Brilliant article on how to get subscribers / visitors

Here are a few things that will help you to make your list grow bigger and your subscribers more responsive.

All comments are welcome.


1. How to Generate Subscribers

Once you’ve got your ezine set up and ready to roll, you’ll need to start getting opt-in subscribers. Every promotion and advertising you do should be targeted towards this aim. Here are PROVEN methods to generating new subscribers:

a. From Your Website

Place a subscription box on every page of your website. Visitors may enter from many other pages other than your main index page. They may never even visit your main page, so make sure your subscription box is visible on every page of your website.

Use a pop-up or pop-under to allow subscribers to sign up easily. This has been shown to increase response rate by at least 300%!


b. Incentive Subscriptions

Provide attractive incentives or reasons to subscribe to your ezine, related to your target market needs. The incentive may be in the form of a free ebook, software, contest, free ad, e-course or combinations of the above.

It’s simple and nothing new but don’t let this fool you, it still works like a charm and many Internet marketers are not utilizing it fully. Everyone should include this as part of their list-building strategy. I recommend using this technique in the following ways…

Create A Killer Subscription Page

You’ve got to build an attractive subscription page WITH an irresistible offer to entice potential subscribers to hit the subscribe button.

The best types are those in the ‘direct response’ style - clean, simple, eye-catching web pages carrying action–oriented sales messages.


Now let’s break it down, what must you include in your subscription page to build your list? Here’re the THREE most necessary factors...


* Benefit-driven Headline *

Tell them WHY they should subscribe. What do they gain, what can they expect? Sum up your biggest benefit or unique advantage in the main headline.


* Irresistible Incentive *

You’ve got to create a superb incentive that any breathing prospect would be crazy to miss out on!

How? Do something different, packed it full of value, and again, make sure that it’s relevant to the market you’re targeting at. A good gauge would be something you feel you could SELL equally well.


* Eye-catching Image *

Words sell, yes, but so do pictures, perhaps even better for this particular strategy…

Your subscription page should (no, make that a must) have an e-cover of your ezine or whatever you’re giving away. An e-cover provides ‘tangibility’ and increases the perceived value of your product dramatically.

Promote your new subscription page everywhere and in no time flat, you’ll be able to have your own huge guru-size opt-in list…without having to pay a single cent for it!


c. Write Viral Articles

This has got to be one of the best methods of free advertising that can get you more subscribers and build your credibility at the same time! Write quality targeted articles and allow them to be freely published.

The key to using articles for effective free advertising is by making sure your article is informative and then encouraging click-throughs with a killer ‘ad’ in your resource box.


For further information on writing successful sales letters and articles, read “Dr. Joe Vitale books”
(To find his books go to Google and type "sales letters+Joe Vitale")

Submit your articles to Major directories!

Just do a search at any search engine for ‘ezine directory’ without the quotes.



d. Ezine Advertising

Ezine advertising can help build your subscriber base easily. Look at it as an investment, which you can recoup back from in the future.

Common ezine ads offered are – Solo Ads, Sponsor Ads (top, middle and bottom sponsors) and Free Classified Ads.

I’d recommend using Top Sponsor Ads only for the best results at an affordable price. Again, creating a killer ad is important. Track each ezine ad to determine which gives the best bang for the buck.


e. Co-Op Advertising


If you’re an ezine publisher, you have a choice of joining an ezine co-op. What this co-op basically does is provide you subscribers, with the condition that you allow at least one free ad per subscriber in your ezine when they join.

Memberships into these co-ops are normally free, and they do work to get you subscribers fast.

However, a word of warning…these subscribers can be mostly untargeted. They join for the free ad, you’ll have to cultivate them slowly. Plus make sure that you’re able to keep up with publishing new ads.

Here are two examples:

http://ad-coop.com

http://www.ezine-coop.com



f. Pay-per-subscriber services


Do you know you can actually buy subscribers?

