15 Easy Ways to Grow Your Subscriber List

by Alexandria K. Brown

While there are seemingly endless ways to promote your e-zine and attract new subscribers, here's a list of my favorite 15. Which ones are YOU using?

Print this out and check those you already do, and note those you should "get a move on."

___ 1. Tell your clients, associates, and friends. Send out one of your best issues (or your first issue) as a sample issue, inviting them to sign up if they like it. (Never sign anyone up without his/her permission.)

___ 2. Put a signup form on your home page and every page of your Web site. No matter what page people may land on, this way they'll know about your amazing e-zine. Don't let them click away and lose them forever!

___ 3. Use a pop-up or pop-under box on your site. Yes, they're irritating if abused, but I can tell you they work. Studies show pop-ups/unders can increase your e-zine signups by up to 10 times! Give it a try and test it. (You can see my pop-under here.)

___ 4. Offer a free goodie for new subscribers. We all get so much e-mail these days, that you have to work hard to get anyone's e-mail address. Offer new subscribers a valuable free article, report, resource list, e-book, etc.

___ 5. Offer a free sample issue on your Web site or have one available by e-mail autoresponder. Some people won't sign up for anything until they can see it first.

___ 6. List your e-zine in free e-zine directories. There are hundreds of these on the Web where people visit to search for e-zines on particular topics. Make sure you're here so you can be found! (One of the best is Charlie Page's Directory of E-zines.)

___ 7. Swap ads with other e-zines. Search online e-zine directories for other e-zines whose target readership matches yours, and contact their publishers. Swap at least three ads in a row for best results.

___ 8. Buy ads in other e-zines. Again, search those directories for other e-zines whose target readership matches yours, and see their ad specifications and rates. Purchase at least three ads in a row for best results.

___ 9. Plug your e-zine in your e-mail signature. After your usual contact information at the bottom of all your e-mails, be sure to include a two- or three-line plug for your e-zine.

___ 10. Get published in OTHER e-zines. There are dozens of Web sites where other publishers visit to pick up free content for their e-zines. Why not post YOUR articles there for them to use? You get free exposure and plenty of traffic back to your site.

___ 11. Do a co-op with other e-zine subscribers. You can cross-promote with other e-zine publishers on your own, or use an automated service such as Subscription Rocket.

___ 12. Try a pay-for-subscriber service. These services advertise your e-zine for you and bring you subscribers automatically for as little as 10 to 30 cents apiece. One with a good reputation is Lead Factory.

___ 13. Announce your e-zine to all of the professional organizations and associations you're a member of. They usually allow you to make announcements in their newsletters or on their online bulletin boards.

___ 14. Advertise your e-zine on the back of your business cards. In the text, be sure to tell people how they can sign up for your e-zine.

___ 15. Become active in a few online forums where your ideal readers hang out. In your posts, position yourself as a resource in your area of expertise, and include a signature file that promotes your e-zine!

© 2003-2005 Alexandria K. Brown

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About The Author

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown, "The E-zine Queen," is creator of the award-winning 'Boost Business With Your Own E-zine' system. To learn more about this step-by-step program, and to sign up for her FREE how-to articles and FREE audio class, visit ww.EzineQueen.com

Recycle Your Articles to Gain Tons of Traffic and New Subscribers

By Alexandria K. Brown, "The E-zine Queen,"

While there are many effective ways to get more traffic and build your ezine list, the one I've had the MOST success with is to submit articles for use on other people's websites and in their ezines.

"But wait a minute," you say. "Aren't I supposed to be creating great articles for MY OWN e-zine?"

Yes, you are! And after your article appears in your OWN e-zine, you should then submit it to others. Over the past few years, I've found this to be the best way to get traffic, build my list, and increase my sales, for five reasons:

1. You can quickly gain FREE exposure to TENS OF THOUSANDS (or even HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS) of untapped prospects at a time. There are many high-traffic sites and ezines with high readerships that are looking for content from people like YOU.
2. Articles let you educate and share good information with your prospects. They also position you as an expert in their eyes, so they'll think of YOU as the most respected resource in your field. (Traditional ads don't do that for you.)
3. You have the right to promote yourself, your business, and whatever else you want at the end of every article. And anyone using your article must keep this information intact. (More on that in a minute.)
4. This is a tried-and-true method that will NEVER stop working, unlike the latest and greatest gimmicks to spoof the search engines. (Try one of those and see how quickly your traffic halts once the bottom drops out.) Search engines love real content and will always love real content.
5. It's EASY, and anyone can do it!

HERE'S HOW TO GET STARTED...

1. PICK A WINNER Browse through your archives and pick an insightful article that really showcases your expertise. Or, if this is new to you, write a basic article on your subject of expertise. (Not a good writer, or need help? Hire a writer from Elance.com.)
2. POLISH IT 'TIL IT SHINES Publishers will not be interested in your article if it contains typos, misspelled words, grammatical errors, or inactive Web links -- these goofs would compromise the integrity of their publications. So make sure it's Kosher!
3. ADD A COPYRIGHT NOTICE At the end of the article, insert a copyright notice, dated when you first published the article. Example: © 2005 Alexandria K. Brown
4. WRITE A JAZZY "RESOURCE BOX" In exchange for your letting other publishers reprint your article, it's customary to require they include the contact information you provide. This is usually called the "resource box" and it should come RIGHT after your copyright notice. Here's where you can ham it up.
   
   Don't waste time promoting your actual business in the resource box. Why? Remember your #1 goal is always to get prospects on your LIST. You'll gain MORE clients and customers by FIRST getting them to subscribe to your FREE ezine or special report. THEN you've got them! You'll be in front of them regularly, and that's when they'll understand why they should hire you or buy your products.
5. SUBMIT YOUR ARTICLE TO ONLINE CONTENT DIRECTORIES There are hundreds of 'free content' Web sites and announcement lists where you can submit your articles for other publishers to use. Some even let you include a picture and other information about your website. One of my favorites is EzineArticles.com.
6. SUBMIT YOUR ARTICLE DIRECTLY TO APPROPRIATE PUBLISHERS For best results, take the bull by the horns and contact publishers directly. But not just any publishers -- ones with e-zines that accept articles AND whose readers are your ideal clients and customers. A great place to start your search and build your own list is Charlie Page's Directory of E-zines.
7. AUTOMATE THE ENTIRE PROCESS
   

I know you're probably thinking right now, "OK Ali, this sounds great, but isn't this going to be time consuming?"

The answer is most definitely YES. In the past, you'd have to spend several hours a week just to get one article out there. It's a lot of administrative work, requiring time that you probably don't have.

But my friend Jason Potash has just released his brand new "ARTICLE ANNOUNCER" software that does all this work FOR you. It blasts out your articles to hundreds of directories, publishers, and other sources to help generate a slew of web visitors to your site, month after month.

My staff and I have tested Jason's "Article Announcer" product and wholeheartedly recommend it. I urge you to see Jason's information page NOW, and grab your own copy before the price goes UP in just a few days.

Remember also that if you don't want to do any of your own article marketing yourself, it's a perfect task to pass on to an assistant, intern, or freelancer. The key is getting it down to a SYSTEM, which is what this software helps you do.

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About The Author

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown, "The E-zine Queen," is creator of the award-winning 'Boost Business With Your Own E-zine' system. To learn more about this step-by-step program, and to sign up for her FREE how-to ezine marketing articles and FREE audio class, visit ww.EzineQueen.com