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Build it FAST Lesson 1


Tim Brocklehurst

I’ve received a lot of queries lately asking for step by step guidance on how to build your list quickly. So I’ve decided to jot down some simple steps you can take that will guide you through the process.

I’m presuming you already have a website or a blog on which you can broadcast to the world. If you’re not quite there yet, I recommend you join The Freedom List for some step-by-step guidance in getting it set up first.

Or, for a lightening-quick start, with a video tutorial - have a look at this easy-to-setup Automatic Money System.

This lesson will guide you on everything you need to begin capturing your visitors name and email so you can set up an autoresponder to follow-up with them, and sell to them, periodically, ever afterwards.

I’ll get into the type of emails you can send, and what you sell to them in a later lesson, the important thing is to get your systems in place first. Automation is the key.

Remain focused on the lesson, don’t be distracted along the way, and in a short space of time you’ll have your own system in place for not only capturing signups fast (building your list), but also measuring where they came from so you can maximise each campaign.

So, make yourself comfortable, kick off your shoes - you’re not going anywhere for a little while are you? Read on for my quick formula for getting your list going fast, so lets set about it right now:

Begin with the End In Mind
One of the most important factors behind building a list, is understanding what makes people join it. As time goes on, you need to know this information so you can maximise the conversion ratio on your signup page.

Because of this, I recommend you have split-testing in place from the moment you begin. You’ll find it will have dramatic effects on the speed with which you can build your list.

You may remember I wrote recently about the value of split-testing. I talked a little about how making small changes to a web page, and monitoring the results, can have dramatic effects on your profit.

To refresh your memory, I used the example of how a site making $95 per week, can escalate to $13,494 in just 12 months, just with good use of split testing.

I don’t know how far down the road you are with your online business, but if you’re not already split-testing I’ve got a great way you can get started. Please just perform the following exercise and you’ll be split testing for profit AND building your list in no time.

OK, first of all you need a gateway or squeeze page to test. If you haven’t already got one, go and get my free gateway template here:
http://www.listmission.com/gateway

OK Next you’re going to need an account with Frank Bauer’s Split Testing system. There is a cost for this, but its tiny (under $10) and with a tool like this you’ll gather your return in conversions and signups double-quick.

http://www.nulltochance.com/st

When you sign into your account, have a look first at Frank’s elementary videos. These walk you through the process of how to use the system for split testing your webpages.

Next: Modify the gateway template to make it yours…

To do that, you’re going to need to change the copy (keep it short and sweet with benefits and bullet points).

You’re also going to need an autoresponder account, if you don’t already have one. I use aweber:

http://www.nulltochance.com/aweber

You’ll get from your autoresponder the html code for a capture form to drop into your gateway page. Use it to overwrite the one in the template.

Next: Get a split test in place.

Here’s my suggestion for your first split test. Follow these steps:

1. Do a quick brainstorm to come up with two different headings for your gateway page.

You can afford to be a bit bold with one of them and perhaps stand back a bit with the other. Here’s an example of what I mean: Lets say your product is an ecourse on keeping fit while pregnant. Lets come up with two headlines:

Headline 1.
Who says babies make you fat! Learn in 10 days how you can be slimmer, fitter and look 5 years Younger AFTER your baby than before!

Then, lets take a slightly different approach with your second:

Headline 2.
Who says babies make you fat! Get the 7 step plan to keeping fit and feeling great all the way through your pregnancy

Notice I kept the first half of the headline the same. This is known as the ‘control’ the rest of the headline text is on ‘test’.

Its important to remain impartial when doing a split test. You might have an idea of which of these headlines will work best. I do too. But as often as not, you’ll be surprised. So run with it and see if you can prove yourself wrong. (Its all part of the fun).

2. It will help to offer a free gift if you can - perhaps a nutritional book you’ve picked up resale rights to, or something else complimentary (not competitive) to your product.

People need to be enticed before they sign up. (No one gives away their email address without something of value in return.)