This is a good way to build your initial subscriber base quickly to kick-start your ezine. Such services promote your ezine FOR YOU. Potential subscribers who are interested can sign up through a shared subscription box for your ezine. They offer either single or double opt-in subscriptions. They are often known as co-registration services.

View paid subscribers as an investment. Cultivate and build them into profitable subscribers as they’ll not trust you immediately. Note that while you may want to invest in pay-per-subscribers services, it can be a risk too. There MAY be certain percentage of unsubscribes, undeliverables and even accusations of spam. But as long as you have full details of their subscriptions as given by the providers, you’re safe.

For respected co-registration services please PM me!



g. Subscription Network


Join a shared subscription network to gain new subscribers. Each webmaster have to place a unique code on their sites, which displays an exit pop-up consisting of each other’s ezine details. Potential subscribers can just check each ezine they want to be subscribed to. You basically be leveraging on each other’s traffic and promotion.

Again, your ezine description ad will play a big part in converting more subscribers.

The two most popular shared networks are:

http://www.subscriberdrive.com

http://www.subscriptionrocket.com



i. Viral Marketing


Get subscribers by leveraging on other people’s effort. This can be achieved through viral marketing, which though nothing spectacularly new, still produces amazing results!

The basic forms of viral marketing include creating free-to-distribute viral tools such as special reports, ebooks, e-courses or software.

Submit them to freebie sites, online forums, on your own website, include them in package or membership sites, etc. Another proven way is to create a service that allows people to gain referrals, credits for recruiting members, e.g. traffic exchanges, downline clubs, etc.



2. Keep Your Subscribers Happy


With almost 1,000,000 ezines (and growing) online, it’s all the more important to make yours stand out and gain your subscribers trust.

Your next priority should then focus on retaining current subscribers, on top of getting new ones. With that in mind, here are some strategies to look at to keep your subscribers happy!


Project Your Personality

Project your personality in your writing! Show some passion! However, be positive here, never use your ezine to spread negative comments or throw cold blankets on your subscribers. That would come across as being unprofessional and having poor attitude, and you'll see people unsubscribing in droves!

I mean, even in the real world, who wants to be around negative folks? So spread some good, old love instead. Be known as an editor, who's real, approachable and friendly to build a better relationship with your subscribers.


Show Some Respect

You should be treating your valuable subscriber as a friend. I'm sure you won't mislead, ignore or harm your friend?

What I mean to say is treat your subscribers with respect. For starters, never bombard him or her with senseless ads every two days!

And keep your classified ads to the absolute minimum, separate solo ads from your regular issue. And never promote just any product to your list just to earn a buck.

Your goal is to provide quality information.

Remember, trust is difficult to acquire but easy to lose…it can be gone in a second.


Contact Me Please

Always provide a valid and working email address so that your subscriber can contact you. Do not attempt to hide your email from them. And if your phone is available, all the merrier!

We’re talking about a long-term relationship here, and how can a relationship be started or sustained without some form of communication?

Subscribers may need to contact you for assistance, questions or feedback. Open this avenue to them, it’ll benefit you too.

And I forgot one important thing…reply to emails!


Work Hard for Your List

Here’s an absolutely crucial factor – YOUR ezine must be able to provide what the subscriber wants...in other words, true value.

Ask yourself, what makes a subscriber subscribe? To get your ads? No! He or she does so as they believe your ezine can help satisfy their needs.

That is, the associated value, real or perceived, that your ezine can provide them.

This may come in the form of good content, resources, reviews or discounts, etc. What I’m suggesting here is, you’ve got to work hard for your subscribers….

• Provide relevant quality content, or write your own articles!

• Give them valuable tools and resources that cater to their needs

• Seek and negotiate genuine discounts and promotions for them

• Keep them up to date in their areas of interest...etc!

Putting serious effort into your ezine will make your subscribers appreciate you more, cause it shows.



3. Find Their Needs


In all marketing and selling, you’ve got to find a need and fulfil it – NOT the other way round.

Similarly, find out the needs and wants of your subscribers. What are they looking for? What do they need to solve their problems? What specific information would help them achieve their objectives?

