How to Grow Your Email List CheatSheet

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• 1. Add a Call-to-Action to Every Article You Share

• Find most popular articles from influencers who you want to connect with.
• Use LeadGrab to add box or welcome gate with call the action to your landing page on their articles!
• Great way how to get traffic by sharing influencers’ stuff and build relationships with them at the same time. Win win...

• 2. Optimize thank you page

• Setup a SmartBribe to give away something even more awesome on the thank you page in exchange for people telling their friends about your lead magnet (giveaway)

• 3. Welcome Gate (Homepage)   

• Use Welcome gate for the first time visitors.
• Offer most converting lead magnet you own.
• You can use Leadpages to set up welcome gate.
• Examples of completed welcome gates (homepages): Videofruit, Mixergy, Michael Hyatt

• 4. Ask your Friends

• Contact all you email contacts, Facebook friends, LinkedIn contacts, Twitter followers, etc.
• Send them a simple question like: „I'm working on a weekly newsletter teaching people _____. Is that something you're interested in learning more about?”
• If they reply “yes” ask for their email address and put them into your autoresponder.

• 5. Promote your Best Content

• Find out what is your most popular blog post with a content upgrade.
• Then look for similar content from influencers in your niche and find out who shared their content (using Buzzsumo, the cheaper alternative is TrafficFresh).
• Contact 50 most influential people from that list and let them know about your article (It must be better than influencer’s article) and ask for a share.

• 6. Contest

• Every three to six months create viral contest & giveaway using Kingsumo plugin or Gleam.
• If you’re not sure how to do this - read this article on Bryan Harris’s site - How to use a giveaway to get 2,239 email subscribers in 10 days!

• 7. Exit Intent Popup

• Offer your best lead magnet with great value as an exit intent pop up (Be sure your lead magnet is really great)
• Let the visitor pick between something silly before showing the Optin Form.
• Example: „Yes, I want to lose weight“ „No, I want to be fat.“
• Resource: PopUp Domination

• 8. Author Byline

• Put a call to action next to the author of the blog post.  For Example „Written by Jan Orsula – Get weekly updates of new posts here.“

• 9. Use Content Upgrades

• Log into your google analytics account and find the most performing blog post.
• Then think how you could make that post better, how to add extra value. (How to guide, checklist, cheat sheet, slideshow, video, ebook..)
• Create the content upgrade and announce it at the bottom and the end of the post using content upgrade plugin.

• 10. Scroll Box

• The same process like with exit intent pop up. When a visitor scrolls down to 50% of the page - scroll box with moc performing lead magnet pop up. (Use Sumome or OptinMonster)

• 11. Social Media

• Replace link to your website with the link to your landing page on all social media accounts you’re using.

How to get 100 email subscribers in 24 hours [Step by step guide]

One year ago, even though I didn’t have a website, a blog, or a lead capture page – I was able to collect more than 2,000 email subscribers.

That was the real start of my online business.

Today I’m going to show you the two strategies I’ve used along the way.

Step by step…

And since they are universal strategies, they will work perfectly for you too.

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Follow these strategies, and I can guarantee you that you are going to get at least 100 email subscribers in the next 7 days. Just follow the proven system.

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel!

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Have you ever heard of the phrase ”Money is in the list“ or ”I wish I would start building my email list from the day I started my online business”, etc.?

I have a question for you.

Which of these options is the most valuable for online business?

A) 100 email subscribers

B) 20,000 twitter followers

C) 5,000 blog readers

The answer may surprise you, but It’s A.

I’ve seen interviews with Michael Hyatt, Ramit Sethi, and Jeff Goins. They were asked what’s the #1 mistake they have done while starting their online businesses, the answer is the same for all of them.

Not building an email list from day one.

Why?

It’s proven fact that email outperforms any other marketing channel.

Google have changed their policy many times, Google Panda updates, Hummingbird, etc.

A lot of website owners lost the most of their traffic overnight. Many of them lost their businesses because of that.

Facebook change their algorithms every few months. The fact is that no more than 6% of your audience on Facebook can see your updates. You have to pay to get your updates before the other fans…

On Twitter, only about 1-2% of my followers see my tweets.

What I’m getting at is – It’s too risky to build a business on a platform you don’t own.

Do you remember MySpace? It was the most popular social media platform a few years ago. And now? Nobody cares about it.

The solution is simple, start growing your email list.

If someone gives you permission to send them an email, they are expecting to get a message from you. Email is much more personal, build connections and relationship with your audience.

And you OWN your email list. No one else will… YOU.

Two strategies to grow your email list

Let’s dive in.

Step #1: Decide what topic you are going to build your email list and business around?

Hint: If you’re struggling with choosing your topic, think about what your passion is, what are you good at? What topic are you interested in and want to help people with?

