There is no excuse not to have an email list. In fact, you don't even need your own product or service before starting a targeted list. All you need is an autoresponder and an opt-in box on your website.

Once you do create your own product or service, you’ll be happy that you already have your list in place. By then, you’ll already have readers who are interested in what you have to say. In fact, it will make it easier to sell those things when the time comes because a relationship will already be developed.

The Key = If you can get a targeted list of people who trust you, love your products and see you as an expert in your field your chances of reaching success have just skyrocketed above everyone else.

Quick Tip #1: Get Them to Opt-In

You should always offer quality content for free on your site so that when you do create an offer your readers are already confident that what you’re offering is worth their time & money.

Here are some ideas to entice your visitors to sign up for your list:

• A Special Report – 7-10 pages in length
• A Short eCourse – 5 to 7 days that will give you a chance to provide great information along with the ability to follow up in the future.
• Informative Audio or Video – Make it one that can’t be found already on your site. Be sure to include transcripts for those who want them.

Make sure your free item of such great quality that your visitor could picture themselves paying for it instead of receiving it free.

Remember, not everyone on your list will be interested in buying your stuff immediately. Some just want to get your free information. That’s ok – the day may come when they need something you’ve got and they’ll know where to go. Plus, if you’ve built a relationship with them, they’re more likely to recommend you to others – growing your list even more.

Bonus Tip: Here’s a trick to help you separate the buyers from the freebie seekers.

Create a short report for your list. Offer your readers the report at a low price (no more than $5 or 10 dollars). Those who see the value in what you’re offering will gladly spend a few dollars. Have the customers opt-in for lifetime updates.

If you can, purge the new customers from your leads list. If not, don't worry about it. However, the great value in this method is that you’ll end up with a list of people who aren’t afraid to spend money — and that's where the real money is.

Quick Tip #2: Make it Easy

Your opt-in box gives you the opportunity to convert one time visitors into long term relationships through follow-up emails. Make sure you place your opt-in form on every page of your website so your readers have the opportunity to sign up without having to search for it.

Where can you put your opt-in form?

• Pop-up or Pop-over forms hovering over your site
• In-line forms near the top. These allow for easy access and are seen “above the fold” so visitors can sign up once they’ve read a bit of your content and find out they love you
• Links. Place a link in the footer of every page of your site that directs visitors to an opt-in page

They all have their own benefits so you should test them to see which one converts best for you.

Don’t forget to create a strong call to action in the opt-in box text – tell them what to expect, and what to do next. Detailed instructions on how to check their email and click on the enclosed link to make sure they receive their freebie is always a good idea.

Quick Tip #3: Drive Targeted Traffic

You have an opt-in form, you have an offer and now you need traffic. The best offer means nothing if no one is visiting your site to see it.

There are many different ways to drive people to your site and using a variety of them will help you achieve the best results. A few to get you started:

• Article Marketing – Share your articles on article directories. Make sure your author bio includes a strong call to action and a link to your site. Use keywords in your articles to make them easier to find by the search engines.
• Leveraging Social Networks – Did you know there are over 600 bookmarking and social networking sites on the Internet right now? Twitter and Facebook might be the most popular, but don’t count out sites like StumbleUpon or Digg.

The point is you should be creating relationships through these sites so don’t go in with your sales spiel guns shooting your links all over the place. Build relationships, create your bio and occasionally share a link or special offer to your site.

• Blog Posts – If your website doesn’t have a blog create one and share quality information or recommendations in your posts.
• Blog Comments – Make meaningful, relevant comments that provide good information (not just links to your site) on other blogs. Don’t comment just for the sake of commenting and don’t be afraid to comment on the blogs of your competitors. Competition is good and most realize the power of working together so while you’re helping with comments, you’ll build a relationship with them too.
• Giveaways & Contests –Create traffic by hosting a giveaway or contest. Each has its own merits and you can work with other website owners to create traffic for everyone. For example, get 3 or 4 site owners with services or products they’re willing to donate. Those site owners each get to give away the “package” of 3 – 4 items. You can have your readers participate (which is always good) by visiting all of the sites and leaving comments or whatever you’d like them to do. Be creative but make it fun and easy.
• Link Love Posts – Write a “round-up” post where you travel the Internet looking for great articles on your topic. Provide links to the articles on your site. Don’t forget to add your commentary and make it more valuable for your readers. Share the link to your post with the people you’ve linked to as a courtesy.
• Guest Posts – Offer to write guest posts on complementary sites. Everyone is looking for fresh content. Especially, if it’s good quality and they don’t have to write it. You can find places that accept guest posts by doing a search or you can simply email your friends and competing site owners and make the offer to write a post. What do you get in return for your hard work?  A short bio/author resource box at the end of your post with your keywords and links back to your site.
• Interviews – Find places to share your information via teleseminars, podcasts or email interviews. Often, these will provide you with the ability to get your name and URL out to many people, not already on your list, at one time.
• Contributors – Look for people to contribute guest posts on your blog for fresh content with an eye to providing quality information to your readers. People are often willing to write a guest post for you as long as they can link back to their own site or product.
• Brandable Reports – Look for products you can recommend (or create your own) that have brandable reports as a marketing tool. You can give away these special reports that include your own affiliate links making the benefits two-fold. You have content for your readers and the possibility of making money through affiliate sales. (Look at BrandableStuff.com for ideas.)

