I still remember the day I realized I’d made a colossal marketing mistake.
I was sitting in my office (okay, my kitchen table), staring at the analytics dashboard for our product launch. Despite all the social media buzz we’d carefully orchestrated, the sales numbers were… underwhelming. Meanwhile, my competitor had just sent out an email blast and sold out their entire inventory in two hours.
That’s when it hit me like a ton of bricks: for three years, I had been treating my email list like that gym membership I bought in January—acknowledging its existence once in a while but never actually using it.
“But I’m Building an Audience on Social Media!”
That was my excuse. A terrible, horrible, no-good excuse.
I was pouring hours into crafting the perfect Instagram posts. Tweaking Twitter threads until 2 AM. Creating TikTok content that my teenage nephew assured me was “not completely embarrassing.” I became obsessed with follower counts and engagement rates.
Don’t get me wrong—social media has its place. But I was building my business on rented land, at the mercy of ever-changing algorithms and platforms that could (and did) pull the rug out from under me faster than you can say “algorithm update.”
Meanwhile, my sad, neglected email list sat there with its measly 237 subscribers, most of whom were probably wondering who I was and why they’d signed up in the first place.
The Wake-Up Call
My turning point came during a mastermind call when I sheepishly admitted I wasn’t consistently emailing my list.
“How often do you send emails?” asked one of the group members.
“Um, whenever I have something to sell?” I replied.
The collective groan was deafening, even through Zoom.
Another founder in the group shared that 68% of her revenue came directly from email marketing—with a list she’d been nurturing for years. Not from Instagram. Not from her podcast. From. Her. Email. List.
I felt like I’d been missing out on the internet’s best-kept secret, except it wasn’t a secret at all. I was just ignoring the obvious.
The Email Renaissance
That week, I committed to resurrecting my email strategy from the digital graveyard. Here’s what I did:
- I apologized to my list. Yes, I literally sent an “I’m sorry I ghosted you” email. The response was surprisingly positive, with a 42% open rate (much higher than industry average).
- I created a content calendar specifically for emails. No more “whenever I feel like it” approach. I committed to consistent weekly value.
- I started treating subscribers like VIPs. Exclusive content, early access, behind-the-scenes looks at the business—my email subscribers now get it all before anyone else.
- I placed opt-in forms everywhere. My website now has more entry points to my email list than a Swiss cheese has holes.
- I created a lead magnet people actually want. Instead of the generic “10 Tips” PDF, I created something that solved a specific, painful problem for my audience.
The Results (Or: Why I Now Want to Time-Travel and Slap My Former Self)
Within six months, my list grew from those sad 237 subscribers to over 5,000. But more importantly, those subscribers were engaