‘Yeah, right’

‘I’m sure it is if you have a six figure list!’

Sound familiar? 

Some big name, IM guru is banging on about how he makes $3000 from one email but all you feel is frustration, one hundred thousand subscribers……….it might as well be one hundred million!……… I’m never going to achieve it.

It wasn’t that I doubted the effectiveness of email marketing, after all I’ve bought enough products over the years through promotional emails myself to know that it works, my empty bank account confirmed that!

I could also understand the numbers; one hundred thousand subscribers, a 30% click through rate and a 1% conversion rate equals a $3000 profit (at an undemanding $10 commission per sale).

No, my problem was that a list of this magnitude seemed so totally beyond my reach and so, I assumed, was the possibility of making worthwhile profits from email marketing.

Anyway, not being the sort of person who gives in to their negative thoughts I followed the advice I received from established marketers I respected and began to build my own list.

I put email sign up boxes on my blog, on the sales and download pages for my eBook and braced myself for the rush!

My first subscriber signed up late May 2008, number two signed up about two weeks later! I began to wonder whether I’d live long enough to spend my email marketing profits!

Since then my list has grown steadily, it is a rare day that I fail to add any new subscribers and most days I add seven or eight new names

And my results?

To date I have added just under two thousand subscribers in total to my lists.

My first affiliate sale occurred on September 1st 2008 and since then I have made 75 sales earning total commissions of $4464.00   (these figures do not include sales of my eBook Prints Make Profits)

My conclusions?

You DON’T need a six figure list to make worthwhile money from email marketing.

You DON’T need to be an email marketing expert, I’m learning as I go.

The only tool you do need to build your own list  is an autoresponder.

I chose Aweber (again on the advice of trusted marketers) their service is easy to understand (very important for me!) they boast the best email delivery rate in the industry, they provide video tutorials to help you set up your lists and messages and they offer a 30 day trial with a money back guarantee.

If you’re serious about this business you need the best autoresponder (don’t be tempted by the cheapest, remember, your subscriber list is your most precious asset) so check out Aweber.

I hope my experience provides a little inspiration and encouragement. Remember, even six figure lists start with one subscriber.

In my next post I will share the email mini-course I’m writing for twitmasterclass.com and show you the steps I take to set up my autoresponder to deliver it automatically.

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