First 1000 Subscribers Workbook

FIRST SUBSCRIBERS GAME PLAN

Set Your Objectives The first thing you need to do before you start trying to build your email list is to know why you’re doing it. Use the space below to work out your “whys,” and what that looks like for your business. Why are you building your email list? What are you hoping to offer your audience with your emails? How will your email list contribute to your business’s growth?

Audience Member Persona Now that you know why, let’s figure out who you want as your subscriber. If you don’t know exactly who your target audience is, you can’t convince them to subscribe to your email list. Therefore, it’s important to create a vision of this person so you can better speak to them. Give this person a name: What’s their age?: Personality Traits: Occupation: Fears: Budget For Your Services: Hobbies: Goals: Beliefs: Social media platform of choice: Facebook Instagram Twitter Other: LinkedIn YouTube

What Problems Do You Solve For Them? Every product solves a problem or meets a need / desire. Knowing how your product does this can help you clarify your messaging. Consider the ways you solve a problem or meet a need. What is the main pain point your product can ease? What’s the secondary pain point you can ease? What’s the benefit of easing this pain? Ultimately, what does using your product say about that person? E.g. They are smart, Eco-conscious, loving

Who’s Your Competition? Competition is an opportunity to figure out how to do better. Look at your competition with objective eyes, and see what they’re doing that seems to work really well. Also note what they might not be doing well. Come up with some ways to improve on what they do well. What does your competition do best? How can you improve on this? What does your competition not do very well? How can you do it better? Which member of your competition do you look up to the most? In what ways can you be better than they are?

Lead Magnets A lead magnet is something that draws people into signing up for your email list. It will look different for every business. However, a good thing to keep in mind is that a good lead magnet should be something that you give away for free that is so valuable, your ideal customer would think you shouldn’t be giving it away. Brainstorm some lead magnet ideas for your business/niche. Idea: PDF Audio Video Course Webinar Group Challenge Discussion Group Coupon Tool Other: Idea: PDF Audio Video Course Webinar Group Challenge Discussion Group Coupon Tool Other: Idea: PDF Audio Video Course Webinar Group Challenge Discussion Group Coupon Tool Other:

Email Content Once you have people signing up for your lead magnet, what will you mail them so you keep them subscribed while encouraging sales? Use this sheet to brainstorm topic ideas to help you do both. List some ways you can educate your leads about your niche/industry. E.g. 3 Ways To Get Negotiate The Lowest Home Loan for Realtors. List some ways customers have used your product with much success. List frequently asked questions customers, and potential customers have.

Grow With Summits Presenting at online summits is an excellent way to start a conversation and gain a lot of subscribers. You get to spend a lot of time with an audience receptive to your industry/niche and gain some notoriety. It requires some work ahead of time and you want to be prepared so you have something to pitch summit hosts. Don’t go in without a plan. Research upcoming summits and brainstorm what you can speak about. Name: Contact: Host: Summit Dates: Summit Topic What can you present about? Pitched Date: Followed up Date: Name: Contact: Host: Summit Dates: Summit Topic What can you present about? Pitched Date: Followed up Date:

Grow With Webinars Part 1 Webinars differ from summits because there’s only one speaker. There are webinars where you are the host and those where you are the guest. Let’s focus on hosting your own for now. List 5 topics you can comfortably speak about for about 60 minutes. Of the 5 above, choose one that excites you the most and come up with a sexy title for it. Review your calendar and pick a date & time about 2-3 weeks ahead to host this webinar. Date: Time: Start setting up your webinar Set up webinar software Create signup page Tell affiliates about it Tell your list about it Run an ad Prepare slide deck

Grow With Webinars Part 2 Once you have a successful webinar down, it is a good time to take it on the road. Your goal here is to pitch the webinar to someone with a following and be their “guest” while you do all the work. They just need to show up and play host. This works a lot better if you have something to sell at the end of the webinar. If you haven’t already done this, what special package can you create that is only available on this webinar? Now, let's look for a host with a following who are in your target market Host name: Pitch Date: Contact: Website: Followup 2 Date: Followup 1 Date: Host name: Pitch Date: Contact: Website: Followup 2 Date: Followup 1 Date: Host name: Pitch Date: Contact: Website: Followup 2 Date: Followup 1 Date: Host name: Pitch Date: Contact: Website: Followup 2 Date: Followup 1 Date: Host name: Pitch Date: Contact: Website: Followup 2 Date: Followup 1 Date:

Grow With Challenges Challenges are a fun way to grow your list and possibly get viral too when people start sharing it. It’s also a fantastic way to build a community. For example, it is January and everyone is focused on losing weight. If you are a dietician, you can run a 30-Day challenge to replace a high carb food with a low carb one. Brainstorm 5 challenges that your target persona can get excited about. From the 5 above, pick one and create a super catchy title for it. Review your calendar and pick your dates. Start Date: End Date: What prize can you give to challenge finishers? Tip: Consider a deep discount for your products. Who can you approach to sponsor more prizes & help you promote the challenge?

Grow With Contests Contest can also be a fun and creative way to grow your list. For example, if you sell kitchenware, you can create a photo contest where people submit photos of them using your products to make dinner. Whatever it may be, make sure your prize is relevant to your brand. You won’t get quality leads if you sell kitchenware and you give away a game console. List 5 different contests that would interest your target persona. From the 5 above, pick one and create a super catchy title for it. How will this work? Start Date: Review your calendar and pick your dates. 1st Prize End Date: 2nd Prize 3rd Prize What prize can you give to challenge finishers? Tip: Consider a deep discount for your products. Who can you approach to sponsor more prizes & help you promote the contest? What are some basic rules of this contest?

