Build Your List with Twitter
The following post is from Denise Wakeman of the Blog Squad.
When you think of Twitter, you may not think about list building. You probably think about instant messaging on steroids, building relationships via 140 character “tweets” that connect you to your followers and allow them to get to know you and your business.
And, Twitter can be used as a tool to build your email list as well.
Just like offering an “ethical bribe” to your web/blog visitors if they sign up for your ezine, you can offer Twitter followers a free report or e-course as a thank-you gift for following you. What’s the difference? Following you on Twitter is much the same as subscribing to get your ezine.
The reason to get followers on to your list is so you can develop an even deeper relationship with and help move them to engage with you deep by becoming a client or customer.
So, how to you put this in place?
Here’s how I’ve done it. I just set this up so I don’t have numbers to report yet, so we’ll see how it goes.
First, you need to set up an account on Tweetlater.com. This great application allows you to set up what is essentially an autoresponder for Twitter and send an immediate welcome message to new followers.
NOTE: you can set up the welcome message to be delivered as a public message or a direct (private) message. Set it up as a direct message.
What are you going to give away? I decided to offer a report that we normally only sell, so it’s not available anywhere else for free. It’s a 44 page, detailed, edited transcript about how to use a blog to write and market a book. We, The Blog Squad , were interviewed by our mentor Tom Antion. The value is $37.
Whether you’re selling or giving something away, you need a system to collect email addresses and deliver the product. We use KickStartCart. I set up:
- A series of autoresponders to thank the person for requesting the report plus 3 follow up messages with more useful info and ways they can learn more about The Blog Squad
- A $0 product that delivers the report digitally. It’s secure so only the person who makes the request can download the report
I also created a simple web page where the new follower is directed to get info about the complimentary report and a second web page they are directed to after they submit their contact info, thanking them for getting the report and giving them an unannounced extra bonus!
Next, I logged into my Tweetlater account and set up my welcome message. You only get 120 characters so you must be creative, especially since you have to include the URL for the web page that they go to sign up for your report.
Thank the person for following and give them the info to get the report.
Want to see how it all flows? Follow me on Twitter and get your copy of The Blog Squad’s report on how to use a blog to write and market your book (or info product, or speech, or e-course, it works for any type of information product you are creating!).
Subscribe to the Blog Squad
Follow Speaker Services on Twitter
