Flooding Your Opt-In List With Subscriptions
by Paula Morrow http://www.idealmarketingcorp.com
It just wasn't happening. Yes, visitors were coming to the site,
but the opt-in list was growing painfully slow. A new approach
was called for, and a friend recommended trying a
co-registration effort. And darned if it didn't work!
With both free and paid variations available, co-registration is
based on the practice of presenting a prospect with multiple
opt-in opportunities (usually subscriptions or memberships) at
the same time.
The Free Way:
The free method of co-registration involves a cooperative effort
between competitors, where each offers their list the chance to
sign up for a competing ezine(s), often on a confirmation page
after a purchase is made.
In this way, members of the co-op 'share' each others traffic.
You can think of this as a type of joint venture. It works best
when you partner with one or two other ezine publishers,
offering 3-4 ezine options. You must limit the choices, as too
many can be overwhelming to the prospect.
The Paid Way:
There are a number of services popping up across the Internet
where an ezine publisher can pay to have their ezine posted with
others, in a directory setting. A prospect visiting these sites
will be presented with a number of sign up opportunities to
opt-in. These services are also known as pay-per-subscriber
directories.
However, as with other forms of paid promotions, before
investigating a paid co-registration service, you MUST have a
firm understanding of your numbers. Do you know how much a new
subscriber is worth to you?
Once you've grown your opt-in list to around 500, run your
conversion rates; know how much you can afford per lead
beforehand to break even.
If you're brand new and haven't yet gotten a firm sense of your
return-on-investment (ROI), wait until you do before signing up.
Without an understanding of your revenue and conversion, you
could end up overpaying.
Remember, the internet is a numbers game - make sure you know
yours before proceeding.
When considering a co-registration service, there are a few
critical questions you must ask:
*Does the service provide only opt-in traffic? If it doesn't,
move on. The more targeted the lead, the better.
*Can the new leads be automatically subscribed/added to your
opt-in list? Or will the service give you a list of new
subscribers that you'll need to input manually?
*If you're paying, try to avoid buying leads that have been
shared too heavily with ezines that have a target market
identical to yours.
*Only use those services that allow potential subscribers to
read short descriptions of the ezines being offered - again,
this serves to sort, target and pre-qualify the potential opt-in
traffic. The closer their interests match your offered
information, the better.
*Avoid those services that collect email addresses based on
promotions and/or contests. These leads are not as qualified,
since subscribers often opt-in only to win a prize. Their
interest may be short-term, while you are looking to build a
long-term, lasting customer relationship.
So, as with every opportunity, do your homework first. There are
a number of co-registration services to consider; you can start
with the ones listed below:
http://www.list-builder.com http://worldwidelists.com
http://ezinecentral.com http://www.zmedia.com
http://www.profitinfo.com http://www.myfree.com
http://www.funezines.com http://www.internetfuel.com
http://www.bay9.com
======================================== Paula Morrow is
president of Ideal Marketing Corporation. She specializes in
p.r., information marketing and creating cashflow systems.
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