how do i rent or make money from my email list (don't want to sell it)
August 29, 2013 5:25 PM Subscribe
I want to rent my 1000+ email list of women in the fitness/exercise niche. How do I do it?
High quality, active list - double opt ins. I grew my list from my blog that focuses on a fitness trend aimed at women / also sells my ebook
And...be sure your subscribers are into this. Nothing would make me opt-out faster than a sudden influx of sponsored emails on an otherwise shill-free listserv.
It's a bit more palpable when done as jacalata suggests -- if one story in your newsletter is sponsored by a company or product, and you yourself can speak to its efficacy or use-value.
posted by barnone at 5:39 PM on August 29, 2013 [17 favorites]
It's a bit more palpable when done as jacalata suggests -- if one story in your newsletter is sponsored by a company or product, and you yourself can speak to its efficacy or use-value.
posted by barnone at 5:39 PM on August 29, 2013 [17 favorites]
There's no way to rent data in this manner because you have no way of protecting it from being copied -- these days you can take a photo of a computer screen and run it through OCR with no problems -- and no way to enforce it being from being used in a manner you don't want or passed or sold to anyone else.
Hell, if you sell it to a person who forgets to use BCC while sending out an email, every one of the 1000+ people now has the list and you have no recourse.
posted by griphus at 5:47 PM on August 29, 2013
Hell, if you sell it to a person who forgets to use BCC while sending out an email, every one of the 1000+ people now has the list and you have no recourse.
posted by griphus at 5:47 PM on August 29, 2013
Renting / selling this list will immediately lower its value. How about accepting sponsored posts instead, and sending it out via your newsletter? (I assume you regularly use this list already?)
posted by third word on a random page at 5:51 PM on August 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by third word on a random page at 5:51 PM on August 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
We provide major event sponsors an email list of all registrants; they can send one email prior to the event and one after, with our advance approval.
We seed the list with one address that goes to staff. In 20+ years, no sponsor has ever abused the privilege. YMMV.
But we don't "rent" the list to just anyone.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 5:55 PM on August 29, 2013
We seed the list with one address that goes to staff. In 20+ years, no sponsor has ever abused the privilege. YMMV.
But we don't "rent" the list to just anyone.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 5:55 PM on August 29, 2013
AFAIK, under CAN-SPAM you CANNOT sell or rent your list, because no one on the list opted-in to receiving emails other than what they signed up for in the first place.
That said, you could seek sponsorship for your email newsletter, and explain that in the campaign kickoff. Presumably if they don't like it, they can unsubscribe.
If the sponsor's service is relevant and of value (ie, it's an offering that is compelling to your list, and is not transactional in nature, like health supplements), there shouldn't be a problem.
You get the sponsor, write a blog post, and point people at your blog.
However, simply "renting" is, from the admittedly dubious standards of email marketers (of which I am one), quite unethical, and likely illegal to boot.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:06 PM on August 29, 2013 [9 favorites]
That said, you could seek sponsorship for your email newsletter, and explain that in the campaign kickoff. Presumably if they don't like it, they can unsubscribe.
If the sponsor's service is relevant and of value (ie, it's an offering that is compelling to your list, and is not transactional in nature, like health supplements), there shouldn't be a problem.
You get the sponsor, write a blog post, and point people at your blog.
However, simply "renting" is, from the admittedly dubious standards of email marketers (of which I am one), quite unethical, and likely illegal to boot.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:06 PM on August 29, 2013 [9 favorites]
Let's assume you could rent your email list. What you're doing, in real terms, is taking the trust of the people who signed up to your mailing list and turning it into spam. Is this something you want to do? Is this something you'd want to do if they could find out you'd done it?
I opt into mailing lists because I'm interested in what somebody is doing. Nothing would make me opt out again faster than the realisation that person sees me merely as a mark. It would also taint my view of them and their projects in the future.
So let's be clear here: you're not just talking about renting your mailing list. You're talking about selling your reputation.
The only way I can see something like this working is, as others have stated, if you have sponsored posts. Or, even better, have your own weekly newsletter-type email sponsored, so there's real content in there with the ads. You should also ensure that any ad content is clearly designated as such -- no hazy cross-over with your real content and recommendations.
Also, I suspect there's a better way to make money from this list, especially if it's as high-quality as you say: use it to advertise your own services. Sponsor your posts with you! Talk about your ebooks, your personal training services, your workout routines, or whatever it is that you do. You have a captive audience of engaged, motivated people who want to be marketed to by you, and that's rare, no matter what your business. I really would think twice if you want to undermine that for a little bit of spam money.
posted by Georgina at 6:14 PM on August 29, 2013 [11 favorites]
I opt into mailing lists because I'm interested in what somebody is doing. Nothing would make me opt out again faster than the realisation that person sees me merely as a mark. It would also taint my view of them and their projects in the future.
So let's be clear here: you're not just talking about renting your mailing list. You're talking about selling your reputation.
The only way I can see something like this working is, as others have stated, if you have sponsored posts. Or, even better, have your own weekly newsletter-type email sponsored, so there's real content in there with the ads. You should also ensure that any ad content is clearly designated as such -- no hazy cross-over with your real content and recommendations.
