How to Turn Visitors into Subscribers

If you’re a webmaster or Internet marketer and you just can’t seem to turn visitors into subscribers, then you’re in good company. Internet users are markedly more savvy now than they were ten years ago, and for good reason. The number of spammy sites has grown exponentially, and just about every Internet user has an inbox full of marketing emails that will never be opened.

People are also becoming hip to the fact that they should never give out their email address without good reason, and they’re guarding it closely as a result. Therefore, it’s paramount that you use good marketing tactics to turn visitors into subscribers. Here are some killer ways to get visitors to subscribe to receive mailings from you in an age of rampant technology paranoia.

1. Give something away. Tried, true – and some may say tired – giving something away in exchange for an email address remains the most-loved way to make money online through Internet marketing. Anything with perceived value, when given away completely free, is the best tool for building website subscribers and growing your business. Of course, you should make sure that whatever you offer has so much value packed into it – think e-course, eBook, special video series, etc. – that the visitor simply can’t resist.

2. Host a contest. Decide on a great prize, such as an iPad or a Kindle, and run a contest on your website or blog. Hype it up in your posts, sidebar… all over your site. Make sure information about the contest and the great prize are easily available for website visitors. When visitors click to find out more or enter the contest, inform them that it’s open to email subscribers only. You should see a surge in your signups for the duration of the contest, and if the event goes well, don’t be afraid to run another one right on its heels. The initial cost of the prizes you’ll give away will be far outweighed by the lifetime income you’ll receive from loyal list members.

3. Clarify your intent. Wait… what? Okay, stay with me. Many websites and blogs are unclear in their niches, and with the short attention spans of most Internet users, you only have about .05 seconds to get it right. If one of your visitors is unclear about what your site is about, then what incentive does that visitor have to sign up for updates and emails from you? It’s true that you should place your opt-in form prominently in your site’s sidebar and display it above the fold, but the best way to turn visitors into subscribers is to ensure that your logo, content, etc. are sending very clear signals illustrating what your site is all about.

Tags: get visitors to subscribe, turn visitors into subscribers, turning visitors into subscribers, website subscribers