6 Simple Yet Effective Ways to Grow Your WordPress Site’s Email List

Building an email list is a common practice among everyone who wants to promote and sell a product or a service.

An email list consists of the emails of people who have willingly signed up for your newsletter or an announcement or another and have given you the right to use their email address by complying to a GDPR agreement.

But why would anyone want to build an email list from scratch, let alone try and nurture it to the point that it will grow? Why not invest in a different channel, like social media or digital advertising?

Well, here’s your answer:

According to the study made by Salesforce, email marketing’s ROI and the fact that there are more email users than social media users, makes email marketing one of the most profitable and cost-effective channels.

So, you need email marketing, that much is clear. But what you need most of all, in order to begin building an email marketing strategy, is an email list that will be to-die-for.

So, without further ado, let me show you a trick or two on how to grow your WordPress site’s email list!

1. Use a magnet

You know what kind of magnet, a lead magnet of course!

Just install one of the many plugins provided by the email marketing and automation software you are going to pick out. Most (if not all of them), like Moosend, which is a great MailChimp alternative, give you the option of installing a plugin and getting down to business!

And of course, there is no better way to grow your email list, than offering some sweepstake for free! Like this:

Simple, elegant, no muss, no fuss. Clear, concise copy that tells the reader exactly what to do. Which is exactly what we need from an email form on a sidebar that serves as a lead magnet.

The plugin that can make all that possible should be able to connect with your WordPress site and your mailing list. Your segmented mailing list (we’ll get to that in a tick).

Also, since all plugins (including Moosend’s WordPress plugin) have the option of creating different sign-up forms for all intents, purposes, and tastes, maybe you’d like to consider that statistic here:

Since we’ve got it at hand, it would be a shame to not check it out before deciding what kind of form you’d like to use for your lead magnet.

2. Keep it short and sweet

This should be a no-brainer, but let’s just point it out: People won’t sign up if the form needs a lot of fields and the reward is very small. According to this survey, “Two-thirds of customers are willing to share personal information with companies–but only in exchange for some perceived value.”

And it’s only logical, seeing as the days of spam are not long gone. On the contrary, there are still companies that utilise email blasts, spam emails, cold calls, anything to drive some short-term conversion and revenue.

Make sure to keep the form clear and tidy, with a double opt-in just to make sure that the customer actually wants to interact with your brand and be a part of your email list. The user should be able to see the unsubscribe button up front. Oh, and please stay away from captchas.

And if you don’t believe me:

Convinced yet?

3. Segment and personalise any way you can

Another no-brainer, but I can’t point that out enough: In 2019, people have billions of options. So, why would they opt for your email list, especially if you don’t make them feel happy and valued?

Segment your list using all the data you have at hand and not just gender or location as criteria. You’ll need marital status, education and one other thing: You can always gather your data based off the digital print every person browsing your website leaves.

If, for example, a person has spent a lot of time on a specific page that shows, say, women’s products, then you’ve got data on what kind of email newsletter they’d like to receive in the future.

This will help you make data-driven decisions, determine and reach your KPIs and increase conversion, in the end.

Just get creative, use your imagination and, after that, make sure to use your data and create an email newsletter that will appeal to each and every one of the segments you decide to create.

Pro tip: Look at more info on Recommender Systems and data science!

So, by analysing the data, now you’re ready to personalise and send email newsletters that will help your email list grow!

4. Try guest posting

It’s not an industry secret any longer. Guest posts have managed to acquire more attention than what was originally thought, and with good reason.

A guest post to a website is meant to acquire links and backlinks are like a vote of trust for your own website (according to Google). What is more, through a guest post you can redirect traffic to your own website. Or perhaps you can redirect traffic to a dedicated landing page.

Whatever you do, just keep a couple of things in mind. First off, don’t try and contact any and all bloggers. You need bloggers and websites you have something in common with, whose audience will resonate with your blog.

Also, don’t forget to be original, be fun and creative. Sending a template just won’t cut it and it’s not what you would like to receive either.

And don’t forget to follow up. That way, it’ll be obvious that you’re an actual person and not just a bot spamming people with emails.

5. Different forms for different people

As I mentioned above, in my first point, the WordPress plugins can give you the option of creating different email signup forms and satisfy your audience’s taste any which way, enticing people to subscribe.

Let’s see some of the kinds of forms you can have:

A floating opt-in bar

A floating opt-in bar floats on top of your page-or bottom, whatever you prefer. Unobtrusive, discreet, it’s right before the visitor’s eyes, but in a way that they can’t really be mad at it and it’s asking nicely for their email.

There’s simple copy, simple colours, the CTA has no hidden meaning and it’s discreet.

A welcome mat

A welcome mat is a form that pops up when you visit a website and it’s the email form equivalent of… You guessed it, a welcome mat! It should look like this:

It’s non-intrusive and gives you a first chance to convert visitors into leads, especially if your website is an online or e-commerce store.

Basically, the logic behind it is that of enticing impulse buyers and its content aims to point out something-an offer or the value of the product or service-that requires immediate attention.

The exit intent

The exit intent is a little more targeted, the exit intent pop-up is there to remind the prospects that they have some unfinished business with you and your page. And this is to sign up! Here:

This email form works beautifully when it comes to cart abandonment issues. A clever copy here and a clear CTA there and it could save the day, like this little gem below:

The exit intent pop-up could also reduce bounce rates, as it serves as the old-fashioned “Why” salespeople used to say. It makes the prospect think twice before closing the webpage or hitting the “back” button.

Header bar

You may think that it’s counter-intuitive, but the first thing someone notices when checking a website out is the header. Just look at the one here:

Simple and effective. And the only option for websites with infinite scroll.

Of course, we could go on and on about the types, but you get the gist. And if you’d like to know more about what kind of subscription forms your audience likes, why not send a survey out through your social media?

6. Pick out a plugin that works

It goes without saying that not all tools work for all people and all intents and purposes. You’ll need to do your research beforehand and see what fits your needs and what could help your email list grow as much and as quickly as you need.

The list below will be quite helpful for those of you who need to make some research and don’t know where to start:

Moosend’s Subscription Form Plugin

Not to brag, but this is a fantastic little plugin, if you want to see your list grow. It provides anything you may need, from a live preview of the form to easy customisation, to automation that can determine which mailing list gets which subscription form, thus saving you the time and energy you’d spend guessing.

Thrive Leads

WordPress site owners that want to grow their email list, would be well off trying out that plugin. It can offer solutions on design, targeting, A/B testing and a lot of data to help you make decisions that won’t lead to unpleasant surprises in the end.

SumoMe

If your needs go beyond list building and you’d like to have something that helps with analytics, insights and social sharing, then SumoMe is a fantastic plugin that will help with your WordPress site and list.

OptinMonster

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking, it’s not a plugin. Yes, of course. But it still can work wonders and help you build your email list on WordPress, as well as any website really. And it’s not too heavy either.

Takeaway

That’s about it for today! I hope this article was helpful for those of you who need a little bit of guidance and insight when it comes to building an email list.