Email marketing can help you build your business by providing a way of introducing your products and services to potential customers. Of course, in order to launch an email campaign, you need a list of recipients, individuals who hopefully have some interest in your products and services, or who represent your core target audience.

Finding your audience

There are several ways to go about building a recipient list for your email communications:

1. Website sign-ups
2. Purchasing a list
3. Campaign sign-ups

The method you select will depend on a number of factors, including the budget allocated for email campaigns, e.g. do you have enough money set aside to purchase lists from list brokers, the goals and targets assigned to your email campaigns and your particular area of business. Each method for list building also has its own set of pros and cons that you do well to consider.

Website sign-ups

The benefit of a website-signup based model is that you at least know that the recipients have a basic knowledge of your company and have demonstrated at least a degree of interest in your products and services. You will do yourself a great service by gathering as much information about your recipients as you can when they first sign up to receive information from your company. While many shy away from asking a lot of questions at the initial sign-up out of fear of scaring away potential leads, the fact is that most web surfers are used to having to give at least a little information about themselves when they sign up for something. Their willingness to complete the form with accurate information will also serve as a type of lead prequalification, meaning you won’t have to waste time contacting bogus email addresses. You might also consider utilizing a double opt-in procedure, which requires that prospects confirm their desire to receive email communications from your company by responding to a confirmation email. This serves to both verify their email addresses and their level of interest in your company’s products and services.

Buyer Beware

Purchasing lists is an easy way to build up your lead database, but there are also reasons to be cautious before purchasing a list. While it’s true that the individuals have previously agreed to be contacted by partner companies, this does not in and of itself ensure that they are a relevant audience for your business. It’s important to count cost per lead of such a campaign to ensure the returns on your investment will make the whole process worth your while.

Campaign sign-ups

Another approach is to run a campaign, either print or online, where prospects provide their contact details in order to find out more about your company’s products and services. Here you need to keep in mind the various rules surrounding contacting individuals by using the information obtained in the campaign. Many countries have specific laws around the use of personal information, requiring companies to, for example, clearly indicate how the information will be used at the time of sign-up. This is due to the fact that, while the respondents may have been signing up to be contacted, it doesn’t mean that they are agreeing to receive regular emails from your company about other products and services.

The email experts

Optimize Agency’s email strategy consultants can help you decide, which list building strategy is right for your business. We provide end-to-end advisory services, from designing an email marketing campaign that fits in with your company’s overall strategic focus and goals, to making the most of the campaign results. Contact us to see how we can optimize your email marketing campaigns.

For more information visit www.optimize-interactive.com
About Author
Nate Tennant
Director of Marketing, Optimize Interactive
Nate has more than twelve years of experience in the strategic marketing of technology firms through comprehensive campaigns that thoroughly integrate traditional, electronic, and interactive media systems. He adds broad international business experience, in-depth world media expertise, and a unique knowledge of the globalization of American technology services.