You must have a list in order to build a business on the Internet. A list, in this case, refers to the names and email addresses of the people who have given you their permission to send them regular email messages on the topic they signed up for. You will hear more experienced marketers say that the money is in the list, and this is very true.

When building your list you will want to think about the reason someone would sign up with you to begin with, how you will build the relationship with them over time, and how you will continue to find new prospects to join your list for years to come.

Your free giveaway, also referred to as your ethical bribe, is the reason someone is willing to give you their name and email address to begin with. You must present what you are giving away in the most compelling way possible, so that your prospect feels like they absolutely must have what you are giving away. Be creative, and offer something that would be valuable in their eyes.

Building this relationship over time is crucial, because many people will not buy from you until they have spent time on your list and feel they know and trust you well enough to spend money on what you have to offer. By asking them what they want and need on your topic, answering their questions, and showing them your blog posts and other writing you have done, you can ensure that this will be a smooth process.

I like to offer regular teleseminars on a variety of topics so that they can join in and speak with me directly, or at least listen to the replay. By hearing your voice, your prospects will connect with you more easily so that you can build the relationship and take it to the next level.

We must always be looking for new prospects, and setting up a series of optin pages is the very best way to do this. An optin page, also called a landing page or a squeeze page, is a site where the prospects can read a little about what you have to offer and decide if they are willing to trade you their name and email address in return for your free giveaway.

As you can see, this entire process is a very simple one. Reach out to your prospects and your online business will continue to grow.