I was working on a new way to more easily select which list building projects to pursue. Fundamentally, my list building efforts are to build a list of highly targeted, qualified healing, holistic and spirit-minded entrepreneurs who are interested in building a $1000 a Day Meaningful Streams of Income™ business.
I know list building depends on my goals and I teach my clients the $1000 a Day difference between:
(1) LIST building (getting targeted, qualified names on a list),
(2) RELATIONSHIP building (growing a relationship between myself and the person on the list - preferably one where I am sharing my knowledge and they are falling in love with what I offer) and
(3) COMMUNITY building (building relationships that grow between myself and the member of my list and also between the members themselves.)
And strategically, a Meaningful Streams™ business should have all three. Yet a M.S. entrepreneur also needs
- to build their expert status,
- learn more about their clients wants and needs, and
- make money and ....
There I was, spinning my goals, when inspiration struck. Meaningful Streams™ Entrepreneurs like me need a simple tool for making choices on which list building strategy to choose based on our immediate goals.
So here is the Insider Look at the outline of a new tool I am designing for those of us who choose to follow the Meaningful Streams™ path.
The 7 Ways to Grow Your List While ...
#1 Growing your list while growing your relationships.
Stop selling yourself and start sharing yourself. Offer free information and tools that show your prospect what you do and why it works and why you are the perfect person to help them solve their problem. Give them a taste of what you do by sharing articles, special reports, white papers, podcasts, assessments and more. Each of these will include your resource box at the end. In your resource box, you will direct people to a one-page website where they can download a freebie (a special report or audio clip) after they enter their name and email address. For example, I offer a free 4-Part Audio Sampler of my $1000 a Day Audio Course. Your future clients get a taste of you and you get permission to strengthen the relationship by emailing them with more helpful information in the future.
#2 Growing your list while growing your products.
The Product Spiral is a concept I introduced my signature product, The $1000 a Day Business Model. Essentially you grow products while at the same time building your list. For example, you create a series of articles that you publish on the web in various targeted directories. They each attract readers back to your freebie mini-site and onto your mailing list. You then organize the series of articles into an ecourse that you may expand to include worksheet pages or resources. This mini--ecourse is then offered for free to those who signup to receive it.
#3 Growing
your list while growing your bank account
The Product Spiral continues as you grow a series of mini-ecourses. Each one working for you by attracting people to your list. The mini-ecourses are later combined to create a larger ecourse that can be sold at a low cost. You now make money while growing your list with the names of your buyers. Most importantly, you are now creating a very targeted list of qualified buyers - people who are essentially declaring their interest by purchasing your ecourse.
The larger ecourse can then be expanded with assessments, resources, additional worksheets, templates, or journal pages to make a compelling ebook - again offered for sale so you make money while growing your list. This is followed by Teleclasses, telecourses, audio sets and more. You are effectively growing a list and growing a collection of products using the $1000 a Day Product Spiral.
#4 Growing your list while growing your expert status
To establish yourself as an expert in your chosen niche, choose to publish your articles in highly targeted, brand name publications both online and off. Weave in facts, preferably from surveys or interviews you have conducted. Have your resource box at the end of your articles send people back to your list building mini-site.
Also choose to speak at high profile, brand-name events and for associations, clubs, and membership sites that target your ideal clients. Collect names at these events by offering a free goodie to folks who sign up or who give you their business card with current email address. (If you have them, sell your products in the back of the room too, to make this an expert-status-building, money-making venture.)
#5 Growing your list while growing your community
An example of this strategy is my Meaningful Streams™ Club. It's a free community for Meaningful Streams™ Entrepreneurs. Through my hosted free events and private members areas, I encourage people to meet, share and grow together.
To attract my ideal clients into the club, at the end of articles, products, tele-events, and even in ads I place, I lead people to this site usually with wording like,"FREE Meaningful Streams of Income™
Coaching Club for healing, holistic and spirit-minded businesses.
Enjoy instant access to the
growing success library of audios, articles and toolkits
including “The $1000 a Day Business Model.” Choose to grow a business that
fuels your soul...and your bank account. Join today for free. www.MeaningfulStreamsClub.com."
#6 Growing your list while growing your Intel / knowledge about your ideal clients
Use surveys, assessments, polls and other information gathering tools to learn as much as you can from your ideal client community. Ask them their biggest challenges, problems and most painful issues. What's stopping them from succeeding on their own terms? Respond to their survey responses with next steps, tips, resources, or by addressing their issues on a teleclass or in a mastermind group. Your job is to first "know" your client community, and then to know how to help them. When you do, you can craft (or re-craft) your products, services...everything...to solve their biggest challenges and make more of a difference in their lives.
#7 Growing your list while growing your list
Use programs and tools that encourage people to share you with their friends, associates, and communities. Tell-a-friend scripts can be easily installed on your web-site thanks to new widgets (small programs that are loaded using a few simple commands). Also look to add “email this" links to the bottoms of your articles or information pages (where allowed) to encourage people to forward your information to others. If you are running an event, consider bring-a-friend offers or 2-for-1 offers. In a collaborative I belonged to, in our newsletters and announcements, we asked people to help us spread the word about our events. People love to share good information and refer good people - so go ahead and ask!
I'll probably come up with even more ways to leverage your list building activities. When I do, I'll share them, too. For now, choose a solution that helps you build your 10,000 list and ALSO helps you grow your $1000 a Day business.
Blessings and Possibilities,
Maiya Rose
