important! Everybody likes to buy from people they Know-Like-and Trust. They will buy from the same guy over and over again until the KLT factor is broken. Start building a list of buyers today, it's your business' life blood.

Having a list is great, but if you don't have a good plan on how to use it you will be wasting your time. It's about the relationship.

Yes, SpikeS, he should have changed the name of his post to:

If you are a spamming affiliate marketer, Why the F*** are not building a list?

Then I would agree to most of the posts in this thread

Girlfriend: Honey, we need a new kitchen and a new couch...

Me: Alright, wait a second I'll send an email to my list!... Ahh but how much do we need??

Girlfriend: About $10000!

Me: Got it, that'll be about 7 email and 10 days.

Girlfriend: Great... I already chose the couch......

If I can say there are 2 things that helped me quit my crappy day job...

it was

1) getting traffic

2) building a list and creating good repore with them.

But number 2 is the most powerful thing. If you learn how to build a list quickly and help those people, and give them great stuff then you have already won this game in my eye, no matter what niche or what products your selling.

On the 16th of this month, I'd just gone almost a 2 week stretch with absolutely no sales from all of my sites. Needless to say, I was beginning to feel pretty dejected.

After having checked my order buttons, statistics in Google Analytics, and everything else, I came to the conclusion that it must've been due to the end of financial year, or summer holidays in the US.

I really had no idea why my sales had dropped off so significantly. But I HAD to do something - FAST!

I sat down and watched dozen or so of Chris Farrells videos on youtube. In every single video he explained the importance of building a list. I figured there had to be an element of truth in it, so I decided to do nothing over the next few days, but work on my autoresponders and lists.

After spending 3 days, working purely on aweber, mapping out follow up emails, setting my links in place, giving value to my readers, adding optin forms on all of my sites, a number of things happened almost IMMEDIATELY.

1. In 9 days I made just over $1,000. This may not sound like much, but what's important to note about this is that EVERY BIT OF THIS INCOME came from offers within my follow up emails - my lists! This was money that I NEVER would have made otherwise.

2. I began to receive a LOT of emails from those on my lists, asking me various questions. This is FANTASTIC, because Im not only answering their emails, but Im building a solid relationship. Many of those questions led to sales also.

3. People are making suggestions for additional products via emails. This helps me big time. Theyre also making suggestions for improvements on my existing products.

4. People are doing my surveys, and this is very helpful towards future product development!

Those are just a few off the top of my head, but its the money that Ive made that stands out mostly. $1,000 in 9 days - and every bit of that came from my lists. Not broadcasts, just changes to my existing email messages and structure

I think this should help my confidence next year during the holiday season.

I agree 100%. I spent my first few years online not focusing on building my list and guess what I made zero profit. Then within a few months after I started promoting something that actually captured leads for my own personal list I was in profit. I quit advertising replicated websites that the affiliate programs and network marketing companies I was involved with online gave me and started to advertise a site that was tied to my own personal autoresponder so I could build my own list. After I have people on my list that I have control over then I strategically introduce members of my list the replicated sites of the programs that I am involved with. Most network marketing companies replicated sites that they give you are designed to build the companies list. When I figured this all out my experience online changed for the better almost instantly.

Thanks for this post dude.

I've been going back and reading a bunch of posts on Article Marketing and Alexa just beat it into my head that the money's in the relationships and thus, the list! So I just started building them on my niche sites. Hopefully it'll pay off!

Most email goes out in HTML now a days. Can you put AdSense ads in those email? That is probably an odd question, but it is something I have thought about for a long time. Just thought I would ask.

Building a list is a must for any Internet Marketer!
The advantages are enourmous. Sometimes having a big and responsive list is better than having a product and no list! A list is an asset on its own.
A list can open doors to joint ventures partners which can catapult your business and profits to a higher level...
If anyone is in doubt about the benefits of building a list, just study the "big boys/girs" of our industry to see how they can just print money with a click of a button!

