Do you have a freebie, but it only brings in a trickle of new subscribers?  Maybe you’ve had the same opt-in since 2013.  Do you even have a freebie?  Wait, don’t answer that.  You KNOW you really should have a killer opt-in for your readers.  It’s the best way to deliver special content to them and make them loyal subscribers to your brand.

(In fact, in Brian’s post How to Get More Email Subscribers, he details why it’s so important to get subscribers.)

That being said, too many of us ignore our opt-ins.  We make a simple checklist or cheat sheet, slap it up in our sidebar, and call it day.  No, no, no!  If you really want to grow your influence and readership, you must make delivering valuable content a priority… always.

I’ve been guilty of this too!  So know that you are not alone.

But I’ve learned the hard way that the old way of gaining subscribers just isn’t good enough anymore.  You have to serve your audience’s needs, create gold for them, have a sparkly landing page, Promote it like you mean it, and always keep it fresh.

In the past couple of years, I’ve gone from a trickle of new subscribers with a sucky opt-in to a steady stream of new subscribers with an opt-in that rocks.  In the past two days alone, my most recent opt-in is converting at an average of 70%.  My last opt in converts at 95%.  Really!

This is how to make your opt-in convert like hotcakes too.

SERVE YOUR AUDIENCE’S NEEDS

First and foremost you want to figure out what your people need and then help them with that.  I’ve found the best ways to do this are to survey, poll, and listen.

You can create a simple survey in Survey Monkey and send it to your list and even post it in some Relevant Facebook Groups.  Ask probing questions to really nail down what your readers need from you.  Just ask!

Polling in groups is super easy and fun.  If you have your own group you can poll there.  You can also poll in groups that you belong to as long as it’s in keeping with the group rules.  It’s very easy for people to click a prewritten answer in the poll and you are likely to get many responses.

Lastly, listen to your people!  What are they complaining about?  What are they struggling with?  What excites them?  You need to pay attention to the conversations they are having on social media and in the comments section of your blog.  What questions keep coming up for them?  This info is gold for your opt-in creation.

And speaking of gold…

CREATE GOLD

This is your moment, my friend.  This is where you get to show new people what you are all about, what you have to offer, and how you can help them.

Make it meaty.  And by meaty, I don’t necessarily mean long.  I mean make it full of substance.  Cut out the fluff and give the people what they want!  It could be a one page strategy sheet that gets them to their goal or it could be a 12-page report of some kind.  Doesn’t matter, as long as it’s your best work.

Make it something people would pay money for.  Stop thinking of this as a FREE opt-in.  When you think of it this way, you are subconsciously minimizing its importance.  Think of it as the important piece of the puzzle that it is.

Make sure that it has great formatting and branding.  If your audience wants pretty, make it pretty too.

Whatever you do, please don’t just answer a question or give a quick win, which is what I hear gurus saying all the time to do.  That way of doing it just doesn’t work.  Maybe it once did, but it doesn’t fly anymore.  Every blogger and their grandmother are putting out freebies, so go in depth with your answer or strategy to make it stand out.  It will be better received and will be easier to market because it’s so valuable.

MAKE YOUR LANDING (OPT-IN) PAGE SPARKLE

Okay, so now you need a really good landing page to promote your offer.  There are some differing opinions on this, but I’m a fan of a short opt-in form.  My highest converting landing pages have been short and sweet, with a minimum of information, and the opt-in form.

It needs to look good.  Use a great landing page plug in to ensure that your pages look pro.  I prefer and use Thrive for all my pages.

Here’s an example of my highest converting opt-in form:

Simple and to-the-point, right?  Yet almost everyone who visits the page opts in ☺

MAKE PROMOTION A PRIORITY

Now that you have your opt-in and landing page done, you need to promote it.

Promote it everywhere and like your life depends on it.  JK.  But seriously, it’s pretty important to the growth and success of your email list and business.  So go promote, and then promote some more.

You can promote it in relevant Facebook groups (with the admin’s permission, of course).  You can pin it to the top of your Facebook page and the top of your Twitter profile.  You can create a beautiful pin for it and pin it on Pinterest.  Don’t forget to include a link for your opt-in in all your social media bios, too.  You can write a post about it, and you can guest post and link to your freebie in your bio.

KEEP IT FRESH

You may not have looked at your opt-in in a while.  You set it and then you forgot about it!  (Guilty).

Always be catering to your audience’s needs. Offer new opt-ins regularly to get new blood on your list.

The more you offer new and targeted content to your readers, the more they will like you and trust you.  The more that they like you and trust you, the more likely they will be to invest in your paid offers.  See where I’m going with this.  Your opt-in is the first piece of the funnel puzzle 😉

SUMMARY

I know that by now you understand the importance of the opt-in in regards to your business.  Henceforth you will serve your audience’s needs, create gold, make your sparkly landing page, and promote like a pro.  Go get ’em!

Author Bio:

Darci Lopez wants to live in a world where her closets are organized, she is on time everywhere she goes, and yoga pants are perfectly acceptable attire.  As a mom blogger who writes about simple and practical blogging tips, she’s been honored to be featured on State of Liberation and published on the Huffington Post.  When she’s not running around chasing her kids or writing, you can find her plotting her next spectacular opt-in for her readers.  She’s currently offering a FREE Create Your Perfect Opt-In Offer Challenge where she dives deep and delivers 10 days of actionable strategies.  By the end of the challenge, participants have a brand new and killer opt-in for their audience!  You can find her in her free Facebook group, the Brilliant Blogger’s Club, where she talks about everything blogging and then some.