Part of building a dedicated following to a site is encouraging visitors to subscribe to regular emails.
After you’ve created a site for your clients, they may want you to help them find ways to get more email subscribers. Increasing subscribers is part design, part marketing and part content.
Boosting subscribers for your clients isn’t difficult. By making a few design changes and helping with content, your clients’ email lists will grow.
Add Opt-In Form To All Pages
The fewer clicks a visitor has to go through to sign up, the better. If the email opt-in form is only listed on one page or as a tiny link at the bottom of pages, visitors may never see it or they’ll get discouraged clicking through pages trying to find it. Adding an obvious, but unobtrusive opt-in link or form to a sidebar that appears on every site page is an ideal way to ensure potential subscribers have every opportunity to sign up.
Use Overlays
While pop-up overlays may seem annoying, they’re actually effective. According to case studies done by Econsultancy, an overlay can increase email subscribers by 400% over standard opt-in forms. You could design the overlays to only appear on certain pages or when a user takes a specific action. Many sites choose to only have them display on the first page a user visits. To make the more effective for your clients, ensure the overlay:
- Loads quickly and doesn’t keep visitors waiting
- Has an obvious way to close it such as a large X or Close button
- Includes a call to action
- Provides a reason for visitors to sign up such as a discount or special report
Visitors are less annoyed by overlays that they can close quickly, especially if they’ve already subscribed. Suggest to your clients that they offer first time subscribers some form of discount or downloadable report or ebook. Visitors are more likely to opt-in if they feel they’re getting something in return immediately.
Make Opt-Ins Obvious
A blank text box with a sign up button seems like it should be enough. A case study by Conversion Voodoo found adding the inline field text “Enter Your Email Here” increased subscribers by 36%. It is important to note any text should disappear the moment a visitor starts to enter their email address. If the text doesn’t disappear automatically, you run the risk of some subscribers being rejected because of an invalid email address such as “Enter Your Email [email protected].”
Arrange Content By Importance
The way a site’s content is arranged can also help increase email subscribers. For instance, if a site has content that’s outdated or no longer popular in a prominent spot, visitors might feel as if the site doesn’t update content often. They wouldn’t think there was any reason to subscribe. Adding in a way for your clients to easily change the positioning of content helps get visitors browsing the site and makes them more eager to subscribe for new updates. Adding Conductor Plugin is an easy way to allow clients to change their page layouts and content positioning in minutes.
Create Compelling Landing Pages
A landing page is highly effective and provides room to persuade visitors to sign up. Sometimes visitors never subscribe simply because they don’t know the benefits. The design and content of the landing page is important. It should include:
- A list of benefits
- Email frequency
- A call to action (offers, downloads, limited time deals)
- Opt-in form
If your client has a strong social media presence, listing social media subscriber numbers is also useful. Testimonials are ideal if they’re available. If the client doesn’t know what to write or how to make it persuasive, suggest hiring a copywriter. This will ensure the copy is compelling and you’ll be able to upload the landing page as soon as possible.
Conclusion
Email is still the best method for delivering marketing messages. Your clients need all the help they can get with increasing email subscribers. Incorporate these techniques into your projects and give your clients the extra edge they need for a larger email list.
Not sure where to start? Start with the Conductor Plugin and train your clients how to use it to their advantage.
Image: Maria Elena