When you first start your online coaching or course creation business, it can be hard to attract an audience and email subscribers.

It seems like you are posting content, shooting videos, and sharing social media posts, but no one is paying attention.

Is it because of the Instagram algorithm?

Is it because you don’t have a community of followers yet?

Or is it because your content just isn’t that great?

You need two things to make money in any business. Products and people who want those products and your email list is going to be the vehicle that will make it possible for you to deliver consistent value to the people who need it most.

When I started my online coaching business, it took me a long time to grow my list. I was gaining only a few subscribers a week and no matter what I did, I just couldn’t get anything significant going. I felt like every time I opened my email list dashboard I was disappointed by how slow I was growing.

But after a lot of trial and error I finally figured some things out and now I’m gaining over 50+ subscribers a day.

We all know that we need to grow our email list. Every successful business coach will tell you growing your email list is your greatest asset. For most people, hitting 1,000 subscribers is the first big milestone in their business because it’s the first step toward monetization.

The rule of thumb is that every subscriber on your email list should net you $1.00 in monthly income. So, if you have 1000 subscribers, you should be making about $1000 a month in income, which is significant profits.

And in my opinion, if you can make your first $1000, you can make your first $10,000 and if you can hit $10,000 you can get to your first $100K.

But what if you are struggling to get to your first 1000?

What steps should you be taking to get unstuck…

01. NAIL YOUR AUDIENCE BY FINDING YOUR 6-FIGURE NICHE

You HAVE to know who you’re talking to if you want to go from ZERO t0 1000 email list subscribers fast. If you don’t know who your ideal customer is for your online coaching or course creation business, then how do you expect the right people to find you? The fastest way to grow your audience is to know who you serve, what content they are searching for and how to give them what they want. If people watch one of your videos, read one of your blog posts, pin one of your pins but don’t stick around to get more, then the momentum stops there.

By niching down and getting really specific about who you serve, you can feel confident that the content you create speaks to and resonates with the right audience, in the right way!

If you cannot articulate who you want to help, what you want to help them with, and how you’ll do it, then you will struggle to turn your idea into income!

Need help narrowing your niche? Here are a few resources to help you:

1. How To Choose Your 6-Figure Niche + Online Business Focus
2. How To Find Your 6-Figure Business Idea
3. 2021 WomanpreneuHER Profit Planner

02. SET UP AN EMAIL SERVICE PROVIDER YOU CAN GROW WITH

Now, it’s very likely that you already have your email service provider, but this is a good time to check that your service actually meets your list-building needs and growth goals. For example, if you’re currently using Mailchimp but you want to start doing some more advanced automation, or even just want to start making use of marketing techniques like content upgrades, then you may want to move to something more flexible like ConvertKit.

Here are just a few reasons why I fell in love with ConvertKit:

• The platform is well designed and extremely easy to use
• Emails are delivered reliably and as expected
• Their customer service team is super helpful
• The autoresponder sequences are easy to implement
• It comes with powerful tagging and segmentation features
• It’s extremely easy to make changes and updates
• And it’s competitively priced.

In fact, it would be a good idea to take advantage of ConvertKit’s FREE 14 day trial right now so you can follow along with the easy email setup video I share below, right from the beginning.

Now if you have something other than ConvertKit any ESP can utilize the strategies and tactics you’ll learn in the following tutorial, but I’ve personally experimented with a lot of different ESPs over the years and the one that’s really had everything I need to grow my business has been ConvertKit.

So with that said let’s dive into how to get started with an email service provider…

03. ATTRACT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH AN IRRESISTIBLE FREEBIE

The fastest and easiest way to attract your first 1000 subscribers is with a freebie. A freebie, also known as a “lead magnet”, “free offer” or “opt-in incentive,” is a high-value, irresistible piece of content related to your paid digital product that you give away to your audience for FREE in exchange for their name and email address. Your lead magnet is basically a product without a price tag that is created with the sole purpose of enticing your visitors to become subscribers.

Whether it’s a cheat sheet or a challenge, creating a super valuable lead magnet (aka freebie) is a great way to get visitors from your website or social media profiles onto your email list.

