Building a List - The Secret Key to Every Online Marketer's Success

What is it I'm missing? Have you ever asked yourself that question? Everywhere you look, more and more people are leading successful jobs right out of their homes, with no boss looking over their shoulder. But no matter what you try, you can't seem to get there. How are they doing it?

I want to share with you the secret that every successful marketer is using, no matter what kind of products or services they are selling. It's a technique called 'list building'. This technique is done by most every successful business around the globe. In fact, it's the one thing most failed businesses NEVER even tried. It's so simple, but the results can be incredible!

Whether or not you currently have a business, or if you are starting from scratch with nothing to sell; just building a list can realistically replace your current income and even more! There is one thing that every business needs to succeed. It doesn't matter if the business is brand new or established, sells products or services, or has one employee or thousands. Every business requires relationships.

The purpose of this article is to convey a very simple, yet extremely overlooked tactic for building a successful business. If it's so simple, why is it overlooked? Possibly for the same reason people tear their house apart looking for their sunglasses just to find they were on top of their head! We commonly look over the most obvious solutions because we are blinded by the idea that the best solutions are always the most complicated. This does not need to be the case in order to build a successful business.

So, we know the answer is simple... Build relationships. But is the solution simple? It really is. The best way to build a relationship, in any form or fashion, is through communication. Think about this... Any website owner knows the importance of getting traffic to their site. The unfortunate problem with traffic, is that is has to be ongoing and can never stop. This is because once a visitor sees your site, they move on and will probably never return. Some of course will (if your site is good enough), but here we are talking about the vast majority.

The statistics show that people need to see your name and/or message in print at least 5-10 times before they recognize you or what you have to say. But how could you ever accomplish this with website traffic that's flowing around the internet at the speed of light, leaving as fast as it came? Well, what if we could capture some of this traffic and hold it captive? Then, we would have a chance at the name recognition we need and that most important factor of building a relationship. How do we do this? By building a list!

Actually, there are two sides to this. One is the actual building of a list, the other is profiting from the list. But what is a "list"? Quite simply; it's one or more people that want you to communicate with them. Since we are talking primarily about internet businesses, these communications are usually email based, although they can also be postal mail based.

If having a list is so critical to success, why wouldn't every business or individual have one? Here are some of the problems many are faced with: 1) They don't know how to get subscribers. 2) They may feel they have nothing unique to offer. 3) They cannot get anyone to sign up for their list. 4) They may be afraid of having a list (fear of rejection or SPAM issues) 5) Or, possibly they have a list, but it is an unresponsive one.

First and foremost, we get subscribers by offering something of value. No matter who you are, or where you came from, you have something of value to give. And it's probably in your head right now. People love information! Think about it. That's what the internet is; it's information. We are all here looking for information in one form or another. If you already own and run a business, what kind of valuable or meaningful information do you have that's related to your products or services?

If don't yet have a business, think about your favorite hobbies, activities, recreation, events and focus on the things that interest you. If you find it interesting, chances are, thousands of others do to. And best yet, you can turn this information into your own business, and make money from it!

At this point we either already have our own business or we have decided what our niche is going to be. Next we decide; what do we have to offer? If we give people value, they will want more from us. That value can be in the form of many different ways: 1) A newsletter subscription. 2) Reports. 3) Articles. 4) Teaching and training aids. 5) Reviews of other products and services 6) Resources. 7) Helpful software. 8) Announcements and updates on products or services.

Once we have an idea of our topics, we want to turn those into one or more of the forms above. I recommend choosing any of the first three in the list, to get started. Anything else can be gradually added at a later time. Now you have to capture the attention of your potential audience. Again, there are many different ways this can be done: 1) Create a "squeeze" page (a simple, one page compelling website with a sign-up form. Very effective.). 2) Spending time in related forums. Using your website in your signature line. 3) Give your articles to other niche sites for publishing. Great way to establish your name. 4) Use "pay-per-click" services to drive targeted traffic to your site.

There are countless more ways to capture subscribers, both free and paid. And there are way too many to list here. Remember, for now we are just getting the basic understanding of building lists and even more so, to understand the importance of having a list. As I stated earlier, the concept is quite simple, but there are many steps that have to be taken in order to accomplish this. Then, once you have obtained your subscriber, the relationship begins. How long this relationship lasts will depend on you. With the massive amounts of email we all get, you will have to give them a reason to keep you around.

Whether you have 2 subscribers or 2,000, you have to speak to them as if they are the ONLY one subscriber on your list. You are NOT building a "one-on-one thousand" relationship. You are building a "ONE-ON-ONE" relationship. Never forget that! Whenever you communicate with your subscribers, it's important that they know you are an individual and an everyday person just like them. Make yourself obtainable, and invite them to contact you so you can help them individually. Let them know they are important to you.

Remain focused on providing your subscribers with valuable free content. Listen to their needs, and respond with a solution for them. Soon, you will become an asset for them, and they will rely on you and trust you. Now that you're an asset to your subscribers, they can become an asset for you. As much as you like giving away free content and your time, at some point you have to make a living too, right? Everyone's time is valuable.

Using a proper strategy of place and time, you can offer your subscribers "up sells" from time to time. If you already own a business, than you probably have products and services you can offer. But, what if you're just starting out? Your main two choices are: Creating your own products, or selling someone else's. Since we're interested in internet marketing, the absolute best items to sell are informational products. Why? 1) They can be delivered instantly. 2) They require no physical materials. 3) You have an endless supply. 4) It cost nothing to reproduce. 5) It cost nothing to deliver. 6) People love information!

If you consider yourself an expert at something, or at least know much about it, you might consider creating your own products. This however is time-consuming and takes a lot of work. It can also be very costly.

Your other option is to become an affiliate for other people's products. On average, an affiliate makes a 50% commission on these products! You get paid half the profit and you never had to do any work or spend any money creating these products. This is a great option for most that are getting started in an online career. Affiliate marketing is done by the newest of marketer's and done by some of the most seasoned experts. Whether you need a few hundred bucks a month or several thousand a month, the income potential of affiliate marketing is limitless!

I hope by now you have a better understanding of what a list is and why it is important for your business to have one. It is so easily overlooked, and with just a little bit of insight, more new businesses and new internet marketers would have a greater chance of success. For detailed direction on building your own list from scratch and profiting from it, the List Building Formula (www.listbuildingformula.com) is probably the most complete, detailed free source available on the net.