The number one tool you have at your disposal when it comes to building your email list is your subscription form. It needs to be where people will see it and can respond without having to hunt around your site. And if you really want to capture the most possible leads, you’ll need to think outside the box, placing multiple forms in key positions throughout your site where you can nab those potential subscribers when they’re most engaged with your content and ready to hear more.
Front and Center
If you want to grow your mailing list, you have to ask your website visitors to subscribe. Feature your subscription form above the fold and near your headline with a bold call to action. Include two or three bullet points to let visitors know how they’ll benefit from joining your email list. This location confronts readers with a subscription request at the moment their curiosity has already been aroused and they’re interested in what you have to say.
Subscription Landing Page
If you haven’t convinced the reader by now, he may need a little more persuasion than you can provide in a couple of bullet points. The subscription landing page is dedicated to detailing benefits and explaining what the subscriber will receive when he hands over his email address. You may also offer an incentive or freebie in exchange for signing up.
Top of the Sidebar
This is a classic location that you see just about everywhere. That’s because it works. People have become conditioned to look in this location for a subscription form, so use that to your advantage and give them what they expect. Don’t try to be different just for the sake of being different.
Resource Pages
Any resource page (About Me, Start Here, Category pages) a reader clicks to from your home page is a great location for a subscription form. Why? By clicking, the user has already expressed an interest in finding out more about you. You can take that interest a step further by asking for a subscription.
Subscription forms play an integral role in your email list-building strategy, so don’t just slap one up on your website and expect it to work for everyone. Cater to the differences in your audience by placing forms at the top of your homepage, on a targeted subscription landing page, at the top of the sidebar, on resource pages, and anywhere else visitors are already more engaged with your content.