For a good spectrum of resale rights products, you can get a free Gold Membership to Edmund Loh’s Resell Rights Mastery using the link below:

But before you go there, hear this: Please DON’T be distracted by all the products you’ll find there. This is a classic example of how easy it is to be drawn away from your task in hand. If you’re not careful, you’ll download something because you’re interested in it, you’ll read it, love it, and then you’ll set about modifying its webpage so you can begin selling it asap - but don’t.

That’s not what you sat down to do today. You sat down to begin building your list. Do one task at a time. Get it done before you move on. Otherwise, by the end of the day you can find you’ve started doing 10 things and finished nothing.

So: Go to ResellRightsMastery - signup, find a suitable product for your site and download it. Ignore everything else, you can go back later if you want a better look around. Here’s the link:

Bonus Lifetime Membership Access to ResellRightsMastery.com!

There are stacks of good resale rights products available there so hopefully you’ll find something suitable to entice your visitors into signing up. Most of the products come with free websites. You’re not going to need those for this task, but an image of the product will be useful, and remember to say what its $ value is.

3. Now that you’ve got your gateway page in place and a split test set up, you’re ready to promote it. As an optional extra (bearing in mind your main purpose is to build your list), you could put a sales page behind the signup box so that anyone who signs up is immediately offered something for sale. Straight after sign-up is a good time to sell to your prospects. They’ve taken the first step forward by signing up, all you need is some good sales copy after that you’ll convert them to buying customers.More about this in a future lesson. Lets not get distracted - you sat down today to build your list. You’re now ready to promote your gateway page URL to give it a stream of visitors and convert some of them to list-members, all recorded securely on your autoresponder.

I’ll be in touch again soon with some more ideas for how best you can get visitors to your site - but in the meantime, if you want to get on with it straight away, I recommend Bob Jenkin’s Free Ad Report for the best free ways to get traffic quickly. Normally the cost of this is $47. But the link below will direct you to where you can get it for free as a student of mine:

In future lessons, I will also include answers to queries, and additional help with any aspects you’re having difficulty with, just drop me a comment using the link below telling me whether or not this lesson was helpful, and alert me to any other aspect you need help with.

If you’d like to be kept informed of future lessons and granted the password for free entry, please register here.

Till next time… Happy list building…

Tim

PS: Do you want to see what people really think about opting into lists? - have a look at my poll, its interesting - and while you’re there, please rate it!
http://www.squidoo.com/listbuilding

Oh - and here are my main listbuilding sites just incase you’re not already onboard.

The Freedom List

List Mission

You may comment below, or, for a request for special help from me, go to http://contact.timbrocklehurst.com

 
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Comments

29 Responses to “Build it FAST Lesson 1”

  1. Ian del Carmen on November 10th, 2006 6:52 pm

    Nice thoughts, Tim!

    Another good resource that I can vouch to change the way others build their list will be our new video at http://TheMasterTape.com launching on Nov 14th.

    Send me an email thru The Freedom List admin panel and I’ll send you a review copy…

    Ian

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  2. Scott McGavern on November 10th, 2006 7:07 pm

    Hello Tim!

    I’ve been on your list for some time now, and I just wanted to take a moment to note and express my admiration of your truthfulness, honesty and good information. Plus, I’m always impressed that you take the time to actually write emails in person in answer to your readers; NOT just autoresponders all the time.

    I have a MAJOR problem with being distracted with some of the cooler products out, and I STILL have not began REALLY trying to build my own list. I get so excited when I find another piece of the Internet Marketing puzzle, and I simply need a voice-of-reason and a nudge to stay focused.

    Thanks for that, Tim. Have a great day, and God bless you and yours.

    Scott McGavern
    http://www.clickngit.com/spelling.php
    http://www.scottmcgavern.com/
    http://www.internetpcsecurity.com/

    [Reply]

  3. sally neill on November 10th, 2006 7:14 pm

    Hi Tim

    thanks for the post, and all the useful links, and the free downloads!

    a wealth of information cant wait to see your future posts.

    thanks again sally :)

    [Reply]

  4. Bob Jenkins on November 11th, 2006 3:40 am

    Hi Tim,

    You’ve laid it down nice and simple for everyone. The key components are all there. Testing, autoresponder, and a hook are the trifecta of list building. My readers are eating up List Mission and enjoying putting the free advertising to work in order to build their lists.
    The results are not staggering at first, but accelerate over time. As usual, your honest approach is refreshing!

