My February challenge was to write every day on Medium. I’ll write a fuller recap of that over on Medium later today . But it’s fair to say the result was not bad. Not great. But I wrote some stuff I really liked, got back into the habit of blogging, and enjoyed myself.
March’s Challenge
My challenge for March is to do something every single day to build my email list.
This challenge isn’t about creating an email list. I already have one. It’s about bringing more people into it. Also updating my automated emails to increase engagement.
Here are some things I’d like to do:
Tweak my opt-ins and call-to-action on Medium.
Create a custom opt-in for my most popular blog posts.
Run a Facebook ad.
Reach out to at least ten people who might want to partner with me in some way.
Tweet to at least one company a week whose product or service I’ve enjoyed and who my audience is in front of.
Write at least one blog post a week with a strong content upgrade opt-in.
Run a giveaway.
Update my automated welcome sequence.
Create a new sequence designed to teach current followers how to share the word about Ninja Writers.
Whew. Let’s see how that goes. I’ll probably think of more.
Where I’m Starting
I have an email list of 17,449 as I write this. Here’s what you’re seeing in the bar chart above. I’m averaging about 10 new subscribers per day. The green part of the bar is new subscribers. The gray part is people who have left my list in that day.
As you can see, then, I’m losing more than I’m bringing in. Part of that is to be expected. I had a big launch of the Ninja Writers Club mid-month — that’s the big dip in subscribers you see. That happens whenever I send marketing emails.
I have a very email-heavy business — I often send more than one email a day. And as a result, sometimes people aren’t into it. They leave. And that’s fine. I’d rather have someone go than just take up space and never open anything.
What I need is more people coming in to the top. Enough that I can absorb the people who leave without my list reducing. Once upon a time.
Bonus for Substack Paid Subscribers
I’m going to host a live Zoom call all about email list building for those of you who are paid subscribers to either this Substack or my more personal Substack. I’ll send more information soon.
Subscribe here if you don’t want to miss it.
what an amazing process. I'll follow along and try it myself. ty for sharing.
I'm excited for this challenge! I plan on writing a new reader magnet this month and tweaking my opt-ins.