Get Your First 50 Subscribers

When you're growing your email list, you want people that are in your target audience. Otherwise, your email list might be filled with a lot of “dud” subscribers who are unlikely to buy. Your target audience are people who are interested in your product or service and likely to buy. Use this worksheet to map out the traits of your target audience.

An incentive is a gift you give your subscribers when they join your email list. Your incentive could be a one-page guide, coupon, checklist, template or pretty much anything that your target audience would love. Here's more info on creating an irresistible incentive.

A hosted sign up form lives on its own, with a unique URL that you can share anywhere – Facebook, Twitter, your email signature – wherever! It gives you a quick way to start building a subscriber list today without a website. Not sure where to start? Read this to get help creating a winning sign up form or even a dedicated subscribe page (a landing page whose sole job is to promote your email list).

Your sign up form content should explain the benefit(s) of joining your list. Your free incentive that you created in the last step is one of the key benefits of joining your list - so talk about your incentive. Read this blog post to learn how to write effective sign up forms.

Your welcome email is an automated email your subscribers receive after signing up to your list. It welcomes your new subscribers and thanks them for signing up, tells people what kind of content they can expect from you and how often, delivers your incentive if you offered one and includes your contact information so your subscribers can easily reach you. Want to learn the secrets of writing an effective welcome email? Check this out.

You'll send this message to individual people using email and your social media channels. In your message, include a summary of your business, the benefits of subscribing to your email list and a request to the recipient to share the message with friends (so that you can promote your list to even more people). Make your email personal, short and descriptive.

Remember, explain the benefits of joining your list. What problem or frustration will your emails resolve for the reader?

Go through your email contacts and select contacts who'd be interested in joining your email list. Don't bulk email all your contacts at once. Your message should be personal.

Search through your LinkedIn contacts and select contacts within your target audience. Send your message privately and individually to those contacts.

Since your original message content was written for an individual, you should revise your content for your Facebook message so that you're writing to a group of people.

The challenge of tweeting is that you need to keep it short. In your tweet, talk about your incentive and the other benefits of joining your list.

By pinning your Tweet to the top of your profile, more people visiting your page will see your sign up form Tweet. You'll be giving your sign up form a special place on your Twitter profile, which is perfect if growing your list is a top priority. Click here to learn (in 60 seconds!) how to pin a Tweet.

Not sure how to “share an update” on LinkedIn? This article will help.

Keep this short! Write something like, “Want a free (your incentive) as well as tips and advice about (your industry)? Join my email list today.”

The easiest way to publish your sign up form on your website's home page (without coding) is to use a pop-up or slide-in form. Your email service provider should allow you to create forms. Or, you can get pop-up and slide-in forms with a free AddThis or SumoMe plan.

Your blog is a great place to grow your email list. Mention your sign up form or landing page at the bottom of blog posts, within content (when it's relevant to the content) and in slide-in or pop-up forms.