15 Super Strategies To Start Or Increase Your Email List In Just 20 Minutes A Day

It takes a lot more than 20 minutes a day to run an online business.

But if you’re trying to increase your email list (and you should be)… I’m going to give you 15 super strategies that you can implement in just 20 minutes a day to help you out.

Understand this, though.

Each strategy should take you about 20 minutes a day.

So, please, don’t try doing all 15.

Then you’d be talking about 5 hours!

No no no.

Just pick ONE that works for you and give it a test ride.

If it’s something you’re comfortable with… that’s all you need!

The Big Idea here is to have a steady flow of subscribers being added to your email list every day.

That’s what keeps your business alive, right?

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

So here’s the deal…

you don’t need to use 15 techniques for doing that.

You only need to use one.

It’s just that you’ve gotta get really really good at it, and work really really consistently at it.

So, first, I guess I should talk to those of you who are kind of new at this.

Email List Basics

Here’s the basic things you need to build a good email list.

First, you need a purpose to get people on your list.

What’s your purpose for having and growing your email list?

In other words, why do you want people on your email list?

You have to figure out who you want on your email list.

And then you have to figure out what you’re going to do with them once they get there.

Yea, you thought that goes without saying?

Maybe it should be, but I work with bloggers all the time who have built an email list and have NO idea why, or what kind of emails to send.

So they don’t send any.

Crazy, right?

Now you may think that this is working backwards.

You’re right.

It is.

Because all too often people work frontwards.

That’s when they try to get an email list and don’t know why other than everyone tells them to.

Then, they don’t know who they want on it.

And like I said before, they certainly don’t know what to do with it once they’ve got a bunch of subscribers.

So, first and foremost, you need to get those things clear in your mind.

Those are the basics.

How Do You Build an Email List?

The most common way is to offer people something for free in exchange for their email address.

That requires that you have an autoresponder.

That’s so that when people join your list, they instantly get the thing your offered them.

Your autoresponder is set up to deliver it right then and there.

If somebody joins your list at 2 a.m. and you’re sleeping… you need them to get your first message at 2 a.m.

That’s your “welcome message,” which also delivers your freebie.

Or, if you’re not offering any kind of free incentive for subscribing, you still need them to hear from you right away before they forget they subscribed 🙂

I’m great at that.

Sign up for this, then that.

Two days later, I get an email about it and say “what’s this #&% spam garbage?” LOL

Well, you don’t want that happening.

So you stoke up a good “welcome” message that your new subscriber will get instantly.

• “Welcome to my list”
• “Thanks for signing up”
• “Here’s a link to the free ebook that I promised”

That kind of thing.

This is really important.

So again…

You don’t want them to wait for 2 days to hear from you.

By that time they forgot who you are.

Then they’ll probably just unsubscribe or mark your email message as spam.

This is why a good autoresponder is absolutely essential.

You can’t run a serious business without one.

My favorite autoresponder is GetResponse ** (This is an affiliate link. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below).

I’ve tried many of them.

IMHO: GetResponse is the most professional and yes, the most responsive.

And if you ever have questions about how to use it, just pick up the phone and they’ll talk to you about it.

They have amazing customer support.

That’s important to me because I can really be a ditz about technical stuff.

Here’s how easy it is…

Increase Your Email List With A Professional Looking Squeeze Page

The next thing you’re going to need is a squeeze page.

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

It’s just a single web page that

1. states your offer, and  
2. invites people to join your list.

I know people that have delayed putting together an email list for 6 months because they simply didn’t know how to create a squeeze page.

There are many great landing page builders on the market now that make this a simple process.

I’ve often used OptimizePress ** (This is an affiliate link. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below).

It’s a great landing page builder, for sure.

Another one I like is Instabuilder.

Lately, though, I’ve begun replacing my squeeze pages with Thrive landing pages.

Why?

Because they’re easier and faster for me to put together.

I actually had tried LeadPages for a while, and some of my students have used ClickFunnels.

Those are both subscription based, though, and you need to create your pages on their platform.

That means two things.

1. You have to maintain your subscription (and it’s not cheap)
2. You can’t use your squeeze pages if you cancel your subscription (and what a nightmare when you have to change all your stupid links – yikkkk)

Thrive has become my “go-to” page builder.

So, Thrive has become my fav page editor for building squeeze pages as well as other landing pages…

• sales pages,
• thank you pages,
• webinar invites,
• download pages,
• etc.

It has a “one-time only” fee, instead of a monthly subscription.

I just LOVE that 🙂

And, the one-time price is very affordable.

Love that, too, eh?

Thrive is just a simple WordPress plugin that you can upload directly to your WordPress blog or site.

It has every template that you would need to run an email marketing campaign.

So, for instance, here’s a Thrive template for a squeeze page…

Thrive Squeeze Page

Here’s a variation… a Thrive template for a video squeeze page.

