Top Email List Growth Strategies in 2020

Email is still one of the most used forms of communication in the business world, and email marketing is consistently one of the most prevalent marketing channels available. It makes up for a large portion of most company’s marketing efforts, primarily because it is simple, quick and, when done right, yields desirable results. But what is it that makes email so effective? Sure, accessibility to Marketing Automation Platforms creates ease. But, at the end of the day, a company’s email list is its most valuable asset; it’s your audience, it’s who you are talking to! So how to do you strategically grow your email list to have a larger reach, but also be the right people? Below are some of the strongest strategies regarding email list growth.

It All Starts With Data

When many businesses are trying to get their email marketing efforts off the ground, they turn to data vendors to obtain contact lists. Some people will just perform a simple “contact data” search on Google and get the first free list that they see. However, it is people who invest time into researching data vendors that typically see the best return on investment. Every marketer has the ‘bad list buy’ story…and it’s more of a nightmare than a story. It is more important than ever to find a vendor that can A) get you the contacts you need (with accurate and in-depth information) and B) keep them up-to-date. The more data you can add to your contact records and accounts, the better you can market to them. Cleansing your database or sourcing net-new contacts should not be a one-time exercise. By partnering with a trustworthy data vendor (preferably with a subscription plan) you can get the most out of your database and keep it clean and enriched in an always-on fashion.

Content is Key for Contact List Growth

The key to getting subscribers and keeping them is providing interesting, engaging content. According to HubSpot, one of the best techniques is to create a free tool, resource, or offer from which the reader will benefit. For instance, offering a free trial or offering an interactive piece of content (like an ROI calculator for example) on your website in exchange for a few field of data will result in growth of your email list, as they are now opt-ins. Furthermore, with relevant content on your site or by using website personalization, not only will you grow your opt-ins, you’ll grow them with the RIGHT people.

It’s also important to think about doing partner marketing so that you can glean new contacts from them. Say you’re doing a webinar with a partner and each of you is going to market it to your respective databases. You don’t have the same data, so once you have both promoted it and the webinar is over, you share the leads, of which some will be existing folks, and some will be net-new. But be sure to partner with someone where it makes sense and that the topic you are covering is relevant to both audiences.

Event Sponsorships to Grow Contact Data

Sponsoring events is a great way to grow your email list, but it can get pricey, so beware which events you are sponsoring. You should consider how many attendees will be at the event, the topic of the event and if it is relevant to your buyers, the kinds of titles that typically attend the event, and what kinds of companies typically sponsor the event. Once you’ve selected an event that your audience will be at, its important to start thinking about how you will actually get in front of them; just because you have a booth doesn’t mean everyone will come running to it. Strategize what kind of tactics will get people there like giveaways, prizes, leading a session, etc. The more people you meet, the more people that will make it on to your email list.

Website Pop-Ups: Successful or Annoying?

We’ve all been browsing through a website, when out of the blue a pop-up appears on the screen asking for our email. It happens everywhere, regardless of location, time, or B2B vs B2C. There is no avoiding it. Oftentimes, these pop-ups cause annoyance. But, have you ever wondered just how successful these pop-ups actually are? As it turns out, the most successful pop-ups are incentivized with things such as: coupons, discounts, buy one get one free offers, etc. Gleam noted a study by RetailMeNot that 71% of website visitors prefer to use discounts/coupons sent to them directly from the brand. By providing an incentive to increase your email list, everyone wins!

Your email list is the foundation of your email marketing efforts, but growing it can be quiet a grueling task. Although the quantity of recipients is a vital factor, quality is way more important. There is no point in launching email campaigns if they are just going to empty contacts, who more than likely will not convert. By finding a data provider that can give you targeted, fitting contacts, the results of your email campaigns will be much more desirable.

Vertify – Data Quality Assurance

Vertify’s Data Assurance offering continuously feeds your Marketing Automation Platform with fresh, up-to-date data for more effective targeting and better delivery performance. It means fewer bounces and lower chances of being blacklisted because of stale or erroneous contact information. It means higher open and click-through rates, and better-qualified leads for your sales team.