Sure, technically your email address is a list. It’s a list of people who said yes to an offer you made at some point in time. For whatever reason, they agreed that they’d like to know what you’re up to, what’s new with your business, and be alerted to offers and other information that resonates with them. If used wisely, your email list isn’t a list… it’s a relationship.
You may be focusing your relationship-building efforts on social media. That seems reasonable and obvious, and should be part of your connection strategy, but there are risks that come with using social media as your relationship currency.
Did you know?
You don’t own any content you put on social media.
You can’t control what happens to your posts or your access to your social media subscribers if the rules change or site goes down .
Your posts aren’t guaranteed to reach your intended audience .
Social media is bright and shiny. It’s fun, it’s easy, and people do engage one another very well. There’s no denying it has power, but it’s fleeting. Social media should be a gateway to attract new people for your list, but social media is not a list in and of itself. Your email list is where the gold lies. The more often and the better you engage your list, the greater the return on your investment.
Start Looking at Your List as Real People with Real Needs
Your list is filled with living, breathing people who, like you, are moving through their day being pulled in multiple directions with many sources competing for their attention. As you well know, being seen requires something unique and individualized. Standing out gets you noticed. Start looking at your list as real people with real needs and begin to speak to them in that manner.
Building a relationship with your list is the key to higher open rates and more engagement. There’s nothing out of the ordinary that is needed in order to get to know your list and help them get to know you. In fact, it’s like having a one-on-one conversation. Here are some key components to building your relationship with your list - think CAVE:
Be Consistent
Be Authentic
Be Valuable
Be Engaging
The CAVE method covers all the components of high-quality relationship-building activities via your list. The more you follow these prompts, the more active your list will be and the more effectively your message will resonate and translate to sales.