Now let me be very CLEAR: This can’t just be another short ebook – there are already too many of those out there, but depending on your audience, a mini-course, short video series, template kit, app or free consultation may be the best fit.

Regardless of what format you want to deliver your freebie in, you want to make sure what you are creating is something your audience wants. It needs to be an irresistible, no-brainer freebie, that your audience will want to download.  Your freebie should offer actionable tips or advice your new subscriber can implement right away!

Just because it doesn’t have a price tag on it doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be top-notch. In fact, it should be a “product” that people would be happy to pay for.

Your lead magnet is one of the most important products you have in your product pipeline and because it is the gateway to your paid products and services, you want it to be a no-brainer for your visitors.

If you need more ideas for digital products you can offer as a freebie or lead magnet make sure to download my 50 + DIGITAL PRODUCTS YOU CAN CREATE AND SELL AS AN ONLINE COACH OR COURSE CREATOR! Simply click the link and grab it from the FREE WomanpreneuHER Facebook Group.

04. PROMOTE YOUR FREEBIE TO GROW YOUR AUDIENCE

The next step for getting your first 1000 subscribers is to get your freebie in front of your ideal audience. Whether you have one EPIC lead magnet or multiple freebies, you have to be willing to implement consistent marketing strategies that connect your freebie to the people who would need it most.

This is where picking your primary promotional platforms to come in handy.

In my business, I use Pinterest and Facebook groups as the main mode of promoting my freebies to grow my audience. In your business, your primary platforms maybe Instagram and YouTube. Another coach may use Clubhouse or Tik Tok as their primary platforms.

So regardless of what platforms you use, the goal to growing your audience and driving people to your email list is to promote your freebies through a call to action within every piece of content you publish. For instance, if you look at any of my posts on Facebook, I always invite my audience to download a lead magnet that is relevant to the topic I am posting about.

So you can say something like, “If you like this then make sure you download my [name of freebie], which has even more tips and tricks on how you can [insert tangible benefit related to topic video/blog post/tip/tool].”

The key to converting your audience to an email subscriber is making sure your call to action and the freebie you are inviting them to download is relevant to the content they are reading, watching or listening to!

It doesn’t make sense to shoot a video about growing your business on Instagram and then invite your audience to download your free Makeup Guide. #notgoingtowork

The way I’ve been able to grow my email list to over 25,000 people is because I am very intentional about my lead magnets. I know my niche, I know what my audience wants and I consistently create content, from freebies to paid programs, that speak to their challenges and needs.

So if your email list-building game is in the gutter, check out this blog post: 25 Ways To Grow Your Email List (gain followers, subscribers and clients fast!)

05. ENGAGE AND RETAIN YOUR AUDIENCE FOR SUSTAINED GROWTH

When it comes to growing your email list and hitting your first 1000 subscribers, it’s not just about converting your followers into subscribers. It’s also about keeping the subscribers you have by creating an experience they will not soon forget.

It’s about capturing the attention of your audience in a way that makes them want to stick around.

It’s about connecting with your people, your community, and creating excitement and trust with the people you serve.

It’s also about providing value through unique experiences that people can only get from YOU!

So how do you hold on to the subscribers you worked so hard to get in the first place?

1. Provide a one of a kind brand experience.

Is the content you are sharing in your emails being told in a way that’s compelling, useful, inspiring, and/or entertaining for your readers?

From your subject lines to what people see when they unsubscribe, can mean the difference between people staying on your list or ditching you like a bad date.

Your newsletter should create a unique reader experience.

For example, if you are a fitness coach – you’ll want to share your own personal fitness journey, you will want to show off your fit body, share client transformations, demonstrate your creative workout exercises, floss your gym gear, share your daily meal plans or recipes and all the ways your audience get to know you as a fitness trainer.

You want to design your newsletter in a way that uniquely and creatively inspires your readers to get off the couch and go get fit. That means sharing actionable content such as your daily exercise routines, creating beautifully crafted meal plans, sharing photos and visuals of yourself and your clients living a fit and healthy lifestyle.

If you’re a vegan food blogger – your weekly emails might have announcements of upcoming books as well as any thoughts your readers might like to hear about – how to cook various vegan meals, a cool vegan resource you found, a vegan grocery list, the best vegan restaurants to eat at on the go, etc.