    Bob Jenkins
    FreeAdReport.com

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  5. Davin on November 11th, 2006 7:34 am

    Another good piece of advice Tim. These are going to keep coming right! Listen by the way, I purchased your List Mission product through Bob about a week and a half ago, and also a tonne of PLR Articles. But can’t really find hardly any documentation on the MMS software anywhere. Even the MMS book seems pretty vague. Any information on where I could get some real tutorials on setting this stuff up. I’m quite excited about it but, almost scared to do anything with it too, I don’t screw anything up. Thanx for the lesson, if you have any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanx Davin

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  6. greg lennox on November 11th, 2006 9:23 am

    my appologise for appearing so dumb..a couple of weeks ago i opened a FREE F.s.c..store affiliate account & then
    was talked into upgrading..At about the same time i also made another enquiry go to my webb page to see{www.goodonumum.com] this salesman was even better he has so far got $1100 us. out of me for the account & some supposed marketing..I am a complete internet newbe but I have been in direct sales most of my life so i am aware if no one sees my site i’m up sh*t creek without a paddle..all this talk about how to do this & how to do that is confusing me to Know end..can u please suggest for me a simple program to get me started & also am I going about it the wrong way because these affiliate web sites dont seem to be able to be set up so you can control them..hopfully you can understand whar i’m on about Thankyuo for your time.

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  7. Jeff Thrasher on November 26th, 2006 6:22 pm

    Assuming you start to build your list/where do you build it in Outlook Express or on a dedicated server online
    How do you avoid apam if it is mailed from your own computer
    How come NO ONE has ever touched on this aspect of LIST BUILDING???????????????????

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  8. tim on November 27th, 2006 11:53 pm

    Hi Jeff

    Good point.

    This is a crucial aspect of list-building and something that is easily glazed over…

    OK - well, there are certain obligations you have when you begin building a list if you’re not going to violate spam laws. The easiest, and most secure way of complying is to use a 3rd party autoresponder such as aweber (see above).

    With such a tool, you can also generate signup forms easily for your webpages, create popup sign-up forms, do split tests, and schedule a series of emails to be sent to signups at timed intervals after they’ve joined.

    Whatever you do, don’t try and use outlook express!

    Thanks and good luck - signup and listen out for more lessons in the series…

    Tim

    [Reply]

  9. Diana Crowe on December 16th, 2006 5:54 am

    Hi Tim,

    I am a complete newbie to this internet marketing business and I thoroughly enjoyed this blog. I am just getting to know about you, but what I have discovered so far about you has been great.

    I need help in knowing what the first thing is to start a list of my own. Everyone is talking about starting a list, but no one is saying how to start one from scratch when you haven’t got a website set up yet. Any suggestions?

    I can’t wait to hear about your next blog on list building. Thanks so much.

    Sincerely,

    Diana C.

    [Reply]

  10. Francis Burdett-Mills on December 18th, 2006 8:53 pm

    greetings Tim,

    I an like you UK based, I have a large niche site relating to Leather which is my subject. I am a very ancient Master Designer Craftsman (Leathergoods) & I made leathergoods for Royalty, The late Duke of Windsor was the main one (now that dates me) I have a mailing listof over 900 ( their interests generally stops beyond the subject of leather). I have a large online list of site members listed for the benefit of visitors (membership is free) it just grew as when I started about 4 years ago writing & selling Leather Instruction Manuals I added a few suppliers plus some leather info & got over run with companies wanting to be added. I had taught myself to use a computer & built my own site I was forced to get better site software & redo my first rough site. The manuals sell World Wide, some companies pay commission on sales generated in return for a full page on my site & I get first page listing on Google for the main search key word Leather. The site does not make a lot of money & takes up a lot of time(it takes up time I should be spending writting the rest of the manuals in the series). I search the web picking up marketing ideas & have puchased some marketing software but it all seems to be madeup of separate pages of code which I am unable to put together let alone resell it. I have Just Downloaded WordPress, the help page informs one that you can use the 5 min set up. (after 1/2 hour I still han not managed to view any thing other than pages of code. I can handle software straight out of the box but the rest is like gobldygook. Your course sounds fine if I ever get time to take it half my day is spent answering emails asking for help, I had hoped to use WordPress as a news letter & set up an Auto-Respomder if I can find one I can afford.

