Tips for Building and Using an Email List

If you write content for the web, you might think that your readers are satisfied to just keep up with your postings through their chosen RSS feed. While this is true, it doesn't allow you to make a direct connection with those fans. In order to build a bond with your readers, you need to be able to reach out to them through their email.

Your blog posts are a great place to communicate ideas to a broad audience. If you want to give readers more details about a product that you are promoting or an event or sale that is upcoming, then it is helpful to send out an email that will get the attention of your readers. Having an email list will make it simple for you to make these communications quickly.

Building Your Email List

One of the simplest ways to get people to join your mailing list is to have a newsletter popup or sign-up box on your blog or website. This should be clearly visible in the sidebar. You may also want to write a blog post that talks about your mailing list and encourage your readers to join. Explain the benefits and what kind of information they can expect by signing up.

Tweet about having an email list so that your followers will know and include a link to your page so they can sign up. Create a tab on your Facebook page that will allow fans to sign up for your list.
One great way to encourage people to join your mailing list is to give them something free. This can be a weekly tip, an e-book, or even discounts.

Choosing a List Service Provider

In the beginning, you might want to handle the emailing on your own. But as your list begins to grow, this can eat up a lot of time. That is when you want to start searching for an email list service provider.
With a list service provider, you will also have the benefit of analytics, which will tell you how many of your emails are being opened and how many subscribers you have.
Some of the top list providers are Constant Contact, Mail Chimp and Aweber. Each service sets its own pricing for service. Generally, the cost is based on how many subscribers you have.

What to Send to Subscribers

The first email that each subscriber should receive is a welcome email. In this email, you will want to include:

• A personalized "thank you" for joining the list.
• A description of the content they can expect from your emails.
• Information on contacting you.
• Links to your social media profiles, blog and website.
• Information on unsubscribing.

Your email subscribers will expect to hear from you on a fairly regular basis. This can be weekly, bi-weekly, monthly. Try to avoid sending multiple emails throughout the week unless there is something important going on (sale, contest, etc.).

What to Avoid

There are some mistakes that are often made in email subscribers. Making these mistakes too often can lead to a lot of unhappy readers. When that happens, they start opting out of your emails.

• Don't fill up their inbox! If you told them to expect an email on a weekly basis, don't abuse that timeframe.
• Don't be pushy. You can mention a product, of course, but don't become the over-eager door-to-door salesman.
• Don't send emails that provide no value to the reader. Remember, these are supposed to help you connect with readers.
• Don't talk to them like they are a search engine. These are readers. They want to read an email from the funny, witty blogger that they signed up with.

An email list is one of the best ways to create a bond with your readers, so make sure you use this tool to its full advantage! What information do you want to share with your subscribers? Where do you draw the line between valuable content and spam? Share with us!