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Having a quality email list is a great way to grow your brand. Of course, building a legitimate email list takes some time and effort. The good news? You can streamline the process and get a little help from automated chatbots.
Yes, we're talking about those message/chat bubbles you often see on the homepage of a company website. However, chatbots can be so much more than that.
If you're serious about scaling your email list while saving yourself some time in the process, chatbots can help.
In this post, we'll walk you through the steps you can follow to grow your email list using chatbots.
But first, let’s learn a little bit more about email marketing and chatbots.
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What is email marketing?
It can be helpful to have a solid understanding of what email marketing is and what it entails. After all, you'll grow your email list to bolster your marketing efforts.
In simplest terms, email marketing involves strategically sending out messages to a group of subscribers. These emails can provide your audience with educational information or inform them about new products and services, special discounts, and more.
Ultimately, the goals of an email campaign can range from spreading brand awareness to making sales.
When carried out wisely, email marketing can be extremely effective. According to an AWeber survey, 79% of small businesses say email marketing is important to their business strategy.
What are chatbots?
Chatbots are software applications that use artificial intelligence (AI) to have a conversation with a user, such as a prospective customer. Often, you will find chatbots on website landing pages. However, they can also be found on social media and in other applications.
Recently, businesses have realized the potential of using chatbots to grow their email database.
The benefits of building your email list
So, why should you be so focused on building your email list, anyway? Let’s focus on the data:
- 59% of consumers say receiving an email has impacted their purchase decisions.
- 61% of consumers report that they prefer to be contacted by brands through email.
And this makes sense, especially when you consider the personal nature of emails. Compared to other forms of marketing, email feels more like a one-on-one conversation.
Your emails can be used to build relationships with your customers, grow your brand's reputation, and establish trust between you and your customers.
When you have an engaged email list, you have an effective way to reach a large number of your customers (or potential customers) at any given time. Likewise, you own 100% of your email list. Unlike social media leads, which depend on arbitrary factors, your email list is yours.
How can you grow your email list with chatbots?
Because they're automated, chatbots can save you a lot of time and effort when it comes to building your list of email subscribers. You might envision chatbots as "basic" tools that ask website visitors, "Is there anything I can help you with?" before fading into existence. However, a chatbot can really be so much more than that.
So, what are some methods of growing your email list with chatbots?
With a chat
Okay, this might sound a little too obvious, but there's more to it than that. The key is to use a chat as a lead-capture opportunity. When a customer (or potential customer) reaches out to a chatbot, ask for their email address outright.
This is a great way to capture their email address organically. Meanwhile, you can also send a chat summary directly to their email once the conversation ends.
Offer a discount
Sometimes, a lead will need more incentive to provide their email address, and there's nothing wrong with that. After all, many people hesitate to give out an email address without good reason.
One effective way to get an email address out of a visitor is to offer a special discount in return.
For example, your chatbot could be set up to recognize when a user is shopping on an eCommerce page. The chatbot messenger can be used to offer a discount on their purchase. To get the coupon code, the visitor must provide their email address. Then you can send a one-time promotional code directly to their email.
Provide a lead magnet
For those who may not be shopping online, there are other incentives to consider offering in exchange for an email address. This is a great opportunity, for example, to use a lead magnet to your advantage.
A chatbot could reach out to a user who is reading a blog post about a particular topic. From there, the bot could offer a free eBook (or another lead magnet) on that topic in exchange for an email address. This can be a great way to put your existing lead magnets to work without lifting a finger.
Gamify your chatbot
Another strategy to consider is gamifying your chatbot, which can keep users engaged and returning for more. There are many different ways to gamify a chatbot.
Consider, for example, having your chatbot offer a quiz or survey to your user. If the user wants to see the results, they can be emailed upon completion.
Align your strategy with your landing page
No matter which strategies you use to build your email list using chatbots, it's important to align each strategy with your particular landing page. The chatbot on your home page, for instance, should not follow the same methods as a chatbot on your product page or blog.
This is where customizing your chatbots can make all the difference.
For example, a chatbot communicating with a user on a product page may be automated to offer a discount or promotion. Meanwhile, a chatbot on a blog page may be better suited for offering a lead magnet or gamification.
The better you can tailor your chatbot's actions to your users' actions, the more successful your list-building strategy will be.
How to get started
As you can see, chatbots can help grow your email list while serving other functional purposes for your business. Still not sure where to begin with your chatbot?
Follow a few simple steps to get started.
Develop your chatbot strategy
Begin by selecting a chatbot provider that will suit your needs and budget. Once you've selected it, it's time to build your strategy.
Here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- How many different chatbots will you need?
- Where will they be set up?
- Will you offer special discounts?
- Will you be using a lead magnet? If so, what is the lead magnet?
You'll also want to consider how much you want your chatbots to engage with your users. For example, do you want your chatbots to reach out proactively to each site visitor? Or do you prefer to wait for users to message your chatbot directly?
Remember, these strategies can also vary based on page or user activity.
Create your chatbots
Once you're confident in your strategy, it's time to create your chatbot. With the ChatBot platform, you can build and launch customer service bots with no programming skills. The solution offers customizable templates that you can use to get started faster and make changes as needed. This means you can start building your email list right away.
Also, ChatBot comes with a drag-and-drop builder that allows you to test and refine your bots' actions as needed. From there, you can improve the success of your list-building strategy with ease.
Connect With Your Email Provider
Finally, consider connecting your chatbot service with your email provider so that your emails can be automatically triggered once a prospect provides their email address to your chatbot. For example, AWeber's all-in-one platform can be integrated seamlessly with your ChatBot platform account, making this type of automation easier than ever.
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Take your email list to the next level
No matter your industry, email marketing should be on your radar. And let's face it. You can't expect a successful email strategy without a quality email list. So why not put chatbots to work and lighten your load?
With these tips and tricks, you'll be well on your way to building an email list using chatbots. From there, you can reach a larger audience, improve conversion rates, and grow your brand!
