Money is in the list.

Have you heard somebody say that before? Well, I couldn’t agree more!

The thing is when I started my first blog in July of 2017 I had no idea what I was doing. I heard bloggers talk about the importance of building an email list, but I never really got it at first.

So I waited and put it off for as long as I could.

2 years later I’m writing this article to hopefully show you why you need to start collecting emails on your blog ASAP!

Because once I got started – my perspective about how successful blogs work changed forever.

Related Articles:

• 6 Email List Building Strategies
• How to Start a Successful Blog (Guide)
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• 24 Truths About Blogging You Need to Know

Why You Might Not Want To Start Collecting Emails

I use ConvertKit as my email marketing software, and I’ll tell you more about why a little later.

I get it, collecting emails might sound weird, scary or even spammy at first. But trust me, you need to get on this.

#1. I Don’t Need People’s Emails

You might think that there is no point in collecting emails now. There are social media platforms, and nobody checks their emails anymore. Right?

WRONG!

The thing is, when you post on social media you are competing for your reader’s attention with funny videos, friend’s posts, celebrity gossips and so on. There is way too much noise for your articles to get noticed.

Don’t get me wrong, if one of your articles gets shared and goes viral that’s awesome! But you know what’s even more awesome?

Leveraging that viral post to collect emails from your readers and keep them coming back for more for your new content!

#2. I Don’t Know What to Email Them About

There are some bloggers who start collecting emails with an opt-in “Subscribe to my Newsletter”.

And then … Crickets.

If you collect emails and then never email those subscribers than there is no reason to collect them in the first place.

Let’s say you get 1,000 subscribers and only came up with an idea for an email a year later – those people won’t remember you or how you got their email.

Here are some email ideas:

• Welcome to [your blog]
• Here is a little bit about me…
• New Article Update
• What would you like me to write about?

#3. I Can’t Afford It

Look, I get it, investing in your blog seems scary at first.

But then some bloggers read income reports and complain about how come they aren’t making any money. Usually, it’s those who are not investing either.

I spent almost $3,000 in my first year of blogging. You don’t have to spend as much as me, but investing $30 bucks and collecting emails WILL pay off, probably more than anything else that you do.

Sending out affiliate offers, asking people to read your new article (with affiliate links), telling them about a new product you created or about different sales going on – that’s how you can make a good amount of income.

If you are an affiliate to some program that pays off $15 per sale, then you only need 2 people to buy the product/month for the email list to pay for itself.

And the rest – profit.

So don’t be afraid to invest, or at least dip your feet in the water with a free trial.

Why You Need to Start Collecting Emails NOW

Above I talked about the excuses I had to not start collecting emails. I wrote it wishing that myself 2 years ago would read it.

Are there any reasons why you shouldn’t start that bother you? Let me know in the comments section below!

Now let’s talk about the fun stuff – why you should start building an email list ASAP:

#1. Building Relationships

I don’t know if you know this, but your blog’s success depends on the value your provide and the relationships you build.

By value I mean the articles, freebies, videos or other content that you create for your community that solves their problem, helps them with a problem (no matter how big or small) or teaches them something new.

And relationships are a two-way street. You need to understand your readers and allow them to get to know you better as well!

By far the best way to do it is an ongoing communication back and forth through emails. Relationships aren’t built in a day, they take time.

And having someone’s email will be your best shot in creating a strong bond with them.

#2. Growing a Community

Most of the people who visit your blog once will never come back. They simply won’t remember you, or they will keep you in mind but then forget with time.

There are so many blogs and places to be online that without a quick reminder about yourself people tend to forget.

On the other hand, when you collect an email address you can send off a quick reminder every week.

Sure, at first it will be a few people who subscribe (maybe friends and family).

Then, it will be a few hundred. And with time a few thousand people who want to hear from you!

The community will grow, and you can even begin introducing them amongst each other, creating items that unite them, run webinars or seminars. So many cool things!

It takes time, but it’s so worth it!

via GIPHY

#3. Delivering Value

Your blog is valuable in one way or the other. But because value=success, you need to maximize it!

Email Marketing is a great way to deliver other types of value – free courses, printables, books, resources and so on.

#4. Making Income

As I already briefly covered, your money is in the list.

Most of the income I make comes from having a few thousand subscribers on my email list.

Sometimes, I can send out 1 short promotional email and make a few hundred bucks just on that.

But the best thing is that I use automated email sequences that make sure every new subscriber gets a promo email – and I make money in my sleep.

• Note: check out my article on how to make your first income blogging if you at that stage.