By following Mariah Coz and Bryan Harris, I’ve learned this step is much easier than most people think.

Just use the framework below.

[Desired results] for [target market]

Example #1: I’m going to teach how to use Instagram for small business owners.

Example #2: Bikram yoga for pregnant women.

Example #3: How to Travel the World while studying.

The hard truth is… Getting your first subscriber is the most difficult task.

But imagine the feeling after you receive the first, second, and third email address.

Trust me.

It’s incredible! It’s Worth it!

List Building Strategy #1

Let’s start with the strategy called ”10 people rule” by Bryan Harris from Videofruit.com

(Be sure to decide what topic you are going to teach before your start working on the next step)

Let’s say you’re going to teach people how to travel the world with low budget.

Step #1: Take your phone and write down everyone you were in contact with during last year. (including your mom!)

Step #2: Send them this message

Hello [name], How’re things going?

Just wanted to let you know that I’m starting an email newsletter about travel hacking.

I’m going to publish one article per week with tips and trick on how to travel the world with low budget.

Is this something you’re interested in?

[your name]

If someone responds with ‘yes’ (most of them will because that’s an interesting topic and they like you)

Reply with:

Great! What’s your best email address?

…

..

.

Every time someone gives you their email address, write it down on paper (with their name).

Step #3: Go through the last 100-200 emails you’ve sent.

Send them the message (mentioned above – with a few tweaks).

Step #4: Repeat the same process on Facebook. Make a list of your one hundred close friends.

• Say hello and start a little chit chat.
• Ask them if they’re interested in your upcoming project (use the same or similar message mentioned above).

Step #5: Go to Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and etc.

Follow the same process.

Step #6: Are you active in forums, niche communities or Facebook groups?

If yes, follow the steps mentioned above. Remember, people in those communities have the same interests as you, so they will more likely respond positively to your message.

That’s all, it’s really simple, right?

I was able to collect more than 1,000 email subscribers in 60 days, just by sending this simple message to my followers on Instagram.

Remember, you’re not selling anything, you’re just asking if they’re interested in hearing more from you.

Most of the people will likely say yes!

That being said, after implementing this strategy, a lot of people were able to collect more than 100 subscribers in less than 24 hours.

Be the next one! (and let me know about it in the comment section or shoot me an email!)

After you collect at least 100 email addresses, It’s time to set up your email service provider.

When you send a few emails, you can use your Gmail or Outlook, but when getting more people joining your list, you need something that will automate the process. (don’t worry, it’s very easy to set up and use)

There are a bunch of email service providers.

Some of the most popular are GetResponse and Mailchimp.

You can start your free trial here

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List Building Strategy #2

When was the last time you shared an interesting article (video, slideshow, presentation, etc.) on Social media?

I guess it’s not so long…

What if I show you how to build your email list by sharing articles written by influencers such as Forbes, NYTimes, or Mashable?

Sounds crazy, right?

But thanks to tools like Snip.ly or LeadGrab, it’s possible and very easy to do.

Snip.ly and LeadGrab add a custom call-to-action to any article or blog post on the internet, allowing you to engage your social media followers through every link you share.

For instance, you can attach a button to the page that links to your landing page or article, so that people can discover your website while they read other people’s articles.

Using these tools, you can set up even light boxes (pop-ups, scroll boxes or full-screen welcome gate) on other people’s articles as well.

Use Leadgrab to grow your email list

LeadGrab is the only tool on the market that enables you to set up full-screen pop-ups (welcome mat) on articles that are not written or hosted by you.

#1: Go into your LeadGrab account

#2: Set up an email integrations

#3: Create your first LeadGrab (you can choose between snippet and full screen)

In my experience, full-screen LeadGrab performs much better than the snippet.

#4: Find at least 10-20 popular articles you’re going to share where you want to use LeadGrab

(In the example below I’ve chosen the article from mashable.com about 10 best marketing books…)

#5: Follow the steps inside LeadGrab app (it’s very easy to use and set up)

The result? I’m sharing the article from high authority website with my welcome gate (pop up).

Guys, this works like crazy!

Setting up a Snip.ly

Step #1: Go to Snip.ly and create an account. (You can sign up for 14-day trial.)

Step #2: Visit the ‘Call-to-Action section’ in your Sniply Dashboard

Step #3: Click on the Add New Call-to-Action in the right top corner

Step #4: Select an existing brand or Create a New Brand

Step #5: Select the Form Type to create a Form Snip

Step #6: Add your message and placeholder text in the form field. The placeholder text will disappear when a visitor types in the field

Step #7: Preview your snip and make sure it looks good. You can also customize the look and feel of your snip

Done…

I choose LeadGrab over Sniply because #1 it’s cheaper, you don’t have to pay a monthly fee and #2 it enables you to add full-screen welcome mat that converts better than scroll box by snip.ly.