    [Reply]

  11. Steve Rechel on December 19th, 2006 10:58 pm

    Hello.This website should be easy to promote because it is so easy and fun to use.But so far no one has signed up for the free trial.This View My Life web portal is going to be very popular someday but I am having trouble convincing people that they should try it out.It seems as if when some ground floor type of opportunity stares people in the face they can’t see it untill a lot of people have gradually started to use it and like it over a period of time.Any ideas how to reverse this trend.

    [Reply]

  12. ronald neal on December 26th, 2006 1:05 am

    be healthy wealthy and wise. be healthy by switching to non toxic products. be wealthy by resolving to earn residual income. this will make you feel wise

    [Reply]

  13. Michael Duffy on December 29th, 2006 7:32 am

    Tim, You have laid out the basics very well. Newbies should always remember K.I.S.S. Don’t get overwhelmed by all the info and free downloads of ebooks etc etc. Stay focused, listen to Tims advice and they are well on their way to make a living on the web.

    [Reply]

  14. rhiannon on December 30th, 2006 11:46 am

    Dear Tim
    I really liked your opening video. It was well spoken, able to hear it and it did not have any bumps or scratches and I like your English accent. 10/10 for audio presentation.
    This is my first lesson as i am a newbie. I find your information very helpful and a lot of freebies. I shall certainly get an aweber account when I start my business which is trading in new and used compact discs(musical).
    The only thing I found misleading was the section Help a child. I could not find anything to do with children and I thought I would donate some money to help a child if I am fortunate to get expert help from you. Unfortunately it was about someone trying to flog a resellers program for $197. Please can you do something about changing the heading of that section as it is misleading.
    Eagerly looking for Lesson 2.
    Thank you very much.
    Rhiannon
    Perth, Western Australia

    [Reply]

  15. rhiannon on December 30th, 2006 6:00 pm

    Greetings Tim
    You have given us so many free and helpful tips and access to other free things that I wish to thank you by recommending to all that read this note of appreciation that they should take some time out of their busy day and go to the library and borrow a book called “The Power of Intentions” it is a spiritual book and I had such joy and revelations on reading it that I feel you should know about it. The author is Dr. Wayne Dyer. Basically it talks about the laws of attraction and abundance e.g if you give of yourself to help others then you will receive in return even though you are not expecting it.It is not a book of any particular religion but the laws apply to all human beings on this planet. Tim will certainly benefit from the laws of giving freely and you will too.
    Peace to you
    Rhiannon,Perth, Western Australia

    [Reply]

  16. tim on December 31st, 2006 1:43 am

    Thanks to all for your comments - rhiannon, 2 things:

    1. The Help a Child site really is about saving children. In buying the products you see at the site, you are also helping a well-known charity to bring happiness to underpriviledged children. I’m sorry it wasn’t made more clear.

    2. Your recommendation of “The Power of Intentions” is well received. The Law of Attraction is very powerful, and something everyone working in our business needs to be aware of, and feel good about.

    A further resource, if you’re not aware of it, is at
    http://www.thesecret.tv - This is a must-see…! :)

    [Reply]

  17. Anna Bunting on February 9th, 2007 7:06 am

    Hi Tim
    I am what is called a newbe..You are the first honest person to teach on this supject.
    I am 67yrs and live on a very small income called social security and it comes once a month..
    I am reading everything you are sending me..I wanted to tell you I am learning too.
    maybe not as fast as others.. I am checking out all the sugested sites and downloads.
    I just wanted to tell you A BIG THANK YOU for your time which is priceless and the lessons I am sure I could not afford to pay for..most important your high standered of honesty..thank you again
    Anna

    [Reply]

  18. Ahmad Hajeir on February 25th, 2007 5:59 am

    Hi
    let us see what you have!

