Social media can suck sometimes. Not just the constant algorithm changes but how slowww it can be to grow your audience.
If you have a course launch comin’ up then slow growth is not gonna help you.
You need to throw gasoline on that bad boy and build a launch list of eager-to-buy fans, pronto.
But how?
Buckle up ‘cause I’m gonna share some of my best strategies for growing your email list quickly. Without recording reels, spending hours messing around on Canva, or researching hashtags that don’t guarantee results.
And it’s all organic (aka FREE).
1. Joint Venture Webinars (JV webinars)
A JV webinar is when you host a training for someone else’s existing community, whether that’s a FB group, Slack community, or inside a paid program, for example.
This is one of my fave ways to quickly grow your audience with QUALIFIED leads. The goal of growing your email list is not to fill it up with random people to inflate the number. It’s to fill it up with people who are IDEAL clients of yours – people you’re able to help and people who are more likely to support you in some way.
That’s why this is one of my favourite strategies…
When you host a webinar on a topic related to your business and people opt in to hear more from you, you already know they’re interested in you and what you teach.
And as a bonus, someone letting you speak in their community is a stamp of approval that builds instant trust.
Do a few of these with business owners who serve a similar audience to you but aren’t in direct competition and you’l be in good stead for your launch.
The kay takeaways: show up, deliver value, and give them a way to connect with you afterwards.
Pros:
Builds an audience of QUALIFIED leads
Works so well if you’re good at showing up live!
Once the initial set up is done, it’s fast to get results and you can re-use your webinar content
Cons:
The first one can be a lot of work to get slides prepped etc. But once it’s done you can re-use it again and again in other communities!
If you don’t love teaching live, this can be tricky to execute
2. Host a giveaway
This can be a fun way to give your audience a boost and give back to your community at the same time! But so many people do this wrong…
The 2 keys to a successful giveaway are:
A DAMN valuable prize that genuinely has people excited to enter and share your giveaway. Bonus points if you collaborate with other business owners to make the prize bigger and reach more people
Give your audience more entries into your giveaway the more they share it. So they don’t keep it all to themselves! You want them to share it so make it worth their effort. Most people won’t do this unless there’s something in it for them, so make it easy!
You’ll need to do a lot of promotion for a giveaway to be a success so allow enough time for it to gain traction and for you to build the excitement.
Pros:
A fun way to engage with your audience
Can reach a lot of people if you encourage them to share it more!
Cons:
Can be a lot of work to keep the excitement up and share it throughout the whole duration
Not every person who joins your world will be a qualified lead. But that doesn’t mean they can’t become one!
3. Host a summit or virtual event
A killer event can be a great way to bring new people into your world AND give your existing audience a ton of value! It can be paid or free but the key thing here is making it irresistible to your ideal clients.
And if you’re building your list specifically for a launch, make sure it’s relevant to the thing you’re launching so you know the people on your list are interested on that topic.
If you team up with other business owners as speakers at your event or affiliates, it can be a great way to reach new brains and grow your audience. You can add all the attendees to your email list (as long as you’re GDPR compliant!) and send them follow-up messages.
Pros:
A one-and-done solution
An opportunity to reach a lot of new people if you’re strategic
A lot of the leads will be qualified
Cons:
A lot of work to market, create assets, and manage speakers if you decide to collaborate
You’ll need to invest in tech (but can recoup money for this from charging admission)
If you don’t have a team at all, this may be overwhelming. It’s like doing a whole other launch by yourself.
4. Host a bundle
A bundle is a collection of products from different creators that are available as a package for a set, lower fee (or free), so people get a TON of value. I have mixed feelings about bundles but one thing is for sure, they’re damn effective at growing your email list. And the email lists of people contributing to them, too.
The best way to compile a bundle is to pick a niche topic related to your business and audience, and find people to contribute products that fit the theme (including something of your own!). You definitely want to vet the contributions as you’ll often get a TON of applicants.
Timing is EVERYTHING. Most people who sign up for bundles will get SERIOUS overwhelm as they’re suddenly getting access to a load of new courses, products, and also receiving emails from each creator as they download their product, so you have to be smart about the timing. You don’t want to bombard them with a ton of launch emails immediately after your bundle.
So I’d recommend doing this a few months in advance, giving yourself time to nurture them before you start selling.
The other thing to note is, some people signing up for a bundle will only be there for the freebies. So don’t be alarmed if your unsubscribe rate is atypically high in the weeks and months after your bundle. That doesn’t mean it’s a waste of time and it’s only low-quality leads but it’s something to bear in mind, You will need a strategy to sell to these people afterwards.
Pros:
Likely to get a lot of people on your email list quickly (if you promote your bundle well)
You’ll get in front of the audiences of every contributor too
Being the organizer is an instant credibility boost!
The contributors will help you promote it
Cons:
You’ll get a few freebie seekers in there with the qualified leads
It’s a lot of work to set up and promote - you’ll need to create marketing assets and swipe copy for your contributors, too
There’s a lot of tech to set up and check to make sure the experience is smooth for your audience
5. Do a podcast guesting tour
If you’re good at speaking on podcasts, consider trying to speak on several in a short period of time on a similar topic that relates to your course. Set a goal, apply for as many relevant podcasts as you think is necessary and try to drive people to your email list with a really juicy freebie or exclusive gift for anyone listening to that podcast.
And when I say juicy freebie, I mean more than your typical cobbled together PDF or lead magnet. It needs to be something that resonates or seems super valuable to encourage more people to go out of their way to sign up.
This is a great way to build trust and get in front of new audiences. And if you time it well, it can seem like you’re “everywhere” - people will start hearing your name and start seeing you everywhere.
The association with the podcast guest is an instant credibility boost and the leads you get from this will often be super qualified.
Pros:
Great for exposure to new audiences
Leads will be highly qualified - they’ll have to seek out any links so they’ll be making an effort to get on your list if they’re interested. Which means they want to hear more from you.
A great way to meet new business owners and it’s a fun way to market your biz if you enjoy speaking on podcasts!
Cons:
Unless the podcast is HUGE or you have a really enticing gift, it’s hard to get a lot of leads from this (but the ones you get will be good)
Can be tricky to guarantee your episode will go live in time for your launch - you don’t have any control over the timing.
6. Find creative ways to collaborate with other entrepreneurs
I am allll about collaboration. And there really is no limit to the things you can try here. Email list swaps. Freebie swaps. Offer something to their community for free. Host an IG live together… If you feel called to try something, why not give it a go?!
Whatever you do, make sure you’re not in direct competition with each other and you both have an aligned audience. I also always suggest checking if your values are in alignment and that they’re reliable.
Pros:
A chance to be creative
Can give you access to highly qualified leads
Cons:
Will be hit-or-miss - you’ll need to be open to experimentation here!
And that’s it! There are so many things you could do but I recommend starting with one of these 6. All 6 are designed to bring in both quantity and quality leads.
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