Episode 20: 12 Ways to Get Your First 1,000 Email Subscribers

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Regardless of what your product or service is, every entrepreneur should utilize newsletters to build their brand, grow their following, and to sell. We both have our own weekly newsletters and we also have a joint one for this podcast. If you don’t have a newsletter yet, you definitely need to start one and in a future episode we will talk about how to create a great newsletter. 

But today we are focusing on how to get your first 1,000 email subscribers once you have a newsletter. We have 12 techniques and tactics that you can implement today to start growing your audience. Both of us have used these in the past, and there are several that we are still using today. 

The 12 techniques and tactics to grow your newsletter: 

1. Create a lead magnet--A lead magnet is something of value that people want to download. It could be an assessment, a PDF with hacks, a few chapters from a book, a video series, a compilation of some of your best blog posts. You can repurpose and reuse content you already have, you can add images, colors, and branding to make it look good. Just make sure that whatever you are offering is something of value that will draw people in. 
2. Contribute to other websites--Something that we have done in the past and still do to this day is contribute content to other websites. Like us, you will have to start small. Reach out to other bloggers or publications in your niche and ask to contribute a blog post or an article with value. Start small and eventually you can move up to larger, more well-known outlets. And then in your contribution include a link to your newsletter or your lead magnet. 
3. Put a link in your email signature--This is a simple technique you can do right now. In your email signature include a link to your newsletter or lead magnet and make it stand out. You can include an image or put color behind. Preferably you will want to link to the lead magnet and point people to something of value. 
4. Promote it on social media channels--It all started with social media for us. This is a big one. On social media you have a huge potential audience to get out in front of. If you don’t like to use social media personally that’s fine, but for work it is important. Especially as an entrepreneur. We highly suggest you have a social media presence and use it to share your lead magnet. 
5. Create ads--Almost all social media channels give you the option to use ads. For us the one that has worked best is Facebook ads. But you can put ads on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, etc...You don’t have to go crazy, and it is important to set a budget ahead of time, but include a link to your magnet with a description of the value they will get and you can see a large increase in followers.
6. Ask people--This one may seem too obvious, but a lot of times we forget to use the resources we already have. Reach out to your network, people you already know. You can reach out to friends, family, etc...and see if they want to join your newsletter. You never know, they may join and then refer it to other people. 
7. Share it in a podcast interview--This is another one we still use today. And when you first start out, you will have to start small. It doesn’t have to be a podcast with a huge following, even just 50-100 people will give you some exposure. Reach out to podcasts that are related to your niche and see if you can come on as a guest. Let them know what value you can bring to their audience. Once you are on the show point people to your lead magnet URL.  
8. Share it tactfully via social groups--Facebook and LinkedIn, along with other social sites have groups that you can join. Find some that are related to your business and join. Now with this one it will take more time and effort, because you can’t just join and make a pitch. You will have to contribute to the group and look for conversations that are relevant to your business. If someone asks a question, respond with an answer that brings value and then mention your lead magnet. The important part is to do it tastefully, and only occasionally. 
9. Do giveaways or contests--This can be a fun way to lead people to your newsletter. You can have people caption a photo, competent in a video contest, have people sign up to enter for a raffle for a cool item--really your imagination is the limit, have some fun with it and be creative. 
10. Reach out to customers--Your customers are your prime audience for a newsletter, because they have already bought something from you. Whether people are buying digital or physical products or services, reach out and let them know you are starting a newsletter and tell them why they should subscribe. Let them know what value they will get from the content in the newsletter
11. Find somebody else with an audience--Find people who have a large following, whether on social media or their own newsletter or a magazine, etc… Reach out to them and see if you can collaborate with them to get the word out. You can do a LinkedIn Live video together, you can contribute to their magazine, write something of value for their newsletter. Reach out to associations, vendors, businesses, individuals. Anyone that has a following. Add value for their audience and lead them to your newsletter. 
12. Put it on everything--Make sure you have the link to the newsletter or the lead magnet on everything. It should be on any physical products, on your website, packaging, PDFs, social media channels, etc...

If you can implement all 12 of these techniques, you should have 1,000 subscribers in no time. Even if it is overwhelming to implement all of these things all at once, you can at least try one new thing every week or every other week. We know from experience that having a newsletter is extremely important for entrepreneurs. Don’t miss out on this great way to reach your potential customers.