#5. Knowing You Are On Track

At times when I felt a bit lost, or unsure if what I’m doing is worth the effort, my email subscribers helped me keep going.

Some people wrote to me telling their stories, others thanked for my advice and resources.

I remember that on Christmas I received a couple of emails from people wishing me Merry Christmas!!

My tribe, my community, my people. They took a minute out of their day to wish me happy holidays. Me, a person they never seen in-person.

That’s gold right there. I have goose bumps just writing about it.

Your email list is not just a bunch of people – they are your people.

Get to know them, give them as much value as you can and it will pay you back ten times more.

What Platform Should You Be Using?

Now that we talked about some excuses as well as reasons why you should get on this train ASAP – where do you begin?

I’ve tried a couple of Email Marketing platforms in the past including MailChimp and GetResponse. One didn’t have enough features, and the other one was too overwhelming as it focused more on e-commerce businesses.

There was this line between not enough and too much, while as I needed something simple that had only the features I need to grow my blogging business.

I decided that I will keep experimenting until I find the one software that will be good enough. And I did.

ConvertKit – Built by Bloggers for Bloggers

I tried ConvertKit’s free trial based on a recommendation of one successful blogger. I figured, there is nothing bad about giving it a shot since the trial is free.

I ended up sticking with it, loving it and talking about it to every person getting started with email marketing!

Here is why it works for me:

#1. Bloggers Know What Bloggers Need

ConvertKit was founded by Nathan Barry – a blogger.

He came up with the idea of creating his own email marketing software because he disliked the ones he was using to grow his blog.

He realized that all of these companies focus on all sorts of businesses, but nobody stopped and looked around for what a regular blogger needs.

So he decided to build a software that would be perfect for him, and therefore for other bloggers as well.

And it worked!

In my opinion, this tool has everything and nothing more that what a blog owner needs to grow their online presence and blogging biz.

#2. Simple But Effective Automation

When you are starting a blog there is this need to control everything and to be present every step of the way for your readers.

It’s an amazing feeling! But as one’s blog grows, we can’t find enough time in the day to talk to everyone, to control everything or to send out emails every day.

That’s why I love all of the different automation tools present within ConvertKit:

• You can automate a “Sequence”. A certain number of pre-written emails will go off at a time interval that you set up. It can be triggered by a specific opt-in of your choice.
• Adding tags automatically to people when they go through a specific action. For example, if somebody bought a planner from you, they automatically get a tag “bough_planner” so you never have to bother them with promotional emails on the product.
• Also automatically moving subscribers from/to different sequences, unsubscribing from tags, subscribing/unsubscribing from forms.

#3. Opt-Ins Included

I personally create email opt-ins using 2 different tools: ConvertKit and Elementor Pro. Both are absolutely stunning and do the job so well.

Within ConvertKit, you can create forms and entire landing pages to gather subscribers.

(screenshots from ConvertKit Dashboard below)

ConvertKit Forms:

Forms can be somewhere inside your article, or they can pop-up or slide-in on the side (you decide when).

Each form has a neat look to it that you can edit, add images and text, as well as choose what happens after someone subscribes.

Also, you can add multiple choice fields to automatically give a tag to your subscribers. On my first blog I talk to both Traditional and Digital artists, I prefer knowing how many of each I have so I only send them the most relevant content.

Here is an example of such form, and when the subscriber chooses what they identify with, ConvertKit automatically assigns a tag to them:

Laning Pages in ConvertKit:

I love that you can create an entire page dedicated to collecting emails. These pages convert a bit better than regular forms because people can’t get distracted by other things to click on – they only have 1 action available “Subscribe”.

Here is a screenshot of one page like this that I created for my readers:

As you can see, it’s a bit cut off as the text continues. It’s not the most creative or stunning page you’ve ever seen, but it focuses on all of the most important things: who it’s for, what’s inside and what action you need to take.

And the conversion rate? Check it for yourself:

Usually, the conversion rate is about 20-30%, and here it’s 70% !

The only thing is – you need to get people to visit such a page. But that’s a topic for a different time.

So if you are ready to get started with email building, but not sure which platform is for you – try a free trial with ConvertKit.

But do start as soon as you can!

Email Marketing on A Budget

Instead of telling myself “I can’t afford it”, I like asking myself:

HOW can I afford it?

But there are times when money are tough and I get it, I’ve been there!

So if you want to try Email Marketing and you feel like ConvertKit’s free trial is not enough, the second best option would be MailerLite.

They have a free trial until a certain amount of followers rather than in days, so do take a look at this option as well!

Good luck,