But choose one of them and put them in action.

You will get results immediately!

Email List Building Challenge

Getting your first hundred subscribers is the toughest part.

You may be thinking, ‘Why would someone sign up for my updates? How can I engage with them? Where are those people hanging out?’

Don’t get overwhelmed.

Follow the steps above and trust the system.

After you get your first few subscribers, you will get the momentum, and you’d want to get more and more.

Not next week, not tomorrow, take your phone and follow the steps you just learned NOW!

Action Steps:

#1 Decide what topic you are going to build your email list.

#2 Using your smartphone, write down everyone you were in contact with during last year.

#3 Research your friends on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Forums, etc…

#4 Send them the message asking if they want to check out your new project.

#5 Write down their email addresses on a paper.

#6 After you get one hundred people, set up an autoresponder and import your contacts.

#7 Sign up for LeadGrab or Snip.ly and start collecting, even more, subscribers

by Jan Orsula

100 Websites That Rule the Internet

10 Lessons We Learned About Telling Customer Stories

NADIA BASIL

Does anyone really want to read another success story about how a software company changed a customer’s life?

But testimonials, case studies, and customer success stories are ubiquitous across industries. Everywhere you look, companies are investing in written testimonials and marketing videos to showcase how much better off a customer is after finding their product.

Surely there has to be value in sharing them.

Why bother telling customer success stories?

A few months ago, we began focusing on our customer stories. While attending industry conferences and hosting small in-person events, we’d heard interest from customers in learning about how other customers were using Help Scout. We were also hearing from customers about new ways they were using the product that we hadn’t evangelized before — like how their team was transitioning from a shared email inbox to a multiple mailbox approach, or was working with Zapier in creative ways to connect to other productivity tools like Asana.

While companies have marketing teams behind their websites, stories from the actual folks who are using the products bring these messages to light in a different way than traditional copy. “Customer stories help our prospects with three distinct things,” says Tim Thyne, Head of Sales and Partnerships at Help Scout.

In “Use Stories from Customers to Highlight Your Company’s Purpose,” Harvard Business Review’s Erica Keswin shares that these 

customer success stories can ultimately become part of your company’s mission statement 

:

“Stories make us all pay closer attention to what matters. Start paying attention to the stories unfolding in your organization, and figure out how to help the best ones spread. Because people have a lot to say, and if we’re smart, we’ll start listening.”

So the question of whether or not to tell customer success stories is solved: you should. Now — how do you move it from “See how we stay SaaS-y” to something people actually want to read?

10 lessons for telling customer success stories

Here’s what I’ve learned about how to tell a compelling customer story.

1. It’s not about you

Approaching the project of telling customer stories, I thought I was coming at it from the right angle. It was simple, really: Anyone who was reading these stories wanted to know how Help Scout could change their lives, too, right?

I prepared a set of questions that would serve as a guide through the interviews, such as:

• How do you use Help Scout’s workflows?
• What are your favorite features — @mentions, Tags, etc.?

But after a second look at how a few of the stories were shaping up, it was clear that approach wasn’t working. What was so wrong with it?

It’s that my toolkit was inherently biased. I was using these probing questions as a way to get answers out of customers quickly — I was grateful for their time and didn’t want to waste it — but the reality was, I was injecting my point of view by asking these types of questions.

While the solution and how the tool is used is definitely helpful — not talking about how the product is used at all isn’t helpful for anyone — 

when telling stories, there has to be a bigger focus on the customer 

.

2. Start with the customer’s mission

Instead of following customer problem + your solution = success story, 

think about how your company’s solution fits with the customer’s mission 

. Yes, this means the onus is on you to learn more about your customers.

A few questions to consider as you get started:

• What about this particular company’s background attracted them to Help Scout?
• What would perfect customer support look like?
• How can you draw a parallel in your company’s mission and the customer’s?

Take BeerMenus, for example: They help people find beers and browse menus for beer stores, restaurants and bars nearby. But aside from the functional elements, the company credits its success to doubling down on their core values: respect for small business owners and all customers, and, of course, love of beer. Our goal was to make sure these ideas were elevated in the opening of their story.

10 Lessons We Learned About Telling Customer Stories

3. Take thorough notes before developing themes

When a customer tells you their story, avoid the temptation to simultaneously create the story’s framework. Instead, concentrate first on meticulous note-taking. Then, for the second round, go through, pull the key themes, and see where the supporting facts fit.

If you’re trying to create the framework and final story as the customer is speaking, there’s the potential to exclude an “add on” item that the customer could later delve into — all because you’re focused on the framework in your mind, and subsequently modeling a story based on your ideal instead of the customer’s true story.

Hiten Shah, Co-Founder at Quick Sprout, shares how he approaches customer research interviews: 

Take thorough notes during the customer interview, then find the core themes within your notes. 