I added an autoresponder to the sidebar of my first Wordpress website, I wonder how long it will take before I get a list I can market to. There is no real incentive for them signing up, maybe they get free updates, or helpful advice but I guess it's worth putting there. My other one is selling touch pens, I don't think that would work for a list. My list is social connections on Twitter, Facebook, and StumbleUpon. It works for tons of views, if it was bigger, I'm sure it would start to work for sales. I would rather learn to use pay per click, I think all people are starting to get sick of being asked to sign up to a list.

nice thread! I'll save it to get further insight!!

Just some thoughts...

1) You can't be "spammed" if you optin to a list...

2) Everyone's perception of 'value' is different. For me personally, there's value in sending out offers that solve people's problems or for stuff that I use in my business.

3) You can use a list as leverage in other parts of your business. For instance, it may be easier to get a guest post on a blog if you tell that person you're going to tell your list about that post. It's also important when forming JV's... you have something to 'bring to the table'.

4) Look at the people teaching email marketing, they will tell you to provide 'value' by sending free content yet many of these same people will mail out offer after offer. That's because they know you will get relatively the same number of unsubscribes whether sending a free or paid offer. 'free' has been beaten to death, devalued, and MANY people won't pay attention.

5) If you're afraid to sell, you won't make any money.

6) Buyers lists are the best lists to build because the relationship is formed the minute a transaction is complete. People will be more likely to open your emails if they've given you money before.

7) You can 'condition' your list. Would you rather 'condition' them to receive offers for paid products everyday, or do you want them to expect free **** everyday?

8) If people aren't unsubscribing or bitching you're doing something wrong... people that are offended by marketing make awful subscribers.

Congrats to the OP on a successful email campaign... hopefully, you'll have many more.

Mark, if I could thank you twice I would.

I think building a list often conjures up fears of 'am i good enough to have a list' in newbies..Like there is this quiet fear that lists are for 'people who have been around and know their stuff'.

The fear of being exposed as new is often unfounded though.You just need to make sure that you stick to promising what you can deliver, deliver it well and try and give your subscribers as much value as is humanly possible at all times..

Thanks for this. Ive been prolonging it, but I will be soon!

Paul, we had a small discussion about mailing message cycles and what to include just a few days ago. If this helps anyone, this is what I do.

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post4326223

This topic has been covered here extensively, so it might be worth doing a search if you're looking for more information

I wanted to come back and add that it was another successful day with the list I was originally talking about in my first post. I do a "blast" on Monday's and Fridays, with a "Bonus" sometimes on Wednesday's if a merchant has an absolutely killer coupon I know my list will eat up.

Regardless. I am back to post that if you aren't building a list, please, just please, start doing so. Like I said. Even if you have to promote your daily or weekly blog posts--that is fine. You don't have to promote products, but you can certainly start building relationships with your potential customers/clients at any time!

Your definitely right there. It would be crazy to not start building a list from the start because if you look after your list and provide real value to them they will stick ith you and be inetersted in what you have to offer.

It's a great idea to get a list, and to build that relationship, if you treat them as potential customers just as in any brick and mortar establishment they are more likely to buy your product

Like the old saying goes "the money is in the list"!!!

I don't even bother reading most emails i get sent these days from gurus and the like, but when it comes to someone that I actually interests me i do read there email with interest.

That just shows how useful it is to have a good relationship with your list and to actually be an interesting marketer that dose not send the promotions for products everyday!!!

I still have not started list building. I am trying to set alot of things up before I dive in.

One thing that I like to share is that if you want to know how to get someone to open your emails; Optin yourself to as many lists as possible.

(Obviously you will have to do this in a seperate email).


Why you may ask? Because this way you can get some ideas as to what people write on their emails/header. Write down what you think will make your clients not only open your emails but also click on that link.

This is just an idea. Something logical to do.

This is what I do for my Affiliate Sites. I read the emails and the top 10 in google because the way there Headers and Subheaders are written. This can give you some valuable ideas as to what you can add to your Emails/Sites.


Excuse any confusion I may have added as English is not my foreign language.


Thank you,
regZ