Grow Your List

There’s a mindset that’s essential if you hope to grow your list. It requires asking, no matter what the business activity… “How can I use this to grow my list?”

This one simple shift in mindset can be the key to your company’s success.

Building Your List Requires Variety. Think of your list as a fire you’re building. It takes lots of sticks to keep a fire burning. When it comes to building your list, those “sticks” are the strategies you put in place to attract and sustain business.

Just as one stick won’t keep a fire burning, there isn’t one single activity that will build a great list. A common mistake is to attract the first few hundred names, and then expect your list to grow organically from there. The fire usually goes out from lack of new fuel. A strong list requires many different kinds of activities and approaches – all directed at adding names to your prospect list.

Some of your “sticks” will be things you do that don’t take a big investment of time. You put the plan in place and your list starts building automatically. Other strategies you use will require more time on your part. Remember, there’s a rule in business… Activities that don’t take much time will cost more money. On the other hand, things that don’t cost much, take more time. You can decide where you are ready to invest when growing your list.

Fortunately, as you implement a variety of list building activities, they become cumulative. You won’t have to go back and start from scratch each time. Once you’ve got your strategies in place – you’ll find your list will grow rapidly.

“How Can I Use This to Grow My List?”

Ask yourself this every time you engage in a business activity. Whether you’ve agreed to give a talk or you’re creating a free report – it should always be done with the goal of adding to your list.

Asking that question guides how those activities are done. For example, if you’re giving a talk to a group, be thinking of your free offer to make at the end. A free offer is one way to secure more names for your list. But don’t stop there.

Adopt the mindset of seeing everything you do as a list building opportunity:

• Giving interviews
• Meeting with groups
• Holding free “taster events”
• Network meetings
• Special offers and promotions

When you see each activity as a list building opportunity, you’ll begin to see the power of cumulative list building efforts. Start by putting the automated strategies in place. Then keep in mind how each new strategy can build your list, as well.

A solid prospect list is something every business owner should be working to build. As you make decisions about how to spend money and time, look at each new activity as a way to add to your list. By doing so, you’ll soon experience the power having a great customer list can bring to your business.