A Quick & Dirty Guide to Converting Blog Readers into Subscribers

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**This is a guest post by Sue Anne Dunlevie from SuccessfulBlogging.com**

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What do you need in order to build and monetize a successful blog?

The answer is simpler than you think:

You need an email list.

This is by far the most important part of your business.

As Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income puts it:

One of the biggest mistakes I made as a blogger and business owner was not starting an email list right from the start.

Pat’s blog is a million-dollar business. It’s THAT important.

At the same time, you’re trying to figure out how to grow your blog traffic.

And that’s a major challenge!

But remember this:

You can have all the traffic in the world. To make money as a blogger it needs to convert into subscribers.

Without subscribers, you don’t have a business. Here’s why:

 

➽ Your list is your primary sales channel. People buy from people they trust and with your list, you’re building strong relationships with your readers.

➽ You own your email list. On social media and other platforms like Medium, someone else is in charge of how that platform operates.

➽ Your readers are your biggest fans. They love your content so much that they’ve willingly opted in to hear from you on a regular basis.

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If you’re scratching your head and desperately trying to figure out how to convert your traffic into subscribers, I have good news…

Today, I’ll walk you through all the best ways to do just that.

Implementing these methods will have a big impact on your blog conversions.

In fact, I know this to be true because I see it over and over again with my clients.

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1. CREATE A LEAD MAGNET THAT CONVERTS

You need a strong call to action (CTA) to convert your readers to subscribers.

Something that solves a problem and is so irresistible that your readers feel they HAVE to get it:

A lead magnet.

A lead magnet is a free gift your readers receive when they sign up to your list.

There are a few things you need to remember when creating your lead magnet.

The MOST important part is your headline.

Go for short and sweet and make sure you cover your readers’ pain points.

Dre has a great headline that addresses one of your biggest pain points: “A Solopreneur’s Quick & Dirty Guide to Branding.” Similarly, my headline is: “How to Attract 1000 Subscribers in 30 Days.”

Here are some examples you can use:

“How To XX”

“The 5 Step Plan To XX”

“The 3 Mistakes XX Make”

For example, if your blog is about interior design and you know that your readers want to learn how to decorate their living room, you might want to use a lead magnet like “The 5 Step Plan to Decorate Your Living Room in 10 Days.”

When you have a strong headline, you need to write a compelling CTA.

Including a CTA that says “Subscribe now” doesn’t entice your readers to take action.

It’s too generic!

Instead, include a call to action that encourages immediate action and says something along these lines:

“Get it now!”

“Let me have it”

“Yes! I want it!”

When you have a headline and a CTA, most bloggers leave it at that.

But there’s one more thing you should know.

To really convert those readers, your lead magnet should be as actionable as possible.

And eBooks and email courses can be insanely valuable and a great offer…

…Except they’re insanely impractical.

Just think about it:

How many email courses do you have time to implement?

How many eBooks do you have time to read?

Didn’t think so!

Instead, people want quick solutions to their problems.

According to LeadPages, small and actionable lead magnets convert better.

For example, offer cheat sheets, resource lists, quizzes, templates or an interview with an expert in your niche.

Here’s an example from LeadPages where they offer two free event landing pages (great offer!):

2. INCLUDE STRATEGIC EMAIL OPT-IN BOXES

Now that you have a lead magnet, you’ll need opt-in boxes to enable your visitors to download it.

There are several excellent options and we’ll look at all of them.

First up:

The Opt-In Landing Page.

When you use a landing page on your site, your visitors are directed to it when they type in your URL.

A landing page is a great way to get visitors to focus on one action:

Opting in.

…Which converts visitors into subscribers.

Here’s a great example of a landing page on QuickSprout:

 

Next, we have the Feature Opt-In Box.

This is an opt-in box you add to the upper part of your blog.

In other words, it’s very visible – and converts your visitors.

Here’s an example on Boost Blog Traffic:

Third, there’s the Sidebar Opt-In Box.

I’ll be honest with you:

This opt-in box is not the most effective opt-in box. But it can capture a few extra subscribers.

This example from Blog Tyrant shows what an effective Sidebar Opt-In Box looks like:

The fourth opt-in box is the Splash Page or Welcome Mat.

The Welcome Mat is a full page opt-in form that prevents visitors from accessing your blog without opting in.

In other words, the Welcome Mat is extremely effective.

At the same time, it can feel a bit intimidating. That’s why you can show it to your visitors the first time they visit your site and never again after that.

This Welcome Mat on OkDork is what you want your Welcome Mat to look like:

Next up:

Popups.

You know, those boxes that pop up when you visit a site.

I know what you’re thinking:

“They’re so intruding… I’ll just annoy my visitors.”

And yes, popups can be annoying.

But they work.

That said, there are a few things you can do to create a better user experience with popups.

First, don’t use traditional popups that appear a few seconds after your visitor has clicked through to your site.

Instead, use an Exit Intent popup. This popup appears when visitors have read your content and are about to exit your site.

Or you could use the Scroll Bar. This is a popup that appears when visitors scroll down on your web page.

These popups ensure that you’re not annoying visitors, but offering something valuable to interested readers.

Here’s how Derek Halpern of Social Triggers uses popups:

The Hello Bar is another great way to capture those subscribers.

The Hello Bar is a visible banner opt-in box on the top of your site.

Dre’s own Hello Bar is an excellent example (you can see it above this post):

Last but not least, there are a few opt-in boxes that you can place at the end of a post or between posts.

First, Adam Connell of Blogging Wizard has an opt-in box at the end of his blog posts:

Or you can do what Bryan Harris of Videofruit does and include it between posts:

3. CREATE A CONTENT UPGRADE TO BOOST YOUR CONVERSION RATE FOR EVERY POST

If major bloggers like Brian Dean and Derek Halpern recommend something, you better listen!

And they recommend that you use the Content Upgrade.

We’ve already looked at how you can create a lead magnet for your blog.

But to really capture all those subscribers, you want to have a general lead magnet for your blog AND content upgrades for every blog post.

Content upgrades are bonuses you include in your posts.

For example, if your post is about the best ways to snap a picture with your phone, your content upgrade could be a checklist that your reader can use to take his or her own photos.

Here’s how Brian Dean uses content upgrades on Backlinko:

Include your opt-in box once in the beginning of your post and once again at the end of your post.

HOW TO GET STARTED

We’ve looked at how to create a lead magnet, how to position your opt-in boxes and how to use content upgrades.

Congrats! You’ve come this far.

Now there’s just one thing you need to do:

Implement what you’ve learned.

This is where the fun begins.

You get to experiment and see what works for your blog and what doesn’t.

I know it’s hard to get started with something new.

That’s why you should start with one tactic and go from there.

For example, create a lead magnet and use just one opt-in box.

To create your lead magnet, you can use a free service like Canva.

And for your lead magnet opt-in box, use free services like Sumo and Hello Bar. For your content upgrade box, you can use LeadPages and Content Upgrades Pro.

Then add more opt-in boxes when you start to get a hang of it.

Remember that the opt-in boxes WILL get you results!

Not using them means you’re leaving hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars on the table.

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WAIT! THERE’S MORE…

Want to learn how to turn your new subscribers into HUNGRY buyers….ever single damn day {even when you’re playing hooky}??

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Sue Anne Dunlevie is the Blogging Coach at Successful Blogging, where she helps beginning bloggers earn a living with their blog. As a free bonus, she has written a report on “How To Attract 1000 Subscribers In 30 Days”.

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