The Importance of Email Marketing

Originally published May 3, 2019 on the original SPEN10 blog. Lightly refreshed in October 2026: fixed broken links and removed offers that are no longer available.

At first, I never really understood the importance of email marketing.

When I started with email, I was already doing other marketing — running ads on Facebook, Google and Bing. This was back when I was trying to start my first ecommerce dropshipping store. I was buying ads and getting visitors, but nobody was buying.

So I started looking for more ways to get traffic and cut costs. A few places said to build an email list.

But I thought, "It's an ecommerce store — what am I going to send my list, coupons?" I didn't want to send coupons all the time because that felt too pushy.

So I didn't start a list for a long time. I had an opt-in form at the bottom of my Shopify store, but nothing planned to send.

As I got deeper into it, I kept seeing more about email marketing, and I realized I needed to build an active list and send subscribers content related to my store. The more I researched, the clearer it became: email is one of the most powerful and cost-effective marketing methods there is.

I finally understood the importance of email marketing.

I recommend reading DotCom Secrets by Russell Brunson. It opened my eyes to email marketing (and a bunch of other things about building a business).

Here's why email is so powerful: it might cost you money to get a lead — someone's contact information, in this case their email — onto your list. But once they're on it, you can reach them anytime, for free, with helpful information, offers and resources.

Tip: Start building your email list as soon as you can, even if you have nothing to send yet.

Now let's go over how I started building my list.

Choose an autoresponder

First, you need a good autoresponder: a service that sends automatic email sequences to your subscribers.

• ActiveCampaign — what I recommended if you aren't putting affiliate links directly in your emails. Back then they didn't allow direct affiliate links; you could link to a blog post or landing page that contained them instead. That's not really a problem, because your emails should lead with valuable content anyway and mention offers only where they fit.
• GetResponse — what I recommended if you planned to link directly to affiliate offers or send promotional emails.
• AWeber — a simpler option that's great for beginners, with fewer advanced features like tagging and tracking.

2026 note: each provider's rules on affiliate links change over time — check their current acceptable-use policy before you choose.

Whichever autoresponder you use, the basics are the same. When someone joins your list, they're added to a welcome sequence: one email is usually sent immediately, and the rest drip out on the schedule you set. I make my welcome sequences 5 to 8 emails long and send one a day.

How do I get people to subscribe?

There are lots of ways to get people onto your list, and the best is to have them opt in. (Never buy or scrape email lists — people who've never heard of you will mark you as spam, and that hurts your deliverability.)

The easiest way to get people to join is to offer a free gift, or "lead magnet": an ebook, a report, a checklist or blueprint, or something bigger like access to a mini-course or a sales funnel.

You can also add an opt-in box to your blog, use a signup link as a call to action on social media or your website, or collect emails when people sign up for a product or service.

I recommend starting with something simple and easy to create, like a checklist or a short guide.

Where should I put my lead magnet?

Next, you need a page to host your opt-in offer — a page that gives away your lead magnet in exchange for an email address.

You can use a host like HostGator with WordPress and a plugin. Many autoresponders, like GetResponse, include landing page builders too. In 2019, the easiest option I'd found was ClickFunnels, which lets you build sales pages and funnels quickly.

It's also worth getting a domain name — it isn't required, but it adds credibility. Get one with your name or company name. I've always bought mine from Hover, which has been the easiest to use with the best support of any registrar I've tried.

Then you need traffic. There are countless ways to get it, but especially when you're starting out, you'll need to invest either time or money. (Each traffic method could be its own blog post!)

With email marketing, once you gain a customer, it's easy to keep them by providing lots of value, help and service. That's the importance of email marketing.

Solo ads

One of the fastest ways to start building a list is solo ads. You pay someone who already has a large email list to send an ad to their subscribers, with a link to your page. Sometimes you write the ad; sometimes the provider writes it and you just supply the URL.

Solo ads are great for testing a new campaign or offer, or for split testing, because the traffic comes in big bursts that make it easy to see what's working.

I used Udimi to find solo ad providers. It's a marketplace with reviews and statistics for each seller, so you can find the best ones — but keep in mind their results may differ for your specific offer. Be very selective, and choose providers with strong results and plenty of reviews.

Thanks for reading!

— Spencer

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