How to Build Your List with Winning Opt-in Pages
Opt-in pages are a great way to build your list. But they aren’t the right choice for every site.
If you’ve been wondering whether or not you need an opt-in page, read on to learn what an opt-in page is, when you want to use one for effective list building, and how to get maximum results from your opt-in pages.
What is an Opt-in Page?
First, let’s clear any confusion on what an opt-in page is - and what it is not. Terms that often get used interchangeably are: opt-in page, squeeze page, and landing page.
An Opt-in Page is a short page with a web form that requests someone’s email address. It requests that someone opt-in to an email subscription, often a newsletter or free offer. It will usually have other navigation on it, such as a link to “Enter Main Site.”
A Squeeze Page is an opt-in page that doesn’t have any navigation on it. The website visitor can either opt-in to the subscription or they can leave the site. In other words, their email address is “squeezed” from them.
A Landing Page is the page people land on when they visit your site. It’s the first page they see. For most websites, this is the main content area of a site with a welcome message and full site navigation. But if your opt-in page or squeeze page is the first page people land on, then those are also landing pages.
When I hear coaches tell me they don’t like opt-in pages, what they usually mean is that they don’t like “squeeze pages.” But those are not necessarily the same thing.
Do you need an Opt-in Page?
Opt-in pages are very effective at list building when used effectively and in the right situations. They work better in some situations than in others. So you first need to decide what you want to accomplish with your website.
If your #1 goal is to use your site to build your list, then a great opt-in page is the most effective way to do that. Opt-in pages build your list of prospects faster because there are no other distractions on the page. A website visitor only needs to decide “yes or no,” whether they want what you are offering or not.
For coaching and consulting sites, I also like to include a link for visitors to “Enter Main Site”. That way repeat visitors can easily bypass the opt-in page and see the main site.
Keep in mind that an effective opt-in page will have more supporting pages behind it: a thank you page with specific instructions on confirming their subscription and possibly a download page where they can get your free offer after opting in. You may also want to create videos for all those pages.
If your website budget can handle the investment of an opt-in page with all the extras, then this is the most effective way to build your list. If the extra pages and videos are beyond your skills and resources, then an opt-in box on your regular website can also be very effective at automating your lead generation.
If your #1 goal for your site is to give free information, such as articles, or telling people about your services, then an opt-in page is not your best choice. If someone visits your site for the first time and they don’t go past the opt-in page, they’ll never see your information and learn more about you.
So you wouldn’t want to use an opt-in page in front of a typical blog site. Instead, you would put an opt-in box in the sidebar of your blog site.
Effective Opt-in Pages to Build Your List
I’ve created opt-in pages that got over 40% conversion and some that got less than 1% conversion. Here’s the main difference between the two.
For an opt-in page to be effective, it has to have an IRRESISTIBLE offer - not just a good offer or an OK offer but an irresistible offer.
I’ve seen so many opt-in pages fail miserably because the site owner decided to just throw up a free PLR (private label rights) ebook or report in the hopes that other people would actually want it. Or worse, they offered only a free newsletter.
People today are very busy, and their inbox is already full to overflowing with newsletters and free reports they haven’t had time to read. They are wary about opting in for anything that isn’t exactly what they need right now, this very minute.
If you know your ideal client and their biggest problem that you help them solve, then you’ll be able to create an offer for your opt-in page that is truly irresistible. And that is the #1 secret to getting great results with your opt-in pages.
The second secret is to drive the right traffic to your site - but that’s another article.
If you’d like help creating an irresistible offer for your clients, email me for more information. It’s one of the many services I offer my clients with either a Prospecting Website Package or a Mother Lode WebsiteTM Package.
