Online marketers work hard to create a flurry of activity in order to drive traffic to their site. This traffic might include things such as articles, press releases, AdWords, Squidoo lenses, and other types of traffic drivers. 

Recently, I was talking to a client about their online marketing. The client was looking to improve their online marketing and was exploring their options. Currently, they capture only a few pieces of information when prospects sign up to access a report: In order to read the report, the prospect needs to leave their first name and email address.

Fair enough. People are signing up. They get the report. They get a handful of autoresponders offering the full service. Pretty standard. So my client was talking to me because they were finding that many prospects were disappearing after the autoresponder publishing calendar was complete. What they were thinking about was asking for more information up front, like a phone number, so that they could call up the prospect and market to them over the phone.

My advice is that they don’t ask for that information up-front. Instead, they should ease more information out of the prospect by taking the prospect on a journey of trust. I know that if I were offered some information, I would weigh the amount of contact information I give about myself against the perceived value of the information being offered, as well as the likelihood that the company collecting my information would call me up and hassle me. Over time, I might come to trust the company and realize that talking with them would not be a hassle, but I don’t know that at first.

So, I suggested to my client that they give the initial report for a first name and email. Then, a month later, give away another incentive for the name of their state. Then, a month later, give away another incentive for their last name. Then, a month later, give away another incentive for their phone number. These incentives could be reports, downloadable tools, trial offers, or a book: Something that has value.

The same holds true for your business’ online marketing efforts. If you’re getting a lot of traffic to your site but no one is signing up for your free information, try asking for less information up front. Instead, build trust over time and demonstrate that the information you give is worth far more than the contact information they "paid" for it. Show that you aren’t spamming them or selling their name to a list. Show that you have their best interest at heart. And when you do that, you’ll be qualified (in their mind) to trade a little more information for a little more contact information.

And, over the course of a few weeks or months (depending on what you’re offering or what your publishing cycle is), you’ll have a complete contact sheet filled out on each prospect, and you’ll have enough trust and credibility in your relationship bank to pitch your product or service to your prospect.

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So you have a great free taste offer to give your prospects, but how do you let them know about it? Here are fifteen ideas for promoting your free taste. 1. Email Signature – Include a link to your free offer with your name and contact info at the bottom of every email you send. 2. Website – Include a sign-up box on every page of your website. That way no matter which page they land on first, your offer is there. 3. Directories – If you belong to an association for your niche, place a link to your free taste along with your contact information. 4. Articles – Include a link to your free taste in the resource box at the end of any articles you write and submit to article directories. 5. Guest Blog – Offer to write a guest post for a colleague’s blog. Include a link to your free taste in your signature line. 6. Forums – Participate in active discussion lists. When appropriate, and with the guidelines of the site, include a link to your free taste. 7. Other publisher’s email marketing – Ask for your free taste offer to be mentioned in an ezine sent by someone else. Offer to do the same for them. 8. Other people’s websites – Allow colleagues to offer your free taste as a bonus for people who sign up for their lists. 9. Testimonials – Write a brief testimonial for products and services that you love related to your niche. Allow the owner of those products to use your testimonial on their site if they include a link to your free taste. 10. Thank You Page – Include a link to your free taste on your thank you page. Even though they’ve already purchased from you, they may not have received the free taste offering. Providing it now may also prompt them to forward it to a friend. 11. Squeeze Page – Offer multiple opportunities for them to sign up for the free taste on your squeeze page. 12. Business Card – Even with an online marketing strategy, you can’t forget about offline opportunities to market your business. Include a pitch for your free taste on your business card. 13. Teleseminars – Provide a bonus free taste at the end of your teleseminar to further engage with your prospects. 14. Advertisements – Purchase advertising space in another ezine to promote your free offer. Find a colleague to swap advertising space with for a no-cost alternative. 15. Give Away Promotions – Partner with other colleagues to bundle your offerings and market it as a huge giveaway. Run it as a birthday bash, anniversary celebration, or New Year’s giveaway. Keep your free offer link visible and easily accessible. When you find an area that produces good traffic results keep promoting there until the numbers begin to fade. Then change your offer to freshen it up again. Cathy Yerges Partnering in Your Marketing Success

For many, their email list is the foundation of their online marketing campaign. The key to generating prospects from your email list is to build it up with quality leads of those who’ve visited your site. Even if the visitor isn’t ready to purchase, you want to be able to market to them again so they have the opportunity to purchase from you when the need arises.

Here are five tips to help build a quality email list.

1. Make getting them on your list your #1 priority. Keep the sign-up form simple and only ask for as much information as you need. The only piece of information that you truly need is their email address. Asking for their first name doesn’t complicate the system too much. However, asking for last name, address, phone number, or demographic information can make the visitor feel vulnerable and discourage them from completing the sign-up form. Put the sign-up form in a visible spot on every page. Above the fold, or in the upper half of your page, is most effective. Definitely keep the sign-up form above the scroll point on your page. If a visitor has to scroll down the page to get to the form, many will never see it. Consider using pop-ups on your webpage to solicit email addresses. You can do this with a pop-over while they are on your page or with an exit pop-up if they leave your site without signing up.

2. Offer them an incentive to sign up for your list. This could be in the form of a special report, white paper, checklist, or a recording of a previous seminar. Test different offers to see what brings you the best results. Once an offer stops working for you, change it again.

3. Tell them why they should sign up for your list. A generic “Sign up for our newsletter” doesn’t motivate the visitor to give up their email address. Give them a list of the benefits of joining your list. Be specific – state what they’ll get in a bulleting list.

4. Include a strong spam disclaimer right under the sign-up form. Let visitors know that you will never share their information with others. Make sure a link to your privacy policy is prominent on your site.

5. Follow the CAN-SPAM Act. Collecting email addresses in compliance with the Act and handling opt-outs appropriately will only improve the quality of your list. There is no point in handling email addresses of those who are not interested in your product or service. 

Cathy Yerges Partnering in Your Marketing Success