Let’s talk about social media and the focus so many people have on it, yet for a lot of people they don’t get active income from it.
Is it important to have a presence on social media platforms? Yes and no.
Yes – IF your ideal market is there. And yes IF you are leading people you connect with to do one of two things (preferably both):
1 – Opt in to your email list by giving them a free gift (your freebie)
2 – Inviting your followers and fans to have a conversation with you, also known as a strategy session.
How Facebook has set up their algorithms and guidelines, people pay for sponsored content, but not everyone sees it. So focusing your time on getting tons of fans may not be your best strategy to get clients.
I had a marketer encourage me to invite my list to a webinar where he would teach them how to get 5,000 fans on Facebook in 30 days. Yet he couldn’t answer this question: “With the people you have taught to do this, how much did they increase their revenue by adding 5,000 fans to their Facebook page?”
If you can’t get your fans and followers to engage with you further then you have joined the ultimate popularity contest, which at the same time sucks a lot of time that is keeping you away from income-producing activities in your business.
Here are two really simple steps to do on Facebook, yet I see A LOT of people miss these things that can organically grow your list.
1. Make sure on your personal profile where you put your employment history, when you put the name of your company you are linking your fan page.
Then step 2 is on your fan page, make sure your website is an active link in the company description. So when people go to your fan page and they see the short description of your company, the hyperlink is visible and easy to click on.
When people click on that link they are taken to your opt in page where you have your fabulous freebie waiting for them.
Then you want to be occasionally invite people to get your free gift by posting about it directly on your fan page along with the link.
Here are other great ways to grow your email list:
1. Telesummits – This is has been the biggest way I’ve grown my email list by hundreds of people at a time. One Telesummit I did grew my list by over 1,600 people.
Telesummits are a lot of work and there are a lot of details to manage with your speakers, including affililate links, writing promo copy for your speakers to promote it, and much more. You will want a virtual assistant who has done telesummits before to help you.
How does a Telesummit work? You invite other experts who are in front of your ideal market to share their expertise on your virtual event (Telesummit.) YOU build the opt in page and your speakers promote the event. When their people opt in for the event, they are opting in to your list.
2. Have a compelling freebie on your website. So when people find your site then there is a free gift for them when they opt in.
If you only have a “sign up for my newsletter” on your site, people aren’t excited about giving you their name and email only to have their inbox get filled with more messages. Give them something of value.
If you are stuck with creating your freebie because of technology then do something easier.
For example, if you want to do a video training series for your freebie but don’t know what camera to use and you need to get a couple of lamps in your office to have better lighting then you need to get the files on your site, then do something easier NOW while you figure out the technology.
I never recommend spending a lot of money on professionally done videos when starting out. Why? Your message will evolve and until you are making some money with clients, then do something more cost effective until your cash flow expands.
3. Host a Teleclass or Webinar for Free
Promote your training on social media and if you really want to get the most out of this, have other people promote your free training too. Everyone who opts in for the training are opting in to your list.
4. Use social media to promote your free teleclasses/webinars and/or your free opt in gift (freebie).
To leverage this activity, gather 5-10 joint ventures where you promote each other’s stuff.
Everyone wins and when you are actively building your list, your joint ventures can really help this effort through their lists.
Now, with all of these tips remember this:
You don’t need thousands of people on your list to make a healthy revenue and profit. The first year I crossed six figures I had less than 1,000 people on my list. I’ve seen people with less than 500 people on their email list cross six figures.
When you are talking to the right people and have a compelling offer you love, all you typically need are a few dozen effective CONVERSATIONS (strategy sessions) with folks to cross six figures. Of course this depends on how your programs are priced, but in general this is a good reminder.
I know folks with 15,000+ people on their lists have fewer people actually open their emails compared to other colleagues with 2-4,000 people on their list. So it’s all relative.
The key is to be consistent in your communication. Be authentic. Give value. These things will leverage any size of list you do have.
Happy list building!!!
