Having an email list for affiliate marketing is one key strategy for hitting your sales target as an affiliate.

Email marketing is often seen as a more private mode of marketing, and having a list ensures that you are speaking directly to your audience without distractions.

In this article, we’ll share effective strategies for building an email list as an affiliate marketer.

How to Build an Email List For Affiliate Marketing

Here are some steps for building an email list as an affiliate.

1. Create your affiliate offer

The first step to building an email list is to have an irresistible offer. One that attracts customers to you and makes them feel like they are getting more for less. Here are some tips for creating an irresistible affiliate offer.

• Make recommendations for high-quality products that people wish to buy.

• Choose something that will appeal to a wide range of your target audience.

• Select a lucrative deal. Email marketing is difficult; anything you promote should generate a significant return on investment.

• Check that the offer has an optimized sales page. You won’t receive many conversions if their sales page offers a bad experience.

2. Develop a lead magnet

A lead magnet is essentially an item of value whether digital or physical products offered to customers in exchange for their contact information.

They are incredibly useful because they attract people who are potentially interested in the products or services you’re promoting. These people are likely to become repeat customers if you can establish a good relationship with them through your marketing content. 

There are lots of lead magnets useful for this purpose. But;

• Checklists, cheat sheets, and templates are some of the most used PDFs.

• Tutorials and webinars can convert extremely well. Other products include quizzes, ebooks, mini-courses, etc.

Guidelines for Creating an Effective Lead Magnet

• Your lead magnet should help your audience solve an issue.

• It should rapidly illustrate its worth. The longer users have to wait to receive value, the less helpful it becomes.

• Keep things simple and easy to understand. Content that is shorter in length has a greater impact.

• Use your lead magnet to create credibility and demonstrate why you are the best source of this information.

• Don’t regurgitate conventional knowledge. Make a one-of-a-kind tool or resource that does not exist in your business.

• Your lead magnet should persuade users to purchase the things you’re promoting.

SEE: What is a Lead Magnet? Ultimate Guide to Using Lead Magnets to Grow Your Business

3. Design opt-in forms

An opt-in form is a section of a website where visitors can submit their email addresses to claim a lead magnet and join an email list.

You can include them on your site in a variety of places, such as within content, at the top of your home page, and in the sidebar.

Pop-ups are the most effective way to deliver opt-in forms and we recommend that you use them. Here are some tips to keep in mind;

• Keep your information requirement to two; name and email address.
• Ensure your headlines are attention-grabbing.
• Make it obvious to users what they are agreeing to.
• State what your audience stands to gain from your lead magnet.
• Assure your customers that their personal information will not be sold.
• Create intelligent timing and display rules. Immediate loading of the pop-up will boost conversion rates but may impact other monetization tactics.
• Make different pop-ups for mobile and desktop.

4. Share your knowledge online

Share content online about what you know and how it can help others. That’s how you build an audience on social media and form a loyal community for your brand. It is also a good way to establish yourself as an authority in your industry or niche.

By consistently creating and sharing valuable content, whether through blog posts, videos, podcasts, or social media, you position yourself as an expert and a valuable resource for your target audience. This credibility boosts your reputation and attracts individuals who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer.

Also, as you share your knowledge online, you can then complement it with compelling lead magnets such as e-books, guides, checklists, templates, or exclusive video content.

These resources should be directly related to the topics you cover, offering additional value and solving specific problems your audience may have.

The idea behind sharing your knowledge online is to make people aware of what you know and use that knowledge to attract an audience. As you attract them, you can tell them to subscribe to your email list, where you share more of your knowledge and create personalized solutions for them.

People are naturally drawn to value, and as long as you have and share valuable knowledge online, you will build an audience interested in what you have to say.

SEE: How to do Affiliate Marketing Without Social Media

5. Add a newsletter signup CTA to your social media

Social media is a great resource for people who want to build an online presence. It is also a good hub to drive subscribers to your email list.

Here’s how.

When you share knowledge online, in the form of carousels, tweets, posts, images, or even videos, you are subtly announcing your presence as an authority in your field.

Do this consistently for 3 to 6 months, and you have a community of people interested in your brand.

Then to build your email list, include a newsletter call-to-action (CTA) at the end of your posts to let people know that there’s more where that came from.

Email is very personal to people, and over time has been proven to be a closer way to interact with your customers.

When you share that post online, don’t forget to include a; “If you loved this tweet, there’s more where that came from. Every week, I send out newsletters to digital creators and entrepreneurs on strategies to navigate the creator economy. You can subscribe here.”

Now that’s a good and effective CTA to get people to join your email list fast.

6. Optimize your email content

The content of your email plays a significant role in driving email list growth. It should resonate with your audience and provide value. Address their pain points, offer solutions, and showcase your expertise.

Use a conversational and engaging tone to establish a connection with the reader. Share valuable insights, industry news, or exclusive tips that will be valuable to your readers.

Clearly communicate the benefits subscribers will receive by joining your email list. Explain how they will gain access to exclusive content, special promotions, discounts, industry updates, or insider information.

Highlight any unique selling points that differentiate your emails from others in their inbox.

Use persuasive copywriting techniques to create a sense of urgency and highlight the benefits of subscribing. For example, phrases like “Unlock exclusive insights” or “Don’t miss out, subscribe now!” create a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) and motivate readers to join your email list.

Lastly, ensure that your call-to-action (CTA) is clear, concise, and visually appealing. Use action-oriented language and direct readers to click the signup button to join your email list.

By consistently delivering valuable content, you build trust and increase the likelihood of readers wanting to join your email list. As you build trust with them, you can now recommend your affiliate products and encourage subscribers to buy them.

SEE: How to do Affiliate Marketing Without Social Media

7. Use a reliable email service provider

An email service provider (ESP) is a business that provides email marketing or bulk email services. The right provider can make your email marketing efforts simpler and more efficient, and choosing one can often be the difference between success and failure.

When evaluating services, consider the following crucial features:

• Email automation: Email automation allows you to send automated email sequences that are triggered when a lead magnet is signed up for.

• Fair pricing: As your list grows, your costs will rise. Find reasonably priced email marketing software.

• Integration: The solution should be able to work in tandem with other systems such as OptinMonster, WordPress, etc.

• A/B testing: A/B testing is an important feature that allows you to test different subject lines, content, layouts, and send times.

• User-friendly design: When creating and designing emails, a simple, intuitive interface saves time.

These are individual emails that you send out to your entire list (or a segment of it). You could set these emails up to automatically go out whenever you publish a new blog post.

8. Test and Iterate

Testing different variations of your email content and CTA is crucial for optimization. Conduct A/B testing by sending different versions of your emails to small segments of your subscriber list and compare the results.

Test different elements such as subject lines, email content, sending time, CTA placement, design variations, or even different incentives.

Track relevant key performance indicators (KPIs) like open rates, click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and overall subscriber growth.

Analyzing these metrics provides insights into the impact of your email content and CTAs on your audience’s engagement and conversion behavior.

Monitor these KPIs closely to identify patterns and trends that can guide your optimization efforts. Then, use these insights to refine your email content and CTA strategy over time.

Conclusion

Creating an email list for affiliate marketing is an excellent approach to boost your passive revenue.

Use these steps to grow your list and establish a strong relationship with your target audience to market your affiliate products and services.

Selar has a robust affiliate network where you can promote lots of products and get commissions of up to 50%. Click the button below to sign up, so you never run out of products to promote to your list.