BSD Shares the Best Ways to Build Your E-Mail List

There are a number of ways, both paid and unpaid, that will help you build a strong email list. They’re not as easy as offering up a credit card to the vendor who calls, but you’ll be happier with the results.

• Organic list growth. There is no cheaper and steadier way to build an email list than sending your existing list interesting, timely, action-oriented emails. Always give your supporters something simple and meaningful to do, and always remind them to tell their friends to take the action.

• Simplify your website. Nobody should struggle to find the email signup form on your website. Make sure the home page of your website has a quick signup form in a highly visible place, and consider implementing a splash page to collect email addresses when people come to your website for the first time.

• Collect email addresses offline. Nobody likes to be the person manning the sign-in booth at an event – but it works. If a person is dedicated enough to your cause to show up to an event, get their email address. Make sure you have a structure in place to collect email addresses offline and get them imported into your system on a regular basis as quickly as possible.

• Use partner sends from allied organizations. While you can’t import another organization’s email list into your own, you can ask partners to send emails to their own lists, encouraging them to sign up for your program. So long as people sign themselves up to your program, the list is legitimate. Partner send swaps from organizations that already work together on a regular basis can be a great way to jumpstart a new or stale list.  This rule also allow organizations like Care2 to legally “sell” email addresses, often with very strong results, because every name you receive is someone who volunteered to join your list. 

• Advertise online. Google AdWords – the sponsored links that show up next to a Google search – are a proven, cost-effective way to build a list online. By paying for cost per click – not cost per impression – you’re only paying for people who were motivated enough by your ad to visit your website. If you set up your ads wisely, send people to a signup form, rather than the home page, to capture as many of those visitors’ email addresses as possible. What’s more, Google has a valuable Google Grants program for nonprofit organizations to receive free AdWords advertising.

• Social networking. People on Facebook don’t seem to want to leave Facebook – and it’s hard to fit your message into 140 characters. But if you’re already using social networking programs, make sure to link back to your website as much as possible – and make sure to tell your email list to share your organizations’ actions on their own accounts.