The Key = Find out what your target market’s intent is when searching for information in your niche. What, exactly, are they searching for? Give it to them.

Quick Tip #4: Test

No matter what you use to drive traffic to your site, you must test to see which offers convert and which are wasting your time. You want to turn visitors into list members AND you want to convert members of your list into buyers. But, the only way you’ll know what action is working best for you is to test them all.

You just need to start at the beginning and just get it done! Get your stuff out there and then test the heck out of it! Tweak & test again.

Now that you have the steps necessary to get your list started, growing your list should be a little bit easier for you. Just focus your efforts on designing a great offer, making your opt-in form easy to find and getting targeted traffic to your site so that your reader’s eyeballs see that opt-in box. Then, choose a few of the strategies to get traffic and see which ones work best for you. Remember to test and tweak your efforts until you get the best possible results.

If you want to learn more about building a profitable email list, look no further than List Profit System.

Writing an article for article marketing purposes is a great way to market your product, service, blog, or website. Content is what makes the Internet world go ‘round. Without information, the World Wide Web would be a boring place. The net is ever growing and expanding and it’s because of content it will continue to do so.

Remember, “Content is King.” If you keep that in mind in all of your Internet Marketing pursuits, you will be successful (combined with a little luck, determination, hard work, and diligence).

That’s all fine and dandy, but because of this fact, there is a lot of information on the same topic flowing around out there. How do you make yours the information people find, read, and continue to come back for?

Give your readers content full of quality information they are actually looking for – that’s how!

There are many ways to get your article noticed and in the hands (or on the computer screens) of your target market. I’m going to give you four specific areas to focus on that will greatly improve the odds that your article will be read, and – at the same time – you will create a relationship with your prospects that can last a lifetime.

Know What You’re Talking About

Really?

Research is a word that many people dread. Most of those who shy away from research have yet to recognize its true value. If they did, I’m willing to bet they would change their tune on the subject. In order to come up with quality information for your reader, you will want to do research to come up with new ideas and find the latest theories and trends in your niche.

A lot of people assume reading a few blurbs about a subject here and there is enough to write a quality article. That is far from the truth. In order to really give your readers what they want to know, you’ll want to dig deeper. Determine who the experts in your specific area are, find out what they have to say on the subject, and take a look at the items they are recommending. Do as much as you can to get background information and facts.

I know, B-O-R-I-N-G!!!

Also, necessary!

Researching your content improves credibility and expertise. You’ll be able to present quality content people will want to read and continue to come back for. If you don’t have time to research a topic in depth, find someone who does.

There’s a reason they say “Knowledge is key!”

Clear the Cobwebs & Stay Focused

Hopefully you know what you want your article to sound like and what you want your reader to do after reading it. Do you find yourself struggling with transferring what resides in your brain into an informative, smooth-flowing article that gets the results you want?

One of the smartest steps you can take when writing an article is to create an outline before you begin. This will help you to stay organized and on track. It works wonders for focus too.

An outline doesn’t have to be extremely in-depth or comprehensive. Start off by planning the introduction, add a few key points for the body, and finish it up with a conclusion or miniature summary of your article’s main points. Here’s a little trick writers use to create their outlines.

1. Tell your readers what you’re going to be talking about. (Introduction)

2. Talk about it. (Body)

3. Recap what you just told them. (Conclusion)

If you’re thinking putting together an outline will only create more work for yourself, think again. In all actuality, it will save you time in the long run. Your thoughts will be organized and you’ll be able to focus on each individual piece of the puzzle that – when complete – will flow together nicely.

Spice Things Up with a Dash of Copy

The most important function of any article is to inform its reader. However, your article must get and keep their attention in order to inform, right?

Absolutely!

