There’s a lot of truth to statements like “the money is in the list.” In fact, in this time of dramatic Google updates and the rise of AI, it’s never been more true.
But how exactly can you turn your email list into a money-generating machine? While creating products to sell via email is a well-known strategy, your email list can also be a great way to earn affiliate commissions.
In this tutorial, I’ll show you not only how to use your list to generate affiliate revenue, but also to create raving fans of your blog.
Read on to learn:
- The importance of taking your subscribers on a journey
- How to ensure you have the right subscribers in your list
- How to design your blog’s email journey
- What to write in your emails
Note that we won’t be covering the mechanics of setting up your email list. Instead, we’ll focus on strategies for using email marketing to get affiliate commissions.
Step 1: Taking your subscribers on a journey
Success in email marketing is much like success with your blog: you have to concentrate on how you can help your readers (and not yourself). Your emails should be focused on what they want and need. If you have the right subscribers on your list, ones who need this help, you’ll be successful.
The best approach is to create a journey you can take your subscribers on: they’re dealing with some issue, they sign up, they undergo a transformation that solves their issue. And if you want to earn affiliate commissions from your emails, this transformation should involve booking travel or buying items with an affiliate.
The way I do this is by helping my subscribers plan and book a trip. Their journey through my email sequences takes them from getting started planning a trip to having it all booked.
This strategy can be applied to most if not all travel blogs. I have used it for multiple destination blogs, as well as a worldwide family travel blog.
The first step is to work out what journey you will take your readers on, so steal borrow mine or come up with your own before moving forward.
Step 2: Ensuring you have the right subscribers in your email list
Once you know the journey your subscribers will take, the next step is to understand who your target audience is f and to focus on getting them (and no one else) into your email list.
For example, for my email journey which helps people plan trips to Malaysia, I don’t want people who are thinking about going to Paris. The latter are unlikely to engage and have no reason to use my links. We don’t have anything to offer each other.
So how do you attract only the Malaysia crowd? Lead magnets – things that you give away in return for your readers’ email addresses – are the best way to get people to sign up for an email list. Your task is to design your lead magnets so they only appeal to people who fit your target audience.
So for my Malaysia planning emails, I offer a Malaysia Trip Planning Checklist. This should only appeal to people who are planning a trip to Malaysia – my target audience.
Step 3: Designing your blog’s email journey
Once you have the right subscribers signing up and you know the journey you want to take them on, what’s next? You need to design the journey email by email. In this step, you’re not going to write the texts themselves. You’re simply working out how many emails you’re going to send, when, and what each one will be about.
In this step, make sure you never lose sight of the journey you are taking your subscribers on. All of the details – timing, content, quantity – depend on the journey and the transformation you’re building up to.
Here’s an example from my Malaysia email sequence:
I have found from testing that the best approach is to send emails more frequently at the beginning and then slowly ease back until they’re weekly. This email sequence lasts a few months, introducing many elements to help readers plan, book, and prepare for their trip.
Don’t be scared to send emails frequently. If you’re offering value and getting your subscribers closer to their goal, they’ll love it. I have had so many emails from my subscribers thanking me for my helpful emails, but I haven’t had one saying that they’re too frequent.
Step 4: Writing your emails
The final step is to write your emails.
I recommend you start by doing this in a single document so you can make sure the messages flow nicely and you cover everything you need to. You can copy them into your your email marketing platform when you’re happy with them.
In each email, try to stick to one goal you’re trying to help your subscribers achieve. It could involve getting them to a blog post on your site, or to an affiliate, or both.
I usually write blog posts specifically to align with the goal of an email. The email will sketch things out, and the post will go into more detail. However, if reaching the goal is quick and easy, I may skip the post and just have all the content (and an affiliate link) in the email.
Here’s an example from my Malaysia sequence, where I help subscribers find accommodation for their trip.
Don’t feel like you have to get every email perfect before starting to send the sequence to your subscribers. Ultimately, you only need to keep one email ahead of them.
It’s go time
Treating the email sequence as a journey keeps your subscribers engaged and also makes the creation process more fun for you. I hope you try this approach out yourself and fall in love with a new way of generating affiliate commissions!
