The List Monetization Checklist

So you have a list, or you’re in the initial stages of planning to build your list. That’s great! And one key idea that’s on your mind is how to monetize that list. That’s what this checklist is all about helping you do. We’ll cover two key areas:

Ways to make money. These are ideas for specific ways you can monetize your list.

Ways to maximize response. These are ideas for specific things to implement that will increase your conversions, no matter what you’re selling.

Take a look:

First thing you need to do is figure out how you’re going to monetize your list. While you should pick one main method and focus on that (such as selling your own products or services), that doesn’t mean you can’t incorporate other ideas from time to time.

Check out these seven ideas…

Sell your own products.

Whenever possible, this should be your preferred option. That way you know for certain you’re offering quality products, and that your customers will always have a great experience.

Sell affiliate products.

This is a good way to quickly supplement your income. Check out these tips:

Do your market research to find in-demand products.
Review and use each product you’re considering promoting, so that you’re only selling good-quality products.
Research the vendor and the product in Google to uncover any red flags, such as customer-service issues.
Be sure the sales page doesn’t have any leaks, such as payment links for which you won’t get credit.
Optional: negotiate with the vendor to secure a better deal for yourself, such as higher commissions and other perks.

Offer advertising space within each newsletter.

For example, you can sell one to three ads in a newsletter issue, including:

One sponsored ad at the top of the issue.
One ad in the middle of the newsletter.
An ad in the footer of the newsletter.

Also…

Sell solo emails.

Instead of selling ad space within a newsletter, you can sell solo ads.

Send readers to your blog.

This is a good way to engage and monetize your list. Your blog may include ads for your own products, affiliate products, AdSense ads, offers for lead magnets and more.

Send readers to CPA offers.

CPA stands for “cost per acquisition,” and this is where you get paid when your readers take some specific action like join a mailing list or filling out a form. You can find offers like this on sites such as MaxBounty.com.

Sell your leads.

Generally I wouldn’t recommend this. But if you pursue this option, you can approach it in multiple ways:

Do a co-registration venture, where you get paid for any leads who sign up for your partner’s list at the same time they sign up for your list.
Sell your list of leads to multiple people.
Sell your list to one buyer.

NOTE: If you sell your leads, make it VERY clear in on your opt-in form that the subscribers’ information will be sold and shared. Again, I generally don’t recommend this.

Next…

Generally, you’ll probably stick to selling your own products and services as well as affiliate products. Here is a checklist you can use to maximize your conversions for these offers…

Be sure you have a good subject line.

This needs to capture attention and promise benefits. Example templates:

The #1 way to [get a benefit]…
[Get some result], [without doing some hard thing]?
The secret of [getting a benefit]…
The quick and easy way to [get a benefit]…
What [pros/experts] do when they want to [get a benefit]…
Who else wants [some awesome benefit]?
Hurry, doors are closing soon on this great deal!

Send out email sequences.

Single emails will get you a few sales, but a well-thought-out email sequence will almost always create higher conversions and more sales.

Track and test everything.

Most major email service providers have built-in testing tools so you can track and test your subject lines and emails by examining open rates and click-through rates.

Balance your content and promotions.

You do this in two ways:

Balance content (like how-to articles) with promotional content over time and across emails.

Balance content and promotions within each individual email too, especially if you’ve promised to send how-to information, advice, etc.

Purely promotional emails are fine, as long as your subscribers expect them. You can set these expectations upfront in the first email you send, such as by telling readers they’ll get information about useful tools.

Use professional, responsive templates.

Then check your emails across devices and platforms to be sure they look good no matter what platform a subscriber is using to read them.

Send emails when your audience has time to read them.

Here are three points to keep in mind:

Segment your list according to rough time periods and days when they signed up. If they were free this Tuesday at 9:00am EST to join your list, there’s a good shot they’ll be free on other Tuesdays at the same time.

Be mindful of time zone differences. (The above segmenting trick can take care of that problem.)

Test and track over time to determine when you get the best responses to your emails.

Segment your list.

Create separate segments for people who requested different lead magnets, those who purchased different types of products from you, those who came from social media, those who came from JV partners, those who registered for a webinar, etc.

You can also segment across interests and behaviors, such as whether someone has opened a particular email. Then write emails that are highly targeted to these segments.

Evoke emotion.

The easiest way to get someone to take action is to create an emotional response first. You can tell them a story, empathize with their problems, or use emotionally laded words.

Share benefits.

People are always reading your emails with this question in their heads: “What’s in it for me?” Every email you send needs to answer that question, primarily by sharing benefits.

Insert a strong call to action.

Don’t assume people know what to do. Instead, tell them exactly what you want them to do next.

E.G., “Click here to watch this startling video now!”

Use an image button.

This is a great way to capture attention in an email and make your call to action stand out.

Use countdown timers.

Countdown timers create a sense of urgency, which can further boost your conversions when you’re promoting a special offer.

Build anticipation.

You can build anticipation in two ways:

Build anticipation for what’s coming up later in the email.
Build anticipation for future emails.

E.G., Next time you’ll get a free video that shows you everything you need to know for setting up a profitable Facebook ad campaign, so keep an eye right here on your inbox!

Arouse curiosity.

You can arouse curiosity:

In your subject lines to boost your open rates.
In the email to boost reads.
Near the call to action to increase click-throughs.

E.G., “Bet you’ve never heard of this fat-loss trick before! Click here to discover this amazing secret for yourself…”

Use a postscript.

Your P.S. is one of the most-read parts of your email, so what you put in your P.S. can make or break the success of your email. You might consider using your P.S. to: