How to increase your "opt-in" rate.

Want more people to sign up to your marketing list?

Sure you do. Who doesn't?

Many business owners don't optimize their websites to encourage more people to sign up for their marketing list. They may have a "sign up" page or an opt-in form on their site but...

People simply aren't subscribing.

Why?

How do you entice people to sign up?

Well, that's exactly what you need to examine. What are you offering in exchange for the name and email address? In order to receive, you must first GIVE!! You've got to give them something of true value.

Are you offering a "free subscription" to your newsletter? BORING. Everybody offers that.
Are you offering a "free report"? Better...but still BORING.
Are you offering "coupons" to be sent directly to their email? Good...but still not very effective.

What are you doing different to make it a complete "NO BRAINER" for your visitors to sign up to your list.

The only way to do this is to give your visitor what they are looking for. They came to your site for a reason. What was that reason? Do you even know? How did they end up on your website anyway? If they are on your site, it is for a reason. It's not accidental.

They either did a search and your results came up or you drove them there through some type of marketing campaign. Better yet, your visitor landed on your website because of word of mouth or some other type of "viral" marketing. The point is, they are on your website for a reason and it's your responsibility to capture that visitor and turn them into a customer.

That's the big challenge.

However, here's the good news...

Your visitors will tell you exactly what they want if you just give them the chance. Once they tell you what they want, it's easy to sell to them.

It's likely that you are not giving your visitors compelling reasons to give up their information. Most people are reluctant to join another mailing list if they feel that they are joining another marketing list.

Here's a fact. People DO want to hear from you...if you are giving relevant information. They want to be informed, they want discounts, they want to feel special, they want that VIP treatment. However, they don't want to be "SOLD" to. That is the number one reason people balk at giving you their info. They are afraid of getting useless email that won't benefit them.

Most consumers (erroneously) think of these email messages as SPAM. Even though it's technically not SPAM if they signed up to receive information from you, you need to eliminate the perception that you will be sending them this "SPAM".

It's time to give them something unique to the niche that you are in

Nobody likes to be "marketed" to.

And that, my friend, is the main reason you are NOT getting as many subscribers as you would like. It's all in the perception of your visitor.

One of the easiest ways to make sure you are offering something compelling enough to get someone to "sign up" is to evaluate the page that your visitor is on. In other words, it's not enough just to make sure there is an opt-in form on ALL your pages for "free coupons" or a "free newsletter". Sure, you need an opt-in form on all your pages but it MUST be relevant to the information on your page...not just a generic newsletter sign up, coupon offer, or free report.

So, say you own an automotive dealership, for example. It isn't that effective to offer a "free newsletter" on your inventory page. If someone is on your site looking at vehicles online, they aren't looking for a free newsletter...they are looking for vehicles.

So what could you offer them?

Well, in this example, you could offer a used car buyers guide with a compelling title like "Top 10 Car Buying Secrets Revealed" or "Avoid Lemon Cars"...or a variety of many different reports that your visitor may be concerned about when shopping for a vehicle.

Yes, you could offer a coupon here ($1500 off your next purchase) or something like that but remember, that's not relationship building...

Plus, by doing this, you still are not relieving that perception of "SPAM" from that prospect when you send them follow-up messages in the future. They just wanted the coupon. Additionally, they probably won't sign up for the "coupon" if they aren't ready to buy or see any vehicles they're interested in while on your site.

By offering them something of value (not just a coupon), you are opening yourself to continue to give them information. As you continue to send them valuable content and information, your messages are peppered with links calling them to take action and do business with you...that's what it's all about.

Later, we'll talk about why you need to create multiple lists...for the same subscribers that you currently have.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Please visit Sign Me Up Marketing to see what we can do to help grow your business.