How do you discover these needs?

The best way to do that is to ask.

Using polls, surveys or basic email exchanges are all excellent methods of understanding your subscribers. This will be a rewarding and win-win experience.


For instance, conduct online surveys with them using services from…

http://www.surveymonkey.com

http://www.quask.com

http://www.custominsight.com/demo/free.asp


4. Recommend Affiliate Products That Fulfil Their Needs


Aha! The magic moment…if you’ve done all the above steps, you’ll have a list of responsive opt-in subscribers, who are eager to hear your recommendations!

This is where it’s different, you’re only gonna promote affiliate products that they want – as discovered previously. This approach almost guarantees higher clickthroughs and responses.

Here’s a good copy format to use for recommending affiliate products or services to your list…


· State the initial problem or needs that they are looking for

· Build it up to a worst case scenario if they don’t find the solution

· Introduce a solution to them

· Write a genuine recommendation based on your own usage

· Tell them results you’ve experience

· Get their agreement that this is the solution to their problems

· Show them the results they can achieve by using the product

· Create urgency

· Encourage immediate action


You can search and join suitable affiliate programs at the following websites:

http://www.cj.com

http://www.linkshare.com

http://www.clickbank.com

http://www.associateprograms.com

http://www.affiliatematch.com


Try to promote residual or at least a two-tier affiliate program so that you can create residual income through a one-time action.

An excellent program that provides $20 instant bonus for every direct referral, PLUS residual commissions up to 5 tiers is Push Button Publishing.

If you need my link to join just PM me! ;-)


Create Your Own Product Based On These Needs


This next step will get you into product creation of your own.

By now (this may be 3, 6 months or more down the road):

- You have an established ezine or opt-in list…

- Your subscriber list is growing bigger by the day…

- You are making money through various affiliate programs...

- You have residual income from certain affiliate programs…

- You’ve a better idea of what your subscribers are looking for…

- You are ready to re-invest some profits into creating your own product!


Follow these points in preparing for your product creation:


- Survey and ask your subscribers what products they want

- Double check the potential at online forums

- Check if there’s a profitable market by determining how many people are searching for it at the search engines. Use tools like

http://www.goodkeywords.com , http://www.wordtracker.com or http://adwords.google.com

- Look offline at magazines, newspapers to see what’s being advertised regularly and successfully.


Find a starving crowd and feed them!

Once you’ve come up with good product ideas, and had researched the market profitability of your ideas, start creating!


5. Turn Subscribers into Partners


Your subscriber list is easily the most accessible profit source open to you at anytime. They already know, trust and hopefully respond well to you so you have a good relationship going.

It’s more effective and easier to work with existing established relationships.

You must look upon them as partners in profit. Train your list to be successful, and you’ll be successful too! There’s something of a universal law in this.

The first step after creating and launching your product would be to set up an affiliate program, after which you get your subscribers to become your joint venture partners and affiliates.

Either provide them a copy of your product, or offer it to them at a superb discount, so that they know what they’re promoting. Create winning affiliate tools to help them, similarly as what you would for normal affiliates.

If you have a relatively huge and responsive list, plus a quality product, you’re going to get phenomenal results from this one tactic alone!

Some people believe that the list should be squeezed dry till the last drop of money is gone, but why not treat subscribers as partners instead as mentioned before?

It’s a definite win-win relationship, everyone benefits and make money together.

Similarly, this works even if you do not have your own product.

Recruit subscribers and train them as your sub-affiliates.

If you create your own tools to promote an external affiliate program, offer it to your subscribers for their own use as your sub-affiliates! A perfect example is articles.

Your list of subscribers is your nearest goldmine, don’t go digging somewhere else without tapping on this source first.

Hope you‘ve enjoyed this Internet profit system and it has benefited you.

Don’t stop and once you’ve experience success, DUPLICATE your results with new ezines and multiple LISTS!


Thanks for reading...;-)

Rostislav Roytman
http://www.ryze.com/view.php?who=goldsto
http://www.milliondollarmatrix.com/