9 Reasons Why Your Opt-in Isn't Working

You have that opt-in set up on your website, but you STILL aren't growing your email list!

You've probably heard more than once how important it is to grow your email list. So, you created that download, put it up on your website, and now you hear the clock tick, tick, ticking, and yet no one is opt-ing in. Or worse, they are opt-ing in and yet still no new sales. In Episode 89 of the Feed U Podcast, I am covering the 9 reasons why your opt-in isn't working.  This is a MUST listen to the episode if you are ready to grow your email list.

I can guarantee if you take this list and implement these strategies, you will start to see email list growth

and more importantly, more conversion of leads into customers.  I give you some extra tidbits (as always) in the episode.  So head on over to your favorite podcast app and listen to the entire episode here.

I'm ready for the 9 problem areas, Alisa, lay them on me.

1. Nobody can find your opt-in.

Unless your business is as a professional hide and seek artist, you have to make your opt-in easy to find. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to a website to review it and couldn't even find their list builder.  You have to make it obvious and easy to opt-in.  More to come on the must have's below.  But this is critical.  Want more details? Tune into this week's episode here.

2. Let's face it, your opt-in is crap.

If you just slap something together and think people will give you their precious email address for it, sorry to break it to you - but it ain't going to work.  You MUST solve a problem and give your audience a quick win.  Everyone has a free download (or so it seems) so yours has to be even better.  The same goes for "sign up for my newsletter". Nobody needs another newsletter.  Their inbox is already crammed with them.  You need to give them a reason to opt-in that's so good they would pay for it.  Need some more examples?  check out this week's episode.

3. Your opt-in is a sales pitch.

If you've been listening for a while you know I'm a big fan of relationship building.  It's the wave of "now" and will be an even bigger wave in the future (read prediction.) Which is why selling to soon is the death of your opt-in.  People want their problem solved and they want it solved now.  They don't want to know every detail of how your office runs, what copy paper you use in your office, or how many people will have to look at your water cooler before it can be fixed. 

4. You never follow up.

Please don't be a drop off the face of the earth opt-in creator.  How many times have you signed up for a freebie and then gotten the freebie but never heard from the provider every again?  Or worse, you heard from them 6 months later and you don't remember who they are.  DON'T be that person. That leads to the immediate ticking of the unsubscribe button and nobody wants that.  In this week's episode, I give you some specifics on what you can do to follow up effectively and start nurturing and building that customer relationship.  give it a listen here.

5. You never call them to action.

Listen, I know you know your business better than anyone. But here's the thing - your customers don't. So if you never tell them what to do next - they won't take the step.  SO many times I have worked with clients that did EVERYTHING right and then when it came to their freebie they just left their audience hanging. A hanging audience doesn't move forward. Which means they will never get to the part where they give you money to help them.  You have to leave them bread crumbs to follow.  I give you some examples here, go check it out.

6. You're not targeting your opt-in!

Here's the deal - if you've created an opt-in in hopes of helping everyone, no one will want it.  You have to target your opt-in, just like all of your marketing, to start a conversation with the person you want to do business with.  Knowing who your ideal client avatar is will help you create something specifically for that person.  If you don't know who that is or how to learn about them, grab this free ideal client worksheet and fill it out.  (The second part is key). In this week's episode I talk a lot about refining your ideal client because, like many things in business, this evolves as your business evolves.   Might want to keep that worksheet handy for the future as well.

7. You're not leading your prospect to the next step in your funnel.

You have to tell your audience what you want them to do next. We are experts in our area of knowledge. But most of the people who need us, are at a kindergarten level. We have to take them on a journey to get them to the point of working with us. If we don't lead them along with bread crumbs, step by step, they won't keep walking.  They will get distracted by something else (family, email, social media, our competitor) and it is REALLY hard to get their attention again. With your opt-in, you have to continue to lead them on that journey. In this week's episode, I talk about some of the clients and results we've gotten when we got this right.  You can give it a listen here.

8. The opt-in isn't connected to your brand.

Imagine a time when you printed out an awesome resource you had signed up for.  Likely it got lost in a pile on your desk or filed away for a while. When you went to look at it again, did it have a logo? Website address? Were you left asking - where the heck did I get this again? If so, that's a branding problem. Don't be that person.  People are at different stages of their buying journey. Those researchers will eventually want to make a decision, but if they don't know who you are or can't connect your awesome resource to you - then they will never turn into a customer. Brand it, baby.

9. You don't continue the conversation.

In this week's episode, I relate your opt-in as a conversation starter. A first date if you will. But, if you don't continue the conversation and just start talking at your new lead instead of to them, guess what - they will tune out. Pronto! Create the conversation, nurture the lead, and think of this as step one of a long journey.

There you have it, the 9 reasons your opt-in isn't working.  Did you see one spot that you're opt-in could use some polishing? Work on it and share what you did in the Facebook Group this week.   In the meantime,

Listen to the entire episode here: