If a visitor comes to your web site looking for information and doesn't sign up to receive your e-mails, you have missed an opportunity to turn that browser into a customer. This month we will be concentrating on how to build your subscriber list using tips and techniques below. Increasing your newsletter subscription list with new subscribers will therefore increase your potential new customer database.

More detailed information about how to establish yourself and your business as an expert in your field, including how to set up and maintain an electronic newsletter, can be found in our downloadable guide “Building Online Relationships” which can be found here: http://www.enable-uk.co.uk/html/book_4.html

If you would like help with how to write content for your newsletter, why not read last months article on “Newsletters – Keeping Your Customers Informed” which can be found in our newsletter archives here: http://www.enable-uk.co.uk/html/internet_marketing_newsletter_.html

For more detailed information on how to write an effective sales proposition you need a copy of our guide “Writing Text That Sells” available for download here: http://www.enable-uk.co.uk/html/book_3.html

1. Streamline subscriber registration. Streamline sign up process by asking for as little information upfront as possible. You can always give customers an incentive to provide more information after they have experienced your newsletter. A simple sign up box that requests only an email address works best as it’s quick and not off putting to potential subscribers who often have perception that companies are just trying to extract personal information from them.

For a simple sign up process, I would recommend Vertical Response whom we have used for several years to manage our lists. They can be found here: http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=EavljUFQjXk&offerid=52409.10000007&type=1&subid=0

2. Giveaways. Put together a genuinely useful giveaway item that you know your audience wants and needs. For instance, you could give away discount vouchers for your products or services or you could offer a free downloadable report or guide related to products or services you offer. Downloadable information products like these work very well for most businesses, as once written, delivery costs are minimal. The practical freebie really works for your potential customers too, provided that it is relevant and useful to them. 3. Put a subscribe box on every page of site. If possible add a simple sign up box in top left hand corner of every page of your web site, as that's where eye naturally travels first. Don't bury registration form on a page deep within your site and make it is as obvious and easy as possible for your potential customers to see it and sign up. Don’t forget to mention giveaway you are offering here too.

In fact, it's easier to write and get published today than ever before - especially thanks to Internet "revolution." Publishing a newsletter is a great way to increase your visibility and credibility. If you write informative and accurate articles you will be viewed as an authority on subjects you write about, and that will improve your credibility with your potential customers. You can also include in your newsletters relevant links to products or services you sell. There are many genuine opportunities to tempt your readers to explore your web site and products or services further.

So how do you set about writing your own newsletter? The first thing you need to do is decide on a topic that you are interested in and your potential customers would also like to know more about. Then all you need to do is decide if you have enough knowledge on that subject to write confidently about it, and if you don’t, there are ways around that too. Then decide what format you want to use to present information and bingo; you have a winning formula for your newsletter.

Deciding on a topic. You should pick a subject that interests you, and if possible, one that you already know something about. It should also be a topic that is relevant and interesting to your potential customers. It should also be linked to products and services you sell so that throughout your publications, you can refer readers to your web site for further information or relevant products or services.

For example, if you sell second hand cars, you may want to write a newsletter about “What to look for when buying a second hand car” or “Basic car maintenance”, if you sell houses, you may want to write about” Tips for preparing your house for sale”, or “How to profit from buy-to-let market”, etc.

Do you have knowledge? If you don’t feel you have enough knowledge to write on specific, relevant topics, another strategy for producing a newsletter is to ask others to write it for you. Why would an author give you an article for your newsletter? Because they can include their contact information and links to their web pages, that’s why. The more copies of your newsletter that you give away, more traffic they get to their web sites. More traffic equals more sales.