Thrive Video Squeeze Page

You can create professional looking squeeze pages like this in minutes with Thrive.

Then, you just integrate that squeeze page with your autoresponder.

Again, I use GetResponse which integrates quickly and perfectly with Thrive.
** (These are both my affiliate links. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below)

Another 30 seconds, haha.

Done!

Ready To Start or Increase Your Email List?

Sure you are.

As long as you leverage the power of that awesome squeeze page.

But this begs the question…

What do you do with your squeeze page?

Now that you have built it, you’re ready to conquer the world of email list building.

You only have to put a link to your squeeze page wherever you and your audience hang out.

• Put the link on your blog.
• Put it on social media posts.
• If you’re in a forum or social media group, let people know about your squeeze page.
• etc. (of course)

But there is a trick to doing this.

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

I see many people will grab the link to their squeeze page and just start blasting it everywhere they can think of.

This is a waste of time and it’s very ineffective.

What you need to do is to find people that really and truly want what you have to offer… really and truly, not just sorta.

Then let them know how they can get it from you for free.

So, for instance…

rather than just posting a link to your squeeze page on your latest Facebook post, try going into a Facebook group filled with people interested in the same things as you.

Let them know that you can help them when they subscribe to your email list.

Now, you’re addressing a targeted audience instead of just random people that happened to see a social media post from you.

Same thing on your blog.

Don’t be writing a blog post about dogs and suddenly throw out a link to your squeeze page about ballroom dancing.

Your squeeze page link should always be relevant to the needs and interests of the people you’re talking to.

That way, when they do join your list, you already know that they’re interested in what you’ll be emailing them.

15 Super Strategies To Start or Increase Your Email List In Just 20 Minutes A Day

Once you have all the pieces to the puzzle in place, you’re ready to open the gates to a steady flow of subscribers to your email list.

The funny thing is, any one of these strategies takes just 20 minutes a day… or so.

Yeah, you can get carried away.

I do that all the time.

Instead of 20 minutes, I spend 40.

My bad, for sure.

I work hard to stick to my plan, but hey, I’m not perfect 🙂

Still, try not to get distracted or overwhelmed by this.

It sounds simple, I know.

Well, it actually is, if you confine yourself to a strict time limit.

Set a timer, and when the 20 minutes is up… stop.

Just do it.

So you’ve done a great job of getting your business to the point that you’re ready to start implementing your list building strategy.

Beware, though.

This is where many bloggers tend to drop the ball.

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

Here’s the reality you must face…

• if you have a great lead magnet,
• plus a cool squeeze page,
• and you have your email sequences all written out in your autoresponder,

… it’s not good enough.

If you stop at this point, nothing will happen.

No subscribers, no list, no following.

Not unless you start implementing strategies to get your squeeze page out of the deep freeze and into the frying pan.

That’s when things start to sizzle.

That’s when you start getting people onto your list and into your business…

• buying,
• joining, and
• signing up for your great thing.

So here’s 15 things you can do to start making all this happen.

1. Forums

Find the hot forums in your niche.  

Every niche has them!

Just spend a few minutes every day talking to folks in your niche about their challenges and issues.

Create a forum “signature.”

That’s basically just a quick link to your squeeze page.

Here’s my Warrior Forum Signature…

When somebody clicks the link, they get redirected to my squeeze page…

2. Quizzes

I wrote an article recently about how easily you can build your list with quizzes.

This is a really fast method because you can use it to easily build a few quizzes. ** (This is an affiliate link. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below).

After you build them, just promote them on your social media sites and watch your list grow.

People love taking quizzes and they will gladly subscribe to your email list to get the results.

3. Contests

Post contests on your favorite social media sites.

People have to subscribe to your email list to enter.

Winners can get simple things like free ebooks or a video training.

4. Blog Post Links

Embed links to your squeeze pages within your blog posts.

Then just spend a few minutes each day promoting those blog posts.

Here’s a sample of how I do it on this blog…

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

5. YouTube Videos

You can post a 1 or 2 minute video on YouTube every day.

Be sure to Use YouTube Cards to link to your squeeze page.

Promote your videos on social media.

6. Resources Page

Create a resources page on your blog or website.

Make sure your squeeze page is featured on this page.

Share this page in places where affiliate links and promotional links might not be allowed, like inside of many social media groups.

Resources are more readily acceptable.

7. Cheat Sheet

Create a very simple “Cheat Sheet” and offer it on social media platforms.

It should be something very simple, like…

 “The 7 things I do every day to connect with influencers in my niche.”

Have people subscribe to your list to obtain the Cheat Sheet.

In the alternative, give it away without requiring an opt-in.

If you do that, though, make sure your squeeze page is featured on the Cheat Sheet.

8. Live Stream

Do 15 or 20 minute live stream presentations each day.

