Start growing your email list today
Have you got an email list? How’s it going? Do you proactively grow it or does the thought of asking new people to sign up make you want to run for the hills?! Read on to find out how to build your email list, the right way!
It goes without saying that I think email marketing is the best thing ever, mainly because I know that when you do it right, it really works. But are you making the most of your emails?
I’m going to go all out and say your email list is THE most valuable asset in your business, it’s a direct line to potential customers and you’re in full control of it. Unlike social media, where you’re at the mercy of the algorithms and their ever-changing rules.
A good email list can ensure those people already engaged with your business continue to see your content, and with the right messaging it can drive consistent sales. Simples! But how do you get more people to sign up without it feeling too salesy or icky?
This blog will walk you through simple, ethical and effective ways to nurture and grow your email list the right way, helping you to grow your sales at the same time.
Growing your email list isn’t about collecting random emails and building the biggest list possible, it’s about collecting the right email contacts and building relationships with them.
Grow your list fast: make signup effortless, offer a sharp 10-minute lead magnet, plug it consistently on social, borrow relevant audiences via collabs, and keep new subscribers hooked with a short welcome series and steady, helpful emails.
Let’s start with the sign-up form where you want to keep things nice and simple. Anything that is overly complex, requires too many clicks or takes too long to fill in is an instant turn off. The easier you make it for people to sign up, the more likely they are to do it.
Your sign-up form should be clear, visible, and easy to fill out. That means no hiding it in some deep dark corner of your website or showing it only once on your contact page. Your sign-up box can work in multiple locations and in different formats, so make sure you maximise all of those opportunities.
Sign-up forms work really well in the footer of a website as it’s then visible on every single page. You might also want to add a dedicated banner on your homepage or within the content on other pages to give it some extra visibility.
Don’t forget to mention it in all your blog posts and add it to your checkout page if you’re selling directly from your website.
Additional pop-ups can also be created to prompt visitors to sign up, but give some thought to when they appear and how big they are, as there’s nothing more annoying than being hit with a poorly timed page-blocking pop-up as soon as you’ve landed on a website. A definite pet-hate of mine!
Just to recap, you can add your sign-up form to any of these areas:
– Website footer
– Homepage
– Blog posts
– Checkout page
– Pop-up
It’s worth thinking about what you plan to use your email list for to guide your decision about what contact info you need to collect. In most cases first name and email is all you really need; a long form will just scare them off!
If you only plan to share blog posts and a generic newsletter with updates, then you could get away with just capturing the email address. But if you’re an e-commerce business likely to be sending offers and promotions out regularly, then you might want to personalise your emails, so you’ll be needing a first name too.
Example: Sarah, a nutrition coach, added a simple form to her blog with a “Join my newsletter for easy meal prep tips” message. She doubled her sign-ups in a month.
Instead of just choosing standard phrases like “sign up” or “subscribe” on your form why not get more creative with your call to action message. Using the first person can make the reader feel like you’re talking in their language, phrases like “sign me up”, “I’m in” or “yes please!” can add an extra layer of personality to a standard form.
Not sure what one of those is? Don’t worry, it’s a pretty simple concept. A lead magnet is exactly what it sounds like, something that’s going to help you attract new leads into your business just like a magnet!
Sounds straightforward, but clients often agonise for too long about what their lead magnet should contain and then don’t make it much further than that, so I’m going to explain how to choose the right content for yours.
First and foremost remember it’s a freebie, so the content needs to be genuinely valuable to your target audience, but not so valuable that you should actually be charging for it! It needs to be a useful snippet of your knowledge that will instantly benefit them, something really juicy that you know will make their life easier and make signing up feel like a no-brainer.
Another top tip – don’t be too generic with your lead magnet or you could end up attracting the wrong kind of leads. They’re much more effective when targeted at a specific audience with a specific problem. Remember you want your ideal client signing up, not just anyone.
Once you’ve settled on your ideal format you need to match it to the right content idea. Think about what your audience want to know, solve a real problem for them. Make sure it’s relevant and try to keep it short and easily actionable as people love a quick win!
Put it into an easily digestible format (nobody wants to read tons of copy), choose a format that’s easy to download (PDFs are perfect) and make it branded so it looks professional. Free tools like Canva are great for creating lead magnets from templates or creating your own bespoke version.
Example: James, a copywriter, created a free “10 Subject Lines That Get Clicks” PDF. His email list grew 3x faster than before.
Now it’s time to work hard at driving those sign-ups by promoting your email list everywhere you possibly can. First stop, your social media channels. You’ve already done the work here to gather an audience, so this group are an ideal target for becoming email subscribers.
Regularly post about your lead magnet freebie or newsletter benefits. Remember on social media your content doesn’t always get shown to all of your followers, so don’t be shy about plugging the fact you have an email list that they’re missing out on! Create a bit of FOMO!
Once you’ve converted these followers into subscribers they belong to you, and you control what content they see and when. That’s instant control of your own visibility, marketing and sales. You don’t need a huge subscriber list to get results either, just an engaged one!
Add your sign-up link to your Instagram bio, Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, TikTok bio, Linktree and any other platforms you feature on. Give it an obvious name so it’s instantly clear what it links to, e.g. subscribe to my emails, get my freebie.
Share teaser content regularly to promote your lead magnet and attract more people onto the list, e.g. get my free checklist – link in bio. Don’t worry about sounding repetitive, your posts are only seen by a percentage of your audience, so you need to share the message often to reach everyone.
Make use of social media features like stories and pinned posts to make your email list more visible and promote it more frequently. If you do video posts or reels it’s also a great thing to mention in your sign off.
Example: Emma, a wedding photographer, started posting behind-the-scenes wedding tips on Instagram and linking to her free “Wedding Planning Timeline” guide. Her list grew by 500 subscribers in two months.
