Lyons Leadership

Content is king. It gets to wear the crown. And sit on the throne. And rule the world. When it comes to establishing credibility, gaining trust and producing sales, content is royalty. While I would never suggest abandoning the concept of delivering high quality content to your subscribers, there is another type of list composed of subscribers who couldn’t care less about content.

“What is this type of list?” you ask. – The “announcement list”. Since 2002, I’ve been lecturing about the announcement list – on record at an event, no less. But this is still a highly unused asset for most marketing folks. That is because no one is telling you it works. Therefore, no one knows much about it, nor do they know how to create this type of list effectively. With that in mind, let’s talk about it.

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What Is An “Announcement” List?

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DEFINED: An announcement list is a list whose sole purpose is to “announce” (I.E. Inform, notify) when something new is available for review, consumption or purchase. In other words, it unapologetically says, “Hey, I just released XYZ. Come check it out!” Now, at first glance you may be thinking, “Who would join a list that offers no content and only sales pitch?” If you say it that way, it doesn’t sound too good to me either! That’s why you don’t say it that way. Let’s take a look at HOW to “say it”…

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How About An Example “Announcement” List?

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If you go to my site you’ll find a textbook example of this concept. PLRSO stands for “Private Label Rights Special Offers” I established this list for the sole purpose of informing people anytime I have a new PLR offer available for them to buy.

Got it? No ezine articles sent to them, no weekly newsletters, no blogging, no special reports, NO CONTENT, period!. These subscribers get sales messages. With a current total of 2,822 subscribers some of whom have already purchased many of the special offers which have been “announced” to them.

Why does it work? Let me give you plenty of reasons…

1. I took something that was “in-demand” (PLR) and I allow people to get a head-start on the world by knowing about new releases FIRST by joining this list.

2. I don’t call it an “announcement list”, instead it is my “Free PLR Club”. That dramatically changes the perception.

3. I purchase a separate domain name for it, increasing the perceived importance and value to those who subscribe.

4. There is no requirement to buy once you join. Buy the offers that you want, pass on the ones you don’t want.

5. A cost example is provided to show what you can buy immediately, further illustrating the value of the complimentary “membership”.

And here’s the big twist that makes this idea of creating an “announcement” list a complete no-brainer…I allow my affiliates to “give away” no cost memberships to the PLRSO club! When someone they refer buys one of the offers, they earn a commission. And I get other people to promote and build my list for me. We all win.

So, you may be thinking…

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What Kind Of “Announcement” List can I Build?

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There are a wide variety of “announcement” lists that you can build. Let’s briefly look at nine of them…

* PLR List. Swipe my idea, create yoru own list of private label rights buyers.

* New Offers List. Build a list of people who love your work and want to be notified any time you have a new offer available.

* Pre-Launch List. Create buzz and anticipation for an upcoming new product release by building a pre-launch list several weeks (even months) in advance.

* Ezine Publishers List. A list of publishers wanting any new ezine article you have that is available for them to reprint in their ezines.

* Bloggers List. Allow bloggers who are looking for ready-made content to post to their blogs. “Announce” to them when you have new content.

* Industry News List. How about becoming the “go to” guy or gal to share breaking news about your industry?

* Joint Venture List. Develop a list of partners and affiliates who are ready to promote anytime you have a new offer.

* Incentives List. Here’s a great idea – create a list of people who you offer “incentives” to when they purchase someone else’s new product through YOUR affiliate link.

* Freebie List. Give away rebrandable content (articles, reports, videos, etc.) to the subscribers of this list to earn commissions.

These nine types of lists won’t immediately be buyers from the get go, but the subscribers can become buyers and generate revenue if implemented. While content may be king, there are still a lot of princes, dukes and earls out there too.