As an online business owner, I spend 85% of my time on outreach, outbound marketing and blogging. But trust me, it’s exhausting and frustrating, especially when I feel like I’m reaching out to the same audience with minimal return.
I need a larger fan base. People that are actually interested in my products!
So I took to Google to find out how I can grow my subscriber lists. And honestly, the best way to reach the people you want is to provide them with information they way. Create shareable content and push it as much as possible.
You won’t start to see those returns however, unless you are capturing the information of everyone who’s enjoying your content. So below, I’ve done the research for you (whew!). I built a list of the 9 easiest, quickest, cheapest and most effortless ways to kick off your lead generation campaign.
Here they are:
1. Utilize Social Media (without getting distracted!). Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest all allow you to include a CTA (call to action) button with your posts & content – even Slideshare now offers a Lead Generation form to gate your presentations
2. Create remarkable content and throw a CTA as well as social shares at the end of it! This goes without saying, but you need to create content that your audience actually cares about. This will get the shares and forwards more than anything else. But make sure your putting a CTA at then. For help with this, you can use plugins like WordPress Calls to Action.
3. Dress up your email signature. Add a CTA link at the bottom or yours and your employee’s signatures always asking for an opt-in. Use just a simple hyperlink or design a more extensive CTA, either is fine.
4. Create content upgrades. Give a free blog post with beginning offer , then send the reader to more detailed info locked behind a form (try putting your top 5 pieces of content behind a lead generation form)
5. Promote an online contest – simply in exchange for contact information
6. Popups – to a simple (minimal information required) contact form. Also consider Exit intent popup to convert abandoning visitors
7. Email your LinkedIn contacts – and just ask
8. Add a CTA on every page of your website (specifically blog pages). Try enhancing your opt-in box with social proof: “Join the # subscribers who already enjoy this newsletter”
9. Gate your long content: Show excerpts of this content, and then require email sign-up in order to view the whole article. Try using a scroll box (popup) on long blog posts and have the reader fill out a form to see the rest of the content
Now that you’ve got a stepping stone, it’s time to get moving. For all the effort you put in online between social media, building your website, selling your products and generally getting your brand out there, it’s time to start bringing more customers back in.
Let your content do the work for you. Send leads into your CRM, and start to plan your Email Marketing Campaign.
For more information and general startup resources, check out www.launchbasket.com.
