Have You Heard of L.I.S.T. D. A.V.E.?

I’ll explain what my list building acronym, L.I.S. T. D.A.V.E stands for in a minute but first let me tell you how it can help you.

You are probably well aware of the fact that to be really successful online, you need to build your list. I like to take it a step further; a large list by itself will do you no good. You want to build a responsive list instead.

Most new or even some intermediate Internet marketers lack list-building skills.

Let’s face a harsh reality here, most site visitors are not going to buy from you on their first visit (unless you have an ecommerce site). You primary objective then should be to capture names and email addresses (subscribers) to build your list. Build a trusting relationship with them with future marketing (drip marketing). Only then will they trust your recommendations and/or open their wallets.

I don’t want you to reinvent the wheel here. So, let’s concentrate on finding the best list building service that will help you automate this critical task.

That’s where L.I.S.T. D.A.V.E. comes handy in evaluating your list building options and service providers. It stands for:

List management:.

• Allow you to manually enter a few subscribers or copy and paste from another document
• Allow you to import a file (confirmation required) in Excel (.xls), comma separated value (.csv), and text (.txt) formats
• Ability to group or segment your list by different criteria

Integrate with your website:

• Quick and easy opt-in features
• Generate HTML/JavaScript code for you to copy and paste into your site
• Allow split testing of forms to improve conversion
• Provide “social proof” for joining your list

Subscriber management:

• Automatic unsubscribe feature with no delays or manual intervention
• Automatic removal of unsubscribers and undeliverable addresses
• Easy integration with popular shopping carts

Tracking and reporting capabilities:

• Full campaign statistics – open, bounce and click-through rates
• Compare results with past email campaigns
• Subscriber growth and track opt-outs
• Geographic location and IP address of confirmed subscribers
• Automatic notifications (to you) whenever a new subscriber signs up

Deliverability:

• Enforce a zero tolerance anti-spam policy
• Require double opt-in or confirmation
• Provide built-in SPAM checker
• Authenticate email campaigns prior to delivery
• Maintain good relationships with ISP’s and be on their white list (including AOL, Hotmail etc.)

Autoresponders:

• Quick and easy set up of welcome emails for immediate communication with new subscribers
• Unlimited follow-up and broadcast emails
• Answer FAQ’s without manual intervention and deliver eCourses at set intervals (membership sites, one-on-one coaching etc.)
• Set up different delivery days and times that work best for your subscribers even if you are away from your desk/office

Viral marketing capabilities:

• Grow your list with features like “Forward-to-a-Friend”
• Add social networking features like RSS feeds and post to Twitter

Expert customer support:

• Free access to knowledgeable technical support via live chat and toll free phone
• Availability of technical support during extended hours and weekends
• Online knowledge base, videos, FAQ’s and case studies
• Email marketing tips, case studies and free webinars

If you are a newbie or want to automate list building further, look for other capabilities such as professionally designed email templates to give you a head start.

Use L.I.S.T. D.A.V.E. to evaluate your current provider or to find a new service that will help you build a responsive list faster.

I use AWeber (Yes, that’s my affiliate link). You can try them out risk free with their 30-day money back guarantee.

If you want to learn more about traffic and list building, sign up for my FREE traffic eCourse and list marketing eBook.