You can do this with Twitter’s Periscope, or with Facebook Live.

Always prompt your audience to access your squeeze page.

9. Webinars

You can record one single webinar.

Simply promote the replay link every day on a variety of social media platforms.

The webinar sign up form is your squeeze page.

10. Squeeze Page Swaps

Promote other people’s squeeze pages.

You can do this

• on your Facebook page
• in an email to your list
• on your blog post, or
• anywhere that you can reach your audience

In return, ask the same people to promote your squeeze page on their Facebook page, email or blog post.

Special: FREE Guide… 4 Things I Did To Build My Blog Using Only Free Traffic

I’m sure you can think of other places to swap squeeze page links, too.

11. Facebook Groups

Make a list of Facebook groups where your target audience hangs out.

Spend 15-20 minutes a day connecting with other members of the group.

Make sure you have permission, then link to your squeeze page from time to time.

Make sure you are offering something of true value, like your fabulous Cheat Sheet or a lots-of-fun Quiz.

12. LinkedIn Groups

Use the same strategy as in Facebook groups, only do it with your LinkedIn groups.

13. Google+ Communities

Use the same strategy as in Facebook groups, only do it with your Google+ communities.

14. Quora

Spend a few minutes each day asking and answering questions on Quora.

In your signature, link to your squeeze page, or to your blog (where your squeeze page and opt-in offers should be).

Here’s what one of my Quora signatures looks like…

The more interesting and helpful your questions and answers are, the more likely people will be to

• follow you to your blog, and
• subscribe to your email list.

15. Re-purpose Your Content

What content have you posted on your blog or other platform?

Now, repurpose it.

If it is a blog post, create a series of 1 to 3 minute YouTube videos discussing different aspects of your article.

If it is a video, create an infographic to represent whatever your main point was.

Spend a few minutes every day taking a tiny piece of some of your larger content pieces, and spinning them into small content pieces that you can share on social media.

Make sure each of your content pieces has your squeeze page featured on it.

Tools To Help Start or Increase Your Email List

As you can see, most of the ways to promote your squeeze page involve social media promotion.

That can take a lot of time and effort.

So, it’s important to use some kind of social media tool to help you automate this process.

Let’s look at just a few of them.

PostPlanner  ** (This is an affiliate link. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below)

This is easily my favorite social media tool.

It does a lot of the things that the expensive ones do, but for a fraction of the cost.

For instance, you can use it to recycle posts that you’ve created once, so you never have to post them again.

PostPlanner posts them for you!

That’s a very expensive feature on some of the high priced alternatives, but PostPlanner includes it in their very affordable basic plan.

PostPlanner also allows you to put a “sharebar” on your posts.

The sharebar is, essentially, an opt-in form placed right at the top of the content you’re sharing.

Some people choose to have the sharebar on everything they share, including third party sites.

I don’t really like that idea, but prefer to put it only on my own content.

Bottom line… I’d highly recommend you grabbing a free trial of PostPlanner and see how cool it is for building your email list.

Here are two high-end alternatives to PostPlanner.

Both will do a lot of the things PostPlanner does, but they have a much higher price ticket.

1. Sendible
2. MeetEdgar

Here are two mid-price alternatives, although they don’t have the PostPlanner features I described above.

1. Buffer
2. Hootsuite

Now, the one drawback to PostPlanner is that it only connects to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

I use it just with my Twitter account because that’s the one that drives me crazy, what with the tons of postings and all.

But since I’ve been using it on Twitter, I’ve really been connecting strongly with some major influencers.

They really appreciate me sharing their content so consistently (so, please don’t tell the my automation secret, hehe).

Review: Tools To Start or Increase Your Email List

Just a quick recap.

Here are great tools to start and increase your email list.

** (The following are affiliate links. See My Affiliate Disclosure & “Bonus Program” below)

1. GetResponse ** (to manage your email marketing) 
2. Thrive ** (to build your squeeze pages)
3. PostPlanner ** (to start blasting out your squeeze page links)
4. Interact ** (to create quizzes to increase your list)

So let’s hear your story, my friend.

Are you starting your email list?

Are you working at increasing your email list?

Which of these 15 Super Strategies To Start or Increase Your Email List In Just 20 Minutes A Day has grabbed your attention?

I’d love to hear which one you’d like to start implementing today.

Let me hear from you in the comments below and hey, don’t forget to share this article on your social media sites.

Your friends will love you for it 🙂

-Donna

• Bio
• Blogging Magic

Donna Merrill

Donna is a well known blogger and creator of "Blogging Magic" - an intensive guide to blogging. "Blogging Magic" is for beginners who are trying to figure out how to bring their blogs to life with tons of visits, comments and social media interaction. It's even for advanced bloggers looking to reach new levels of authority and engagement with their audience.