Grow With Social Media Social media is not only an amazing way to connect with your audience, but it’s also a perfect way for people to get to know & trust you and to encourage them to sign up for your email list. The more you post to social media, the more eyes are on your business. Thankfully, you don’t have to spend all your time on social media because you can use automation tools to help you. Below, come up with types of social media posts to inspire you when you don’t know what to post. Remember to promote your lead magnets! Engagement Post Ideas Lead Magnet Post Ideas Product Post Ideas Reminders & Holiday Post Ideas Other Ideas

Grow With Ads Ads don’t have to break the bank, and they can be anywhere. For example, if you find a website related to your niche, offer to swap ad space. Use the space below to write where you can advertise, as well as some drafts of the ad copy that suit your niche. Get creative and think of as many ways to work with others for a win-win. Where: Static Image Animated Image Audio Email Text Type: Video Lead magnet: Landing page: Draft copy: Where: Static Image Animated Image Audio Email Text Type: Video Lead magnet: Landing page: Draft copy: Where: Static Image Animated Image Audio Email Text Type: Video Lead magnet: Landing page: Draft copy:

Grow With Website Pop-ups It doesn’t matter how you feel about them. When used correctly, pop-ups work. Don’t go plastering the same pop-up all over your site though. Put yourself in your visitor’s shoes. The more relevant it is, the better your results. For example, a visitor is checking out a course on email marketing. You can use an exit pop-up to encourage them to opt-in for the first lesson. Use the space below to come up with some ideas for popups you can implement on your website. Pop-up focus: Exit Entry Button Link Location: Other: Trigger action: Draft copy: Pop-up focus: Exit Entry Button Link Location: Other: Trigger action: Draft copy: Pop-up focus: Exit Entry Button Link Location: Other: Trigger action: Draft copy:

Grow With Podcasts Guest speaking on a podcast is a fantastic way to expand your exposure and build credibility. Starting a podcast can also do that but it involves extra ongoing work so we won’t focus on that here. Use the space below to think about some podcasts you could guest speak in. Show Contact: Host: What can you talk about with this audience? Pitched Date: Followed up Date: Show Contact: Host: What can you talk about with this audience? Pitched Date: Followed up Date:

Grow With Groups & Forums Part 1 Don’t for one second think this is too old school for you to do. Have you noticed how the active people in your group gain the respect of other members? Soon, people are asking them for their input, and to teach them. Many people have built their list and kicked off their business this way. Having said that, doing it intentionally will get you better results. Let’s create an action plan. Brainstorm FAQs your target persona has about your industry/niche If they can be grouped as a topic, do this now. Group #1 Group #2 Group #3 Group #4

Grow With Groups & Forums Part 2 Now that you have your questions and topics, create a tutorial, guidebook or workbook to answer those questions or help people through them. This will be your lead magnet(s). Do not be afraid to create multiple, focused lead magnets. Once you have them set up, let’s look for places to answer those questions. Group / Forum: Complete your profile with links to your lead magnet. Upload a header (if relevant & allowed) & promote your lead magnet. Add a signature (if relevant & allowed) with a blurb and link to your lead magnet. Create a schedule to engage & answer questions here. Group / Forum: Complete your profile with links to your lead magnet. Upload a header (if relevant & allowed) & promote your lead magnet. Add a signature (if relevant & allowed) with a blurb and link to your lead magnet. Create a schedule to engage & answer questions here. Group / Forum: Complete your profile with links to your lead magnet. Upload a header (if relevant & allowed) & promote your lead magnet. Add a signature (if relevant & allowed) with a blurb and link to your lead magnet. Create a schedule to engage & answer questions here.

Promote Your Content By now, you should have some content at hand and floating around on the Internet. These can be anything from your blog posts, infographics, videos, podcast interviews and so on. While content is king, it also needs promotion to get eye on it. Without eyes on them, nobody will know you, follow your links and sign up for your list. Below, take action to promote your content. And if you don’t have any, create them! Content title: Schedule multiple social media posts over 12 months. Tag people/brands you mention. Ask people with relevant content to link to it. Email it to your list again. Link to it in your lead magnets (if relevant). Point people to it when answering questions. Link to it in related pieces of content. Content title: Schedule multiple social media posts over 12 months. Tag people/brands you mention. Ask people with relevant content to link to it. Email it to your list again. Link to it in your lead magnets (if relevant). Point people to it when answering questions. Link to it in related pieces of content. Content title: Schedule multiple social media posts over 12 months. Tag people/brands you mention. Ask people with relevant content to link to it. Email it to your list again. Link to it in your lead magnets (if relevant). Point people to it when answering questions. Link to it in related pieces of content.

Consider An Affiliate Program If your business sells something that you can turn into an affiliate program, it will help you gain an even bigger following by using other people to build it. For every email subscriber that they bring in that converts to a paying customer, your affiliates can get a bonus. This incentivises them to bring people on board, and therefore, grow your email list. Use the space below to come up with a strategy for how you can set up an affiliate program for your business. What is your best seller? What can you offer as an incentive for others to sell this? What is your recruitment plan?

Track Your Progress Getting your first 1,000 email subscribers is no mean feat. It requires you to work hard at providing value and engaging with your audience. However, as long as you keep it up, you will gain subscribers. Use the space below to track your email list growth over time. This can help keep you motivated and also help you see what worked so you can do more of that. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Signups Today Total Signups To Date Signups Today Total Signups To Date Signups Today Total Signups To Date Signups Today Total Signups To Date Signups Today Total Signups To Date