I’m frequently asked for advice on growing email marketing lists. The first thing I look at is the email signup box on the company’s web site. An astounding percentage ignore some basic principles:
Place the sign-up box above the fold. More often than not, the signup box is tacked on at the bottom of a page, an afterthought after the web page was built. Why would you hide such an important call to action? You wouldn’t send a direct mail package with the order form printed on the inside of the outer envelope, would you? Then don’t hide your email sign-up box either!
Include the sign-up box on every page. It’s common to relegate email sign-ups to a separate, often hard-to-find page. If your goal is maximize the number of sign-ups you get, make it easy to find. Include it on every page, and ask for a minimum of information.
Make your sign-up box prominent. Don’t let your email sign-up box blend into the background. For maximum effectiveness, use colors and type treatments that get attention.
Consider your wording. How you ask for email sign-ups has an important influence on the results you get. People won’t invite you into their mailbox unless they perceive a real benefit in doing so. In a future post, I’ll include some examples of well-done sign-up invitations.
Offer an incentive. Think about offering a price-off coupon, free shipping, or a white paper on a related topic as an incentive for people to sign up for your emailings.
Incorporate these few changes in where and how you ask for email sign-ups, and I’ll bet you’ll be rewarded by a jump in email sign-ups.