Don’t just rely on your own audience to grow your email list, think about how you could leverage other people’s audiences too. This also has the potential for double benefits, new sign-ups to grow your email list and grow your followers too!
If you already collaborate with other businesses to offer your services, then why not ask them if they’d like to do a joint giveaway or create guest emails that you both send out capturing new contacts for both of you. This is a quick and easy way to get your services in front of new eyes using an established email list.
If you don’t work in this way already think about other contacts in your network who might be interested in doing some joint promotion activity with you. If your services are complementary or have a clear link to theirs, most people will jump at the chance to do a low or no-cost activity that could grow their own audience whilst also doing you a favour, so be brave and get asking!
Example: A nutritionist and a personal trainer cross-promote each other’s free guides.
Get yourself and your business more visible by being a guest on a relevant podcast. Podcast hosts are always looking for their next guest, so make their job easier by offering yourself up! During the interview you can mention your freebie giveaway (an extra benefit for the host’s audience) and tell them exactly how to get it with a clear call to action on how to sign up.
Example: Tom, a business coach, was interviewed on a small business podcast. He mentioned his free “Productivity Hacks” PDF, and over 200 listeners signed up.
This one is such a quick win for everyone involved! Guest blogs are so versatile and quick to implement as they only require your time to write the content. If you offer a guest blog on your own website in return it’s also a win for your audience too, who get an introduction to another relevant business.
As with guest emails, keep the topic of these blogs relevant and place them onto a complementary website. You don’t want to spam your own audience with info they’re not going to be interested in, and you don’t want to attract the wrong type of client onto your own list by guest blogging to the wrong audience either.
When you’ve finally got that subscriber you want to keep hold of them! Think about how often you send emails and what you email them about, to keep them as engaged as possible.
Once they sign up, let them know how important they are to you by sending a welcome email. This first contact is the perfect opportunity to say thanks (in your own way) and give them an idea of what to expect from you.
If you offered a lead magnet then make sure the freebie is delivered quickly and seamlessly so they get that instant satisfaction hit from the new information you’ve shared.
If “how many emails should I be sending” was your first thought then you’re not alone! This is one of the most common questions I get asked and the honest answer is – it’s a fine balance.
Ideally aim for 1-2 emails a month to keep momentum, once a month can feel like quite a long time when you think about how many other emails we receive during that time! If you’re confident with your content and have lots of it available, then go for weekly to keep yourself front of mind at all times.
If you want to gather your own evidence to make the right decision then this is something you can test by splitting your audience into groups and sending them different volumes of email over the same period of time.
Share valuable tips, stories, and occasional offers, just don’t bombard them with sales emails all the time. Remember, new people need to know, like and trust you before they’re going to buy, so use different types of content to tick those boxes for them.
Example: Sophie, a handmade jewellery seller, sends a “Behind-the-Scenes” email twice a month. Her open rates are high because it feels personal, not salesy.
A healthy email list = engaged subscribers who trust you and eventually become customers. Remember a small group of engaged and loyal subscribers can bring more sales than a large, poorly targeted audience. Quality over quantity every time!
Do things the right way, invest your time wisely and your business (and email list) will thank you!
Start monthly or fortnightly. When opens and clicks stay healthy, test weekly for 30 days. Consistency beats intensity.
Not required by law but HIGHLY recommended. It improves deliverability and list quality (fewer typos/bots = happier inboxes).
One problem → one quick win in under 10 minutes. Think checklist, cheat sheet, template, or a short mini course. Keep it specific, short, and immediately useful.
Header/utility bar, homepage hero, site-wide footer, blog inline (after a few paragraphs), end of posts, checkout and thank-you pages. Add a dedicated landing page you can link to from social.
Keep it simple: email + first name. If you need more later, use progressive profiling (ask in a future email or preference centre).
They work when used respectfully. Try exit-intent on desktop, and a 60-90s delay or ~50% scroll on mobile. Show no more than once per 7 days, always with a clear close button.
Tweak one thing at a time: reduce fields, strengthen the headline/hook, move the form higher, add trust copy (“No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.”) and test a clearer CTA (“Send me the checklist”).
Pin a post, add “Freebie” to your Story Highlights/Featured, put the link in your bio/page button, and rotate formats: tip carousel, mini case study, “New here?” intro, quick reel mentioning the freebie.
Yes! Try newsletter swaps, co-branded checklists, podcast guesting with a dedicated/podcast landing page, or a joint live Q&A. Aim for complementary audiences, not competitors.
Aim for 3 – 5 emails
Be explicit about consent, link your Privacy Policy, and include unsubscribe/manage preferences in every email. Only collect what you need.
Authenticate your sending domain (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), use a real “from” name (no “no-reply@”), keep lists clean (remove hard bounces, re-engage or suppress long-term non-openers), and don’t send sudden volume spikes from a new domain.
Form conversion rate (views → sign-ups), welcome series open/click rates, and which channels drive sign-ups (use UTM tags). Healthy ballparks: site-wide form CVR 2–5%, welcome open 45–70%, click 5–15%.
Absolutely. A small, engaged list will outperform a big, poorly targeted one. Quality over quantity, always.
Try first-person/action-oriented: “Send me the tips,” “I’m in for the checklist,” “Yes please – show me the 5-step guide.” Add trust-building small print underneath: “Zero spam. Unsubscribe anytime.”
If you’re ready to grow your list fast (without the ick), here are two easy next steps:
From welcome series setup to lead magnets, ongoing campaigns and even platform migrations, I can get you moving fast (minus the overwhelm).
Explore my email marketing services and book a chat
Download “30 ways to grow your email list without spending a penny on ads.” It’s full of quick, ethical, free ideas that you can action today.
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