“It’s better to finish all the interviews before analyzing them. Why? By separating the interviewing and the analysis, you avoid spreading yourself too thin between two different tasks. And when you try to analyze what you hear while doing the interviews, it’s another way to introduce bias into your learnings. You also give yourself time to step away and let your mind subconsciously process the interviews, which will give you better results when you start analyzing later.”

4. Don’t throw out all templates just yet

While including features in your questions sometimes injects your own bias, that doesn’t mean you should toss out using an organizational template altogether.

After taking notes and identifying key themes from your interview with the customer, an outline is a great way to organize your content before editing, while still giving room to identify any areas that you’d like to follow up on and quickly see if there are any areas that are repetitive.

• Background — what’s the company mission?
• What does ideal customer support or customer service mean to you?
• How is Help Scout used?
• Any standout features or integrations?

5. Be comfortable with (some) silence

No, not to the point where you think a call has dropped — but remember that it might take a minute or two to remember the highlights they’ve had with your product.

Avoid filling the void with suggestions of what other customers have said — give them space to think it through! I made a personal note to do more of this during customer story writing. (And dating. But that’s for a different blog post.)

One of the biggest highlights of your piece might come as a comment about a previous thought. Listen for these details, and wait for them to form. When I was interviewing Director of Marketing and Business Development Diana Murray at ASAP Accounting and Payroll, for example, she started talking about Help Scout’s Saved Replies feature:

“The Saved Replies feature is really key in our world. We’re dealing with explaining very complex information like payroll data, or wage requirements, or laws.”

But then she turned to Docs:

“...and in addition to Saved Replies, the Help Center, ASAP’s Knowledge Base, has also been a huge time saver when communicating information repetitively. We currently store and update over 250 articles, from best practices articles, to new client transition, and general business resources.”

… which became a story about how both features have helped all areas of ASAP’s business succeed:

“We’ve gotten traffic from some of these best practice articles in search engines, which has led users back to our site. Having Help Scout has definitely had a ripple effect for us to succeed in all areas of our business.”

6. Complement written stories with visuals

Once the narrative is complete, see how else you can bring these stories to life, whether it’s imagery, supporting infographics, or video. If you don’t have an in-house team, video agencies and video production firms can team up with you to bring the customer story to life. (We love collaborating on marketing videos with Boston-based Video Pilgrim — in them, we’ve found an incredible partner who understands our company mission and can draw that out on film).

10 Lessons We Learned About Telling Customer Stories

If video isn’t an option, there’s still a ton you can do to humanize your success stories through photography and visuals. Content marketer Jeff Bullas shares that you should publish images and photos as part of marketing tactics — and that articles with images will get 94 percent more total views.

Here’s the shot list template we love to use whenever we’re sourcing the photography session, or as a guide when requesting photos from our customer:

2-4 posed portrait + landscape style images of the interviewee(s)

2-4 images of the interviewee(s) at work

2-3 shots of the interviewee(s) with their team

7. Follow up about specifics and metrics

Once you’ve nailed the elements of the piece — the top features the customer is addressing and the solutions they provide — you can start digging into where you need to follow up for more information. Coupling qualitative statements with metrics make them that much stronger.

Of course, the customer’s time is precious, so it’s great to do these in a single email or follow-up call. For example, during our customer calls with OnePageCRM and NW Maids, one of the recurring themes was that using Help Scout has made their teams more productive. The follow-up emails helped us assign quantitative metrics:

8. Keep content that didn’t make it into the story

At the start of every customer story, we feature a header image and quote, which can later be used as social promotion.

There’s also quite a bit of content and strong testimonials that might not make it to the customer story. Trying to cram everything into a story isn’t helpful — it becomes a laundry list of feature highlights with no narrative arc, and that’s dry to read. But don’t dismiss all that extra content altogether.

Change the framework from “oh-look-at-all-this-excess-copy” to “let’s-do-something-with-this-copy,” and extract more value from content you’ve already produced by experimenting with customer story promotion.

For our customer story on Threadless, we found more ways to share beyond the written testimonial, each highlighting different angles, like how to set up automated workflows to assign conversations:

9. Share customer stories with current customers

Customer case studies are great for potential customers who are looking through your site and curious to see how your product is being used. But there’s another audience who might not be leveraging the product the same way and could benefit from learning new use cases: your current customers.

We include snippets of customer stories in our monthly release notes, coupled with a link to an article on our Docs site, so we can share company backgrounds and use cases and provide additional information for folks who want to try and execute the same on their own.

10. Be grateful that this is part of your job

Hearing time and time again about how much your company is making a difference to people all over the world? It doesn’t get better than that.

So be generous with gratitude. These folks are taking the time out of their day to talk to you about how much they love your company. You get to showcase it to the world. And that’s pretty awesome.