The Money Is Not In The List, Its In The Relationship

by Joe Gilharry

You hear and read it so much, it is like a mantra. 'The Money Is In The List!' Well, sort of. But it takes more than just having a list. There is something else that is very important and without it, you won't have a list for long.

You see, if you build a list and all you ever do is hit them with one offer after another, they will leave. Why? Because they dont know you and they dont trust you. Building a list is great but a list is nothing without the relationship. It is the relationship that is going to make or break your list and, ultimately, your success in business.

Put yourself in the place of a customer. Who are you mostly going to buy from? Someone you dont know anything about or someone you know and trust. Pretty simple decision really, dont you think? So building a good relationship with your list is crucial to making a profit from the list.

You need to start building that relationship right from the start. Beginning with your squeeze page or sign-up form. You need to let the prospective subscriber to your list know that their privacy will be protected and you will not give away or sell their contact information ever. And hold to that! Put yourself in the subscribers place. Would you sign up to something if you thought your name and contact information was going to be given away or sold?

The next step in building a relationship with your list is the very first email you send. It should be personable and a self-introduction. Dont use this or the first few emails to sell to your list. In the first email, give some information about yourself and an outline of what is coming in future emails, such as tips, advice, an occasional quality freebie and recommendations when you come across products that will benefit them. Keep it short so your readers stay interested.

One very important thing to remember starting with the first email is to always provide an easy, readily visible way for them to opt out of your emails. Besides being the law, it is also part of building trust. If you know you can leave without a problem any time you chose, you would be more likely to stay, wouldnt you? Also give you readers your contact information so they feel you are a real person who is approachable. People are more willing to trust someone they feel is going to be there for them if they have questions.

In the first two or three emails, give some valuable tips and advice. Maybe give them a freebie for being on your list. Make sure it is a good quality product, though, and not junk. That would be a trust killer. When you do start sending offers, always make sure you can truthfully recommend the product and know what you are talking about. The members of your list will lose confidence in your judgment and truthfulness if you recommend they buy something that you have not tested and/or dont use yourself. In other words, dont push stuff at them just to make sales. Recommend only products that you really do believe will benefit them.

Once you have built a relationship of trust with your list, you need to maintain it. Establish creditability, trust and confidence with your list and no matter how many offers they might see for the same products you recommend to them, they will buy through you links. That is what spending the time building a good relationship will do for you. You wont even need all the gimmicks that some use like adding mountains of bonuses to get them to buy. They will buy because they trust your judgment and believe in your truthfulness.

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