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The Future of List Building

by Martin Lee Jr
26 replies
Hey Warriors

Do you think it is still necessary to build your list through traditional e-mail marketing?

The reason I ask is, more high-end marketers are concerned with building fans and followers, because they realize people are hanging out on sites like FaceBook, Twitter, linkedin, and Google+

Also recent statistics (I forget the exact percentage) are showing the traffic from these sites are responding to marketing offers way more than than email.

So is it even necessary to keep an auto-responder ?

PS I already know these platforms can just close down one day, or saturated, or you can get banned, etc... and you can still fallback on the list you created.

I think I am looking for other other reasons why it would be necessary for me to keep building my list with an auto-responder.

- Martin
#building #future #list
  • Profile picture of the author clarentino
    Hi there,

    I believe it is still necessary. It should also be the main reason why you build large followers in social media sites. You want them to get into your list.
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    • Profile picture of the author bostoncitymass
      Still gotta build a list.

      No matter what happens on social cites you will always have that list.

      And if you notice most people try to get people on their list through their fanpage, so i wouldn't say they have given up on list building, they never will, they just use the fan page as a new type of squeeze page.
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  • Profile picture of the author Coby
    Originally Posted by mlj2577 View Post

    Hey Warriors

    Do you think it is still necessary to build your list through traditional e-mail marketing?

    The reason I ask is, more high-end marketers are concerned with building fans and followers, because they realize people are hanging out on sites like FaceBook, Twitter, linkedin, and Google+

    Also recent statistics (I forget the exact percentage) are showing the traffic from these sites are responding to marketing offers way more than than email.

    So is it even necessary to keep an auto-responder ?

    PS I already know these platforms can just close down one day, or saturated, or you can get banned, etc... and you can still fallback on the list you created.

    I think I am looking for other other reasons why it would be necessary for me to keep building my list with an auto-responder.

    - Martin
    Or they want to "sell you the next hot thing" by using fear...

    You can barely do anything online without an email...

    I don't see it "dieing" (spelling?) anytime soon...

    Maybe less effective, but not dead, I still get up open rates as high as 40%
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  • Profile picture of the author Hesaidblissfully
    Originally Posted by mlj2577 View Post

    Do you think it is still necessary to build your list through traditional e-mail marketing?

    The reason I ask is, more high-end marketers are concerned with building fans and followers, because they realize people are hanging out on sites like FaceBook, Twitter, linkedin, and Google+
    Which high end marketers are you referring to? And are they just "concerned with" building fans and followers or are they actually seeing a positive ROI from their efforts?

    If anything, social media should be used synergistically with other forms of marketing like email. It's just one more way to reach prospects and customers. Nothing more, nothing less. And you already mentioned one of the biggest drawbacks to using social media as a substitute for a list: While you can use it to build a list of followers or fans, you're always one TOS change away from not being able to contact them anymore.

    P.S. Direct mail is still here, years after people said it would be replaced by email marketing.
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  • Profile picture of the author HairyPoppins
    Keep the list.

    Social media sites usually trend out after a couple years (ie myspace) where as email won't. I mean I don't think Facebook is going out anytime soon but I don't see how keeping an email list can hurt anything. I would think you'd want to keep any possible income streams open.
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  • Profile picture of the author Chris Ditfort
    If you build a list and have hundreds and thousands of subscribers thats all you'll need.
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  • Profile picture of the author zimzalabim
    Build those lists - much more effective over the long term than the latest social media fads which come and go.

    Thanks,

    Andy.
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  • Profile picture of the author TopKat22
    Definitely, keep your autoresponder.

    Facebook, twitter and other social networks are needed, also, to build the list and even get direct sales from if that is what you promote but when you post something in social networks, it disappears quickly and you have no idea of how many people will get it or even be online right then.

    I have tens of thousands more people on social networks but I can post the exact same thing that I put in my emails to people and the conversion rate in the emails is 500 times higher.
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  • Profile picture of the author Martin Lee Jr
    Ok Folks

    I'm convinced. Thank You all for your feedback.

    Everyone unanimously, is saying to keep my list and keep building - so I will

    Great responses also!

    Thank You!
    - Martin
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  • Profile picture of the author Chris Chicas
    I have yet to meet anyone who got rich from building their list via Twitter yet I've met many who have gotten rich from building their own email list.

    Facebook is good for getting hits to your website along with squido, stumble, etc. And don't forget Youtube... (making your own videos) def a way to build a list and get sales.

    Plus building a list is so much fun.
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  • Profile picture of the author James Foster
    Direct Response marketing will always survive... No matter how many times people say it's "dead"

    Even FB has Private messages ... which are basically like, what? Emails.

    I wouldn't be surprised if in the near future someone comes out with an "auto-responder" for Facebook...

    But overall, no. Email marketing is not going anywhere.

    In fact, I bet you even heard about the "decline in email marketing" from an email you read.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ashley C
    You should focus on using e-mail AND social media. In my opinion, if one is proving to be better, it's not a reason to drop the other.

