7 Easy Ways to Grow and Manage Your Customer List

In order for your business to succeed on the internet, you need to convince your visitors that you are reliable, trustworthy and that you care about them.  The best way to do this is to build a relationship with them.  Provide your customers with lots of valuable information and they’ll never look at your competitor again!

But first things first.  To start communicating with your potential customers on a regular basis, you need to know who they are.  Most people are reluctant to give you more than their first name and email address, so initially that’s all you should be focussing on. 

Collecting names and email addresses

There are several ways you can do this.

1.  Subscribe form on your website

Include a “subscribe” form on your website, preferably on the homepage and on as many other pages as possible.  Remember not all your visitors will come to your website via the homepage.   Explain exactly what your visitors will receive and how often.  You also need to assure them you will never sell their contact details.

2.  Add a survey to your website. 

Find out what people think about your products, services and your website.  At the end of the survey ask for their name and email address, again reassuring them their details will remain confidential.

3. Run a contest. 

Contests are a great way to collect details, as visitors will have to give you the right information in order to be notified if they’ve won.

4. Offer a giveaway.

The best things you can give away are free reports, ebooks or information that your customers will find helpful.  If you don’t have anything to give away, you can easily find something on the internet.  Visit the following websites:
http://www.free-ebooks.net/
http://www.planetpdf.com

5. Pop-ups or Hover Ads

These are the little windows that pop up, when you arrive on somebody’s website or when you are leaving.  Unfortunately many people now have pop-up blockers on their computers, so you may find hover ads much more effective.  For more information about hover ads, go to:/p>

http://www.marketingtips.com/hover/

To find out more about pop-ups, visit:
http://www.nowsell.com/pop-ups/

6. Ask in your offline correspondence.

Next time you are sending a postcard, letter, invoice or any other correspondence to your customers, ask them for their email address.  Explain why you would like it and even offer them a bonus, such as a free report.

7. Purchase Leads

There are many companies who will provide leads or prospects for your business.  For a fee, they will display your advertisement (similar to a classified ad) and when someone clicks on it, they will be taken to your website, where they can be encouraged to subscribe to your newsletter.  Alternatively, instead of advertising your website, advertise your autoresponder address.  This way you will capture everyone’s email addresses.  You can then set up your autoresponder to automatically deliver your promotion to people that request it.

Ivana Katz makes it easy for you to get your business online very quickly. If you're looking for a professional and affordable website designer, visit www.web4business.com.au and download a free website plan.

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