The most common ways to drive quality traffic to your website and grow your email list include paid ads and content marketing. The first is expensive, the latter is time-consuming. This makes it challenging to grow your email list and build your credibility as the go-to expert in your field. Here’s why:

1) Paid ads are less effective and more expensive than ever.

It used to cost 5 to 10 times less than the current price to get the same number of qualified leads. Many experts use Facebook ads to attract webinar attendees. Webinars can be great for teaching information, but they are a tough sell and often people don’t stick around to the end. A better use of FB ads is to drive traffic to a free gift or irresistible offer (ie, a lead magnet), but the fact remains that they don’t work as well as they used to.

2) Content marketing takes time.

Content marketing is something every business or industry expert should be using. Like webinars, this is a great way to disseminate information and grow a following. But it does take time, even if you plan out your work and batch your production. And, there is no guaranteed payoff. You can usually grow your list, but the process is often very slow.

3) Your prospects are skeptical

There is so much information online and so many people using these methods to grow their lists that whether you are advertising or creating your own unique content, people don’t trust you. They feel like they’ve seen all this before. They’ve had their time wasted. Or worse, they’ve been burnt and scammed before. They want PROOF and REASSURANCE that you’re different.

Here is the solution…“BORROW TRUST!”

This is what my book, the Influencer Effect is basically all about – getting someone with and engaged audience to endorse you. When you get someone with an active list to promote you, you can build INSTANT TRUST with new, warm audiences, since you’re getting the blessings of someone they already know, like and trust.

Let’s say for example that you are selling gourmet food ingredients. You could spend tons of money advertising. You could spend years creating great content such as recipes and sharing them on your blog and social media. Or you could find someone like Rachel Ray, Trisha Yearwood, or Paula Deen to endorse your products. The endorsement by an influencer with a great following is going to grow your list faster than anything else.

Can’t afford to hire Martha Stewart? You can still borrow trust by hooking up with a lesser known celebrity or “micro-influencer”. Look for someone who has a blog, podcast or YouTube channel in a complimentary niche to yours. You don’t just want a social media celebrity, you want someone who has their own list. Reach out to them and establish a relationship with them. I have been on both sides of this equation and can attest to how well it works. Give it a try.

GregJameson

Greg Jameson has been writing blog articles on ecommerce and internet marketing for over 10 years. Learn more about Greg at https://webstoresltd.com/about/