    E-mails still work, and I can't imagine them ever not. Physical mail still works, and has been around for a very long time. Notice that with all the fancy new changes to applications like Gmail, the way we send and receive e-mails is still pretty much exactly the same. Google have embraced this rather than try to change it.

    I personally respond to offers via e-mail more than social media. I know I can't speak for everyone though. If I were you, I'd keep my fingers in different pies rather than stick to one.
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  • Profile picture of the author JasonParker
    More people use email than Google+ and Facebook...

    You have to have an email address to get a Google+ or Facebook account.

    Besides, let's say you had put all your eggs in the MySpace basket... that basket would be oozing with egg juice from getting smashed.

    Both Google+ (even Google) and Facebook have potential to die off.
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  • Profile picture of the author Joshua Rigley
    Banned
    Allen Says believes email marketing is a dying breed of marketing (not sure if he still holds this opinion). He advocates unique styles of list building, like creating a forum, for example. A forum offers all kinds of benefits that you can't get with an email list.
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    • Profile picture of the author JasonParker
      Originally Posted by Joshua Rigley View Post

      Allen Says believes email marketing is a dying breed of marketing (not sure if he still holds this opinion). He advocates unique styles of list building, like creating a forum, for example. A forum offers all kinds of benefits that you can't get with an email list.
      Interesting...

      I've never seen anything where he says that, but there's a ton of his insights in his War Room posts that are sort of related.

      One that I will always remember is where he talks about how he likes to create things that are like living organisms that grow themselves. For example, a forum.
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      • Profile picture of the author Joshua Rigley
        Banned
        Originally Posted by JasonParker View Post

        Interesting...

        I've never seen anything where he says that, but there's a ton of his insights in his War Room posts that are sort of related.

        One that I will always remember is where he talks about how he likes to create things that are like living organisms that grow themselves. For example, a forum.
        Exactly.

        Let me see if I can find the posts for you...

        Money and Power: Interview with Allen Says (will change your life!)
        Private Posts Volume I

        In my opinion, those are the two most valuable posts in the entire forum.
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        • Profile picture of the author JasonParker
          Originally Posted by Joshua Rigley View Post

          Exactly.

          Let me see if I can find the posts for you...

          Money and Power: Interview with Allen Says (will change your life!)
          Private Posts Volume I

          In my opinion, those are the two most valuable posts in the entire forum.
          Nice

          I re-read his stuff from time-to-time.

          The one that probably influenced me the most is about the short reports and fools gold.

          Right when that came out I started cranking out short reports and selling them with my own brand on them.
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          • Profile picture of the author Joshua Rigley
            Banned
            Originally Posted by JasonParker View Post

            Nice

            I re-read his stuff from time-to-time.

            The one that probably influenced me the most is about the short reports and fools gold.

            Right when that came out I started cranking out short reports and selling them with my own brand on them.
            I'm pretty sure I bought one or two of those reports, waaay back in 2008. Those were some of the first IM ebooks I ever read. Pretty good stuff, if memory serves.
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            • Profile picture of the author JasonParker
              Originally Posted by Joshua Rigley View Post

              I'm pretty sure I bought one or two of those reports, waaay back in 2008. Those were some of the first IM ebooks I ever read. Pretty good stuff, if memory serves.
              haha... cool. I must have been doing something right then
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  • Profile picture of the author Ross Bowring
    Email isn't dead... it's still a central port where people send and receive information.

    Broadly speaking... Facebook is for friends... email is still for business.

    --- Ross
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  • Profile picture of the author garyv
    I think you should test email marketing in every niche you're in. Some niches do not respond well at all to email marketing, and will end up costing you more to maintain the list than it's actually worth.

    However a converting list, or fanpage, is like gold.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mission0ps
    I think you get the message now, don't NOT consider building a list as that's the only way you can generate continued residual from your completed blood sweat and tears !

    Social is great however it does't replace email lists just adds subscribers to them if you funnel properly
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    We all start somewhere.

    I suppose you could call it the honest john of review sites!
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  • Profile picture of the author Mission0ps
    Ok I think you may get the gist now, an email list is essential to ensure that if things ever go pear shaped (and they can) you can still continue to market to target customers. Social is great but use that to funnel to your email list
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    We all start somewhere.

    I suppose you could call it the honest john of review sites!
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  • Profile picture of the author Daniel Wilson
    By building your own list you become independent of sites such as FB and Twitter. They are constantly changing rules and one they they just might go offline.

    Email accounts are here to stay. People trust emails more than random FB posts.

    Trust = conversion.
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  • Profile picture of the author marcuslim
    There will always be new developments and more sexy sounding tools and tactics. But tried and true old fashioned email marketing will still be the heart and soul of internet marketing.
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    Marcus Lim
    Silver Bullet Publishing

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  • Profile picture of the author IamTJM
    Email marketing is still very much alive. A recent list I've built of only about 400 is making me around $100 per email. In my opinion there is no better way online to connect with mass amounts of people on a personal level than through emails.
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