We’ve all heard it that in order to stay in business online you need to build a targeted ‘opt-in’ email list.

Well… I truly agree with that simply because it’s where you’ll always have a consistent source of FREE targeted traffic (also referred to as ‘Sticky Traffic’) to promote your offers or related information to for years to come.

It just makes sense, wouldn’t you say?

And, we all know that email is where the money is truly made when it comes to marketing your business online because it gives you the ability to follow up with your potential customers until they decide to buy from you.

But, the general problem is people don’t know where to start building their own targeted Opt-In list.

You may even be wondering, “What is an Opt-In list?”

An ‘Opt-In’ list is simply a database of people’s names and email addresses that have subscribed to an email list via a web form; giving that list owner permission to send them periodic emails on the topic they are interested in.

Notice how I said, “giving that list owner permission to send them email”.

When they subscribe to your Opt-In list they are giving you permission to send them offers or related information on the topic they are interested in, this is known as ‘Permission Email Marketing’.

This is the ABSOLUTE safest form of email marketing where you won’t get accused of spamming people.

This is especially important for domain health. Every time someone marks an email from you as spam, email service providers like Google ding your domain. With enough of these reports, your emails will stop being delivered.

So, now that you have a clear idea in your mind of what an Opt-In list is and how it will benefit you and your business, we can dive into the simple ‘Ten Step Process’ that I’ve put together for you on how to build your own targeted Opt-In list.

Step 1: Pick your Target market or Niche.

You need to figure out who your target market is going to be for the product or service you’re going to offer.

For example, if I was interested in selling a book related to Internet Marketing, my target market would be Internet Marketing related.

Step #2. Can your Target market or Niche be reached online?

This step is where you need to do a little research on whether or not your particular target market can be reached online.

Start by doing some keyword research using keywords related to your target market.

As a general rule, if the targeted keywords aren’t pulling in 15,000 or more searches per month, it’s a target market without much demand. So, these target audiences aren’t worth building a business around.

Step #3. Are they making money in this Niche?

Now it’s time for some competitive research to see if people are spending any money in this Niche.

You can do this by going to Google typing in your targeted keywords related to your Niche in the search box.

This will give you a list of search results. Those results are your competition, but even more important, are the results with an Ad icon showing.

These are paid ads offered through Google Ads, which means somebody is willing to pay to advertise and is paying attention to this particular Niche and must be making money if they’re willing to pay for advertising.

That’s good news for you.

Step #4. Use Forums to find your Target markets problems.

Forums are a great place to find out exactly what your potential customers TOP problems are by simply scanning posts and looking for the most common threads.

By doing this you’ll be able to know right away what your target markets TOP problems are and how you can help solve their problem.

To find Forums related to your Niche simply visit Google and type in your targeted keywords with ‘+ forums’ after your keyword (ex. internet marketing + forums).

Step #5. What’s keeping them from getting what they want?

This is where you have to figure out whats keeping them from getting what they want in order to fix the problems they are dealing with, meaning, this is where you need to work with them to find a solution to their problems.

Whether it’s a Product they need or a Service of some sort.

Step #6. What can you offer them to solve their problems?

This is where the money is being spent.

Now, the only thing you need in order to receive your share of the revenue is a Product or Service that will solve your potential customers problem.

If you don’t have a Product or Service of your own don’t be discouraged.

Either reach out to some of your peers who are in a field as you and ask if you can be an affiliate for their products.

You can also build your own product or service with the help of Wicked Marvelous, either through self-guided courses or 1:1 coaching.

Step #7. Set-Up a simple direct response mini-site.

In this step you set up your lead generating website with a follow-up system that your potential customers will come to and Opt-In to your list to start receiving offers or related information on the topic or problem they are having.

Most autoresponder platforms will have a built in landing page builder where you can easily drag and drop information and create quick opt-in pages.

But the best way is to create them on your own website.

If you don’t know how to build your own website you can always hire someone to do it for you. We can help you find the right option, contact us for more information.

Step #8. Get an Auto-Responder account.

This is where you’ll be laying the foundation down for your list.

You MUST have an Email Service Provider account (i.e. ConvertKit, MailChimp, etc) set up before you set your landing page live because this is where your potential customers are going to subscribe to your list for offers and related information.

Step #9. You need to figure out what ‘Bait’ to use.

What I mean by ‘Bait’ is… what are you going to offer them for FREE to get them to subscribe to your Opt-In list.

Here are some examples of what you can use as ‘Bait’: ebooks, special reports, mini-courses, coupons, etc.

These are the most common. It really depends on who you are targeting, so be creative.

Step #10. Reach out to your target market.

This is the part where you send traffic to your website in order to get subscribers.

I’m going to mention only two methods.

These methods are the most POWERFUL and for good reason, they work.

The first method is Writing Articles.

By writing articles you’re showing your target market that you are someone who knows how to help solve their problem and may have a possible solution for them.

This is the quickest way to build INSTANT credibility in your Niche.

The second method is to send targeted traffic to your landing page through Pay-Per-Click search engines.

Pay-Per-Click search engines are where you bid on the keywords terms related to your target market and are listed according to the highest bid for that keyword term.

By using PPC search engines, it will get you in-front of your target market while they are searching for solutions.

Writing articles gives you INSTANT credibility and will put you in-front of thousands of readers, and Pay-Per-Click search engines send you HIGHLY targeted traffic to your website within minutes depending on which PPC search engine you are using.

The more traffic you send to your website, the more subscribers you’ll receive.

It’s simply a numbers game.

Now… it’s up to you to take the necessary action in order to get started with your own targeted Opt-In list.

If you already have an existing web business online simply implement the steps outlined above to your existing website.

These are the 10 basic steps required in order to get your Opt-In listing building started in the Right direction.

Simply follow them and you’ll be on your way to receiving your first subscriber in No Time.