    [Reply]

  19. nimi67 on June 9th, 2007 2:51 pm

    Hi,
    I need to build a list, dont know how
    thanks
    nimi

    [Reply]

  20. Mick Robinson on August 21st, 2007 3:09 pm

    Hi Tim, having read the article I can identify with some of the points you make. The biggest one being getting distracted. I’m off to put some of these ideas into action.
    Thanks
    Mick Robinson

    [Reply]

  21. hiutopor on September 18th, 2007 1:05 am

    Hello

    Very interesting information! Thanks!

    G’night

    [Reply]

  22. Chuck Bartok on September 30th, 2007 1:27 pm

    As usual, very informative…
    But I also suffer distraction.
    Whenever I get an e-mail form you, it sets
    me off in a different direction.

    [Reply]

  23. Nate on January 28th, 2008 5:22 am

    Not bad.

    However, none of your links seem to be working anymore. What’s up? I’ve submitted a ticket at one of your “help desks” and it doesn’t even show up. Come on now, I thought this was actually going to help.

    Now I’m just upset.

    Any help, please?

    Nate

    [Reply]

  24. Violet A. Marcelo on March 1st, 2008 9:19 am

    Your post is indeed very helpful. Thank you for a great post.

    [Reply]

  25. vivian on March 11th, 2008 10:02 pm

    Hi Tim,

    Just wanted to say thank you for all your teaching. See you at the WIS in Sydney!

    [Reply]

  26. Brenda McFadyen on April 19th, 2008 10:36 pm

    Hi Tim, I wanted to buy but when I clicked Pay I ran into Paypal. As far as I’m concerned they are con artists. Do you deal with anyone else?
    Thank you
    Brenda
    P.S. As a small testimonial, I’d like to say, I think both your recent deals are fantastic, and you certainly care about your members. I believe you are
    one of those people that love to help people in general.
    Brenda

    [Reply]

  27. List Building Tools - what’s most important? : Tim Brocklehurst on July 9th, 2008 7:13 pm

    [...] articles: Build it FAST! Lesson 1. Social Bookmarking Filed Under: Advice, List Building, List [...]

  28. Build your List FAST… : Tim Brocklehurst on July 9th, 2008 7:13 pm

    [...] take someone with a small list to someone with a big list. If you’d like to see how it is, - have a look here. Social Bookmarking Filed Under: List Building, List [...]

  29. Mike Howell on August 24th, 2008 12:58 am

    Hi Tim,

    It is pleasing to see so many people benefiting from your material and hopefully one day I too might be a user of MVS3 and it’s associated products. At the moment though I trying to work out the best strategies to implement to begin my career in Intenet Marketing which can suffer information overload! Your introductory videos Tim along with the other material presented is a great learning curve.

    One thing I have found annoying is the lack of response through your Support Desk and even a couple of your email addresses. It has been almost 2 weeks now since I sent my first enquiry, followed by a second, then one to your email address you are using to sell your barn, then I got someone from World Internet Summit to contact you and lastly I got in contact with a guy that attended you Aussie workshop earlier this year. All I get is automated stuff which I tend not to read now because the customer service which is the cornerstone of any business (as you well know) is, sadly, not there.

    I clicked on the link above where you say get the template you used for your squeeze page and I get what appears to be Mike Filsaime trying to flog something. I just clicked out!

    Tim, as much I believe you would be a good mentor to have it is disappointing to see you do not practice one of the golden rules. After many enquiries and the responses to them it would seem I am not the only one who has had this problem.

    This is all good constructive criticism Tim so dont think too badly of me as I hope to one still make it on your team.

    Rgds,

    Mike

    [Reply]

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