Should I Buy An Email List Or Build My Own?
When you're pressed for time and battling multiple priorities in your online business (and your life!!!), it might look faster and easier to buy a list rather than building your own. But there are several solid reasons why you should build your own rather than buying it from a list broker.
When you buy a list, you are taking certain risks, such as:
Leads That Are Irrelevant
When you buy a list, you will probably be buying one that includes leads from any number of other, very different websites. These sites may have no interest in the products or services you are offering. You also will not know how old the leads are because, in some cases, list brokers sell the same leads for several years. So, your non-opens and dead links can be very high.
It's going to be very hard to convince someone who has never visited your site and has previously shown no interest in your services or products to buy from you. They will probably see you as an interruption in their life and promptly delete your email. Most people will have gotten on the list because they opted in on a different website, and they believed their information would not be shared. That's a terrible way to start a business relationship.
Your Email Might Be Marked As Spam
If your email is flagged as spam, you risk ending up on a blacklist and, once you're on a blacklist, it's very difficult to get yourself removed. If your recipient receives an email from you and he or she doesn't know who you are, they will most likely send your email to their spam folder and, when that happens, you are risking your business.
Many Other People Have Purchased The Same List
When you purchase a list, it has undoubtedly been sold many times. The subscribers to that list are probably being swamped with irrelevant emails. Your emails will get lost in the clutter, and you will have wasted your valuable time and money. The only one who will make a profit is the person who sold you the list in the first place.
Build A Well-Vetted Email List
On the other hand, if you take the time to build a list based on opt-ins from your own site, you will have added a targeted lead and, because they have already seen your site, they will be aware of your offerings and be interested in buying them.
These are your perfect customers, the people who will buy your products, give you word-of-mouth endorsements, and build your business.
Building your own list is more work and aggravation, but the quality of the leads is much better than buying a list filled with someone else's leads. Those leads will never be as strong and convert as well, like those you have obtained yourself through the strength of your offers, your personality, and the loyalty that your subscribers feel to you.
What has been your experience? Have you purchased any email lists?
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