Many people neglect to focus on the fact that while articles need to be compelling, they also need to sell if you’re trying to make money online (and that’s why you’re here, right?). There are many elements of copy you can include to make your articles compelling and lead people to a certain action. You can create interest and increase action with things like:

• Attention grabbing headlines and subheadings (These draw the reader in and leave them wanting to know more)
• A hook line (This will keep them reading)
• A bulleted list just like this one
• Blockquotes
• Outlined boxes that highlights something important
• Bold, italics, and color fonts

Keep in mind that everyone is very busy these days; if you want to get your article read from beginning to end, you will have a higher chance of success when you add a bit of creative copywriting.

Lead Your Readers Onward

If you remember nothing else about people who buy online, remember this:

You will make more money when you TELL your reader what to do next!

Yes, we humans are fickle creatures. Even if your reader thinks she knows what to do next, that doesn’t mean she will do it. Always remember to tell your readers what to do or where to go after they’ve finished reading your article. Because, believe it or not, even when they know what they want or what they should be doing next, Internet users are indecisive. Like a child who is just learning the ways of the world, your reader needs to be taken by the hand and led to the next step. It’s called “suggesting the sale.”

For instance

• If you want your reader to visit your website to learn more about your product or service, send them there.
• If you would like your reader to complete a survey or give his opinion on the topic he just finished reading about, tell him where to go to do so.

This is where your author or resource box comes into play and can quickly become your best friend. Use this area to tell a bit about yourself or your website, and give your readers something to do. Give them a clear call to action.

Writing an article is not difficult as long as you put the right strategies in place. Know what information is relevant to your target audience.

Summary

• Be as well-versed in the area you’re writing about as you can in order to provide superior information.
• create an outline to help keep you organized and focused.
• Throw in a bit of captivating copy to create interest and keep them reading.
• Tell your readers exactly what you want them to do next to achieve maximum benefits from your article marketing efforts.

Want to learn more? Check out How To Drive Free Traffic To Your List Page With Ezine Articles.

You’ve probably noticed that it can be difficult to get new customers to buy from you. Some people simply will not buy from those they’ve never heard of and don’t have a relationship with. You will usually have to “presell” to them before they will make a purchase. This is especially true since identity theft and fraud have become more prevalent.

The good news is that people will join your list because they view it as a lower risk than making a purchase. All they need to do is hand over their e-mail address and they are “in.” This gives you the opportunity to gain their trust and build a
relationship that can lead to repeat sales down the road.

Want to learn more about list building? Check out List and Traffic.

How does that sound?

If you’re the impatient type, fill out the form below and I’ll send you the whole list in one big file.

Otherwise, just sit back and relax. Take these in as they come along, at the frequency of one or two a week.

*** Here’s your first one ***

Tip #1 — Build Your Own Business
While there is a lot to be said for getting to the top of the search engines and advertising to promote your business, there’s nothing like having your own list. A list is something that you control at all times. You control its size, your relationship
with members, and even how much money you make.

By having a list, you are building your business on solid ground.

That’s not to say that search engine traffic isn’t wonderful and you should quit advertising. However, developing a list of leads or customers can be worth much more to you in the long run when combined with both of those methods of traffic.

If you need a killer email list manager, look no further than Aweber. It’s economical, reliable, and easy to use!

A hosted solution, like from AWeber, has all of the functionality built-in on their own systems. They install, configure, upgrade, and maintain the software and databases that you use when you create an account.

An “install yourself” solution is just what it sounds like: YOU install, configure, upgrade, and maintain software and databases on your own system. It’s cheaper in the short-run because you can do all this, but in the long-run, it can become an onerous burden.

I wholeheartedly endorse AWeber, but there are a ton of other services out there that are similar (just break open a google search and find dozens).

For a really quick primer on how to set up an autoresponder that is serviced by somebody else (a hosted solution), pick up a copy of this report, called How to Set Up Your Autoresponder.

In future posts, I’ll show you how it’s done. You’ll just get the information a little at a time, not all at once. The choice is yours.

Jimmy Brown is well-known for his success in building email lists of just those buyers – Ready, Willing, and Able. In this report, Six Steps to Six Figures with List Marketing, he tells you exactly how to make profits from an email list. It goes something like this:

1. Promote your list
2. Reward the optin
3. Offer a proposal (often neglected)
4. Fixate attention
5. Initiate a response
6. Thwart the filters

Of course, I could lay it all on the line here by re-hashing the report, but why do that? Jimmy is a consummate professional and I’d be insulting him if I just copied his report and put it in my own words.

Seriously, this is must-have information if you want to build a long-lasting and profitable online business (it works even if you’re “offline” as in “brick-and-mortar” or a service business).

Order Six Steps to Six Figures with List Marketing here. (Once you buy the report, you own the Reprint and Resell rights to the book.)