Instagram is an amazing free marketing channel, which you can leverage to build your audience, but the downside being you don’t own your audience and the algorithm decides how many of your followers see the content you’ve worked hard to create.
So, if you are a creator, and you sell a product or service through Instagram, it’s important you move your relationship with your Instagram followers onto an email list.
Follow these tips to turn your Instagram followers into email subscribers:
1). Add a call to action to your Instagram bio
Your Instagram bio is a great place to share valuable content with your audience, so include a CTA calling attention to your email list and a link to your sign-up form. Don’t just ask followers to sign up to your newsletter, explain the value you are offering and include a bonus feature like a free e-book, or training tips. (See point 2).
2). Create a compelling offer
If you are asking your followers to give you something as valuable as their email address, make sure you are offering something valuable in return. This is your lead magnet. If you are a fitness trainer you might offer an e-book with a free 7-day abs program. Or, as a fitness coach, you could offer a downloadable e-guide on fitness and nutrition tips.
Whatever you decide to use as your lead magnet, you need to ensure it directly addresses a typical pain point of your target audience (See point 3).
Make sure it’s exclusive – only available to email subscribers and not something they can get elsewhere from you.
If you already have a website, using a pop-up box can be super effective in offering the lead magnet in return for subscribing to your email list.
3). Use Stories to promote your lead magnet
Instagram Stories is a great way to promote your lead magnet and direct followers to your email sign-in page.
If you are unsure which lead magnet will work best for your audience, run a poll on your top ideas and then choose the one they want to see from you the most.
Use the Stories question sticker and ask your followers what their greatest pain point or challenge is. You can then respond directly to anyone who answers and include the link to your lead magnet/email sign-up page.
4). Update your CTA in your grid posts
Share regular posts that direct followers to click the call-to-action email link in your bio, to promote your lead magnet and email sign-up page.
5). Nurture your email subscribers
Once you have started to build an email list, you want to make sure the relationship with your subscribers is a long-term one. Remember, they have opted-in to receiving emails from you, so are interested in hearing more from you. You can nurture this relationship through an email nurture series:
Step 1 – Upon subscribing, an automated confirmation email should be sent with the promised lead magnet.
Step 2 – Send a welcome email and outline what they can expect from this relationship. And, as a new subscriber, offer them a limited-time-only offer, for example a discount on an e-book, app subscription, or one-to-one coaching session.
Step 3 – This is the start of your regular email series that is a combination of soft selling messages and value-added, long-form content like a newsletter or blog.
How to build an email list if you don’t have a website
If you already have a website, it’s easy to add a ‘Subscribe now’ box where visitors to your website can sign up to your email list. Or as mentioned above, a pop-up box is an effective way to prompt visitors to part with their email address in exchange for your lead magnet.
However, if you don’t have a website, you can easily set-up a landing page in an email broadcast platform like Mailchimp or dotMailer. In my experience, these platforms are very intuitive and user friendly and perfect tools for start-ups or independent business owners to manage their email marketing strategy.
If you're not using email marketing as part of your marketing strategy and need some help setting it up, contact me today emma@ghawp.com