101 Ways to Grow Your Email List
A How-To Guide Starring: The Topica Seal
Q4 2010
One of the biggest struggles for email marketers is growing their email list
organically. Therefore, the Topica Customer Success team locked themselves in a conference room for an afternoon and came up with this list of 101 ways to grow your email list. Keep in mind we were locked in a conference room for this-‐ some ways are more practical (or comical) than others. We’ve broken down the 101 ways into 4 categories: Sign up URL Placement, Advertisement Ideas, Promotional Ideas, and Getting Involved. Use a couple or use them all, but any are sure to add
subscribers to your email list!
Sign Up URL Placement
So you’ve already created a sign up form linked to your email database, but now what? Plaster that URL and sign-‐up form all over the place, of course!
1. Put a sign up form on your website
2. Add your sign up URL to your print advertisements 3. Include a sign up URL on your business card
4. Include sign up URL on print collateral 5. Print sign up URL on all company schwag 6. Put your sign up URL on your blog 7. Sign up URL on Twitter
8. Sign up URL on Facebook
9. Include a “forward to a friend” link in your newsletter
10. Tattoo the link on your face (your tattoo artist will remember it!)
11. Put sign up URL in your email signature line 12. Sign up URL on LinkedIn page
13. Sign up URL on Flickr page
14. Sign up URL on all social media outlets we missed 15. Leave signup URL in voicemail
16. Get your sign up URL on the jumbo-‐tron at sporting events 17. Ask for signups when someone downloads your whitepapers
18. Ask for newsletter sign ups when someone signs up for your webinar 19. Ask for newsletter sign ups during webinars
20. Use sidewalk chalk to put URL on sidewalks outside your office 21. Put URL on out of office reply
22. INCEPTION
23. Put sign up URL on your Yelp page 24. Print sign up URL on candy
25. Hand out clothes on the street with your sign up URL
26. Shave the URL into your head (your barber will remember it!) 27. Optimize your sign up form page with SEO
28. Company uniforms, or t-‐shirts with sign up URL 29. Include sign up URL in your client surveys
30. Harness the power of SEO to popularize your links
31. Have good, insightful comments on blogs and include your URL 32. Include your sign up URL on the “Contact Us” page of your website 33. Include your sign up URL in the shopping cart area of your website
34. Include your sign up URL on your thank you emails or notes to those who have purchased from you
Advertisement Ideas
Place advertisements to drive traffic to your website or newsletter sign up form with these ideas:
35. Airplane advertisement 36. Place TV advertisement 37. Radio advertisement
38. Craiglist.com advertisement
39. Transportation ads (buses, trains, etc.) 40. Use a wacky inflatable flailing arm tube man
41. Sponsor an advertisement on a Podcast in your area of expertise 42. Put a flyer in your apartment building
43. Put a flyer in your office building 44. Dress to impress!
45. Place ads on company vehicles 46. Create a YouTube ad
47. Use a celebrity or spokesperson (like the Topica Seal) 48. Place a newspaper classified ad
50. Try a publicity stunt (a SAFE one) 51. Create retargeting advertisements 52. Advertise in your building elevators 53. Graffiti (in approved areas)
54. Use Groupon.com or other discount offers website 55. Taxi cabs
56. Sky writing
57. Get listed in local maps 58. Get listed on Google maps 59. Create a comic strip
60. Put a poster in your office window:
Special Promotions and Events
Hosting promotional events or creating one-‐time promotions for your customers are a great way to create brand awareness and get those extra sign ups for your email newsletter.
62. Offer future incentives in shopping cart
63. Offer employee incentive for gathering sign-‐ups
64. See The Beatle’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album 65. Create refer a friend promotions
66. Offer free pizza upon sign up
67. Have a business card drawing for a free lunch
68. Hold an in store event or tournament for newsletter subscribers only 69. Offer free company schwag
70. Host a special off site event 71. Have a dance off:
72. Free drink coupons-‐ 2 for 1 (and let us know!) 73. Free food coupons
Be Active
That’s right, get out of your office and off of your computer and TALK about your company/brand with these ideas to generate traffic to your website to increase subscriber sign ups:
74. Encourage word of mouth about your company from current subscribers/clients
75. Have a physical sign-‐up list in store 76. Ask for email addresses on the street
77. Ask for email addresses from office visitors:
78. Have a physical sign up list at your trade show booth
79. Friends and acquaintances want to know what you do-‐ get them to join your newsletter
80. Ask your current clients/customers to join your list while you are on the phone with them
81. Ask your vendors and suppliers to join your list 82. Reach out to like-‐industries to share sign up links 83. Ask your mom
84. Attend networking events 85. Create press releases 86. Use affiliate programs 87. Create a consumer barcode
89. Host a community sing-‐a-‐long 90. Create a fan club
91. Create a company sports team 92. Sponsor a cause or charity 93. Sponsor a community event
94. Be active in social media communities 95. Start or join a PR news room
96. Sponsor a kids sports team
97. Hold a seminar, round table, debate, or discussion panel 98. Speak or present at an event
99. Leverage your executive team to create senior profiles on other websites and media outlets
100. Find Carmen Sandiego 101. Hire a Topica CSM!