Also, I suspect there's a better way to make money from this list, especially if it's as high-quality as you say: use it to advertise your own services. Sponsor your posts with you! Talk about your ebooks, your personal training services, your workout routines, or whatever it is that you do. You have a captive audience of engaged, motivated people who want to be marketed to by you, and that's rare, no matter what your business. I really would think twice if you want to undermine that for a little bit of spam money.
posted by Georgina at 6:14 PM on August 29, 2013 [11 favorites]
It's not worth it. Think about the economics. Someone renting your list for one-time use (knowing that doing so violates CAN-SPAM as KokuRyu mentions) might pay $10 per thousand, or $10 in your case. If you could do that once a month, you make $120 in a year. Meanwhile, people would be opting out of your list by droves because they are being spammed. So at the end of the year, you have $120 and only 750 emails left.
You can make a lot more money if you guard this list more closely, sell a few sponsorship as suggested, along with your own content and products.
posted by beagle at 6:18 PM on August 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
You can make a lot more money if you guard this list more closely, sell a few sponsorship as suggested, along with your own content and products.
posted by beagle at 6:18 PM on August 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
And let's face it, 1000 people on a list is not a huge list. It is tiny (indeed, with a list of this size I would be working at engagement with my blog, not selling something).
I think you will have pretty high open rates, and, for non-sponsored content, you will probably have a high click rate. You can probably leverage the insights into behaviour that you have learned from your e-book (getting email addresses is no easy thing! congrats!)
However, "converting" your audience and getting them to pay for a product or service, is a different kettle of fish.
Say if all 1000 people opened (unlikely) and all 1000 opens clicked on the sponsored link (highly unlikey), you might get a 2% conversion rate, which is 20 people... if all 1000 opened, and all 1000 clicked on the link.
Realistically you might get 5 purchasers from a list of 1000. So is it worth it to your sponsor? Is there enough of a margin for it to make sense for you to pursue?
If I were you, I would invest my time and energy into learning how to be an email marketer. You obviously have some talent. Like I said, getting 1000 sigs from your e-book is no easy feat. You should be proud of that (and not throw it away), and maybe figure out how to learn more so you can offer your services to an agency.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:22 PM on August 29, 2013
I think you will have pretty high open rates, and, for non-sponsored content, you will probably have a high click rate. You can probably leverage the insights into behaviour that you have learned from your e-book (getting email addresses is no easy thing! congrats!)
However, "converting" your audience and getting them to pay for a product or service, is a different kettle of fish.
Say if all 1000 people opened (unlikely) and all 1000 opens clicked on the sponsored link (highly unlikey), you might get a 2% conversion rate, which is 20 people... if all 1000 opened, and all 1000 clicked on the link.
Realistically you might get 5 purchasers from a list of 1000. So is it worth it to your sponsor? Is there enough of a margin for it to make sense for you to pursue?
If I were you, I would invest my time and energy into learning how to be an email marketer. You obviously have some talent. Like I said, getting 1000 sigs from your e-book is no easy feat. You should be proud of that (and not throw it away), and maybe figure out how to learn more so you can offer your services to an agency.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:22 PM on August 29, 2013
Another way to make money from so many subscribers would be to become an affiliate for a fitness product distributor (full disclosure, I work for one of these types)
As an affiliate as you mention products and describe how to use them, you would link them to the distributor, the reader visits distributor page and you make money off what they buy. Some companies pay you if the customer comes back days later and buys. That way you don't lose readers for selling their emails. (I would unsubscribe for that)
posted by meeshell at 6:39 PM on August 29, 2013
As an affiliate as you mention products and describe how to use them, you would link them to the distributor, the reader visits distributor page and you make money off what they buy. Some companies pay you if the customer comes back days later and buys. That way you don't lose readers for selling their emails. (I would unsubscribe for that)
posted by meeshell at 6:39 PM on August 29, 2013
"How much are YOU making from this list each month?" That'd be the first question anyone would ask. Until you have demonstrated that the list has value, most business-minded people would be unwilling to buy an "ad".
Do you have affiliate links on your blog? If not, go somewhere like shareasale (or similar) where there are thousands of different opportunities. You have to decide which of these businesses or services are suitable for your audience. You can put these affiliate links on your blog postings and on emails you send. The money you make begins to demonstrate the value of your audience.
I think blogging is a hard business. My brother-in-law has not yet earned back what he spends on hosting/domain costs, let alone all of his time. Good luck.
posted by 99percentfake at 7:41 PM on August 29, 2013
Do you have affiliate links on your blog? If not, go somewhere like shareasale (or similar) where there are thousands of different opportunities. You have to decide which of these businesses or services are suitable for your audience. You can put these affiliate links on your blog postings and on emails you send. The money you make begins to demonstrate the value of your audience.
I think blogging is a hard business. My brother-in-law has not yet earned back what he spends on hosting/domain costs, let alone all of his time. Good luck.
posted by 99percentfake at 7:41 PM on August 29, 2013
The correct (and smart) way to do this is to sell ads in your newsletter or sell sponsored mailings to the people to whom you were planning to rent your list.
posted by DarlingBri at 5:49 AM on August 30, 2013
posted by DarlingBri at 5:49 AM on August 30, 2013
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posted by jacalata at 5:34 PM on August 29, 2013 [1 favorite]