If you make physical products, like planners or jewelry – you might share sales, coupons, and photos of things in your shop. You could also share gift idea lists, talk about your creation process – let people get a sneak peek of new products in the works, etc. A nice grid layout with images that link directly to your shop would be an awesome solution!

There are SO MANY options for you to engage with your subscribers. And, more than just sending updates and announcements, your emails can really help you establish yourself as a go-to expert in your industry. My advice is always going to be – think about YOUR brand, YOUR audience, and YOUR message – what kind of newsletter would best serve and support both your business needs and the people that you’d like to work with?

You’ve GOT to make it valuable for them, or they’ll just ignore, delete, unsubscribe and move on.

Now just as important as what you send is how you send it and how often you send it.

You will want to make sure you customize your newsletter design and that your newsletter design follows your branding guidelines and remains consistent throughout. This is why it’s important to have a brand kit or a brand book that is useful for saving a specific brand color palette, logos, and fonts that you can apply across all your designs.

If there are certain types of imagery, graphics, illustrations, icons, or patterns you use, make sure to infuse them into your emails as well. You can upload your own images or choose stock images from places like Canva, Pixabay, Death To The Stock Photo, or Picjumbo. You can also take it one step further and add animated memes or gifs to your emails to add another layer of personality.

I recommend creating a few different templates that you can use and rotate but that are all aligned with your overall brand elements.

Your email messages are one place where your personality should really shine.

2. Stay top of mind. One of the questions I get all the time, is how often should I be sending emails to my list?

Just like blogging, to stay top of mind, you have to be top of mind. That means sending out emails frequently and consistently.

Now you do not have to send an email every single day (that’s a little much) but once or twice a week will let your subscribers know you are here to stay.

A huge part of your email experience is to make your subscribers feel as if they are truly a part of your tribe. Most of my emails begin by addressing the subscriber by their name (not an email address, or a generic, Hi). I try my best to personalize each message so that my subscribers feel like I am talking directly to them.

I also make it known that I am accessible, that I am here for my community, and that they can reach out and contact me at any time.

It makes a huge difference. Before someone is going to care about your products they want to know you care about them.

3. Create a community outside of the inbox.

Yes, email is great, but give your audience the opportunity to engage with you on social media and inside of your online communities. Have a Facebook group? Invite your email subscribers to participate in your community and join you for your live streams. Have an active Instagram account? Invite your email subscribers to comment on your IG posts and stories.

It’s easy to get email fatigue and when your customers are getting emails from dozens of other brands, they can easily forget you. So to keep them connected to you,  immerse them into your community so it becomes a constant part of their daily social engagement. You want to make sure you do everything you can to ensure they are invested in your brand because it becomes a part of who they are!

💌 F R E E B I E S 💌

🖐🏿FREE Workbook: How To Find Your 6-Figure Business Idea https://andreabolder.com/6-figure-business-idea/
🖐🏾FREE $100K Roadmap: https://andreabolder.com/100kroadmap/
🖐🏽FREE 6-Figure Resource Library: https://andreabolder.com/free-resources
🖐🏼FREE WomanpreneuHER Facebook Group for Online Coaches + Course Creators who want to hit $100K – https://facebook.com/groups/womanpreneuher

💗 P R O D U C T S + R E S O U R C E S 💗

👉🏾2021 WomanpreneuHER Profit Planner here: Click here for $10 off using COUPON CODE WPP10, just for my YouTube fans ;): https://andreabolder.com/profitplanner
👉🏽Recommend Email Service Provider: ConvertKit
👉🏼Recommended Landing Page Builder: LeadPages
👉🏻Recommended Tool for designing beautiful lead magnets: Canva Pro
🚨 Ready to start your own Online Coaching Business AND make money doing it? Check out the membership site I created to teach you everything you need to go from ZERO to 6-figures online! Click here to learn more: https://womanpreneuheruniversity.com 😉

✨ L E T’ S C O N N E C T ✨

📷 Instagram – @andreabolder https://www.instagram.com/andreabolder
🖥 Blog –https://www.andreabolder.com
📌 Pinterest – https://www.pinterest.com/andreabolder
📩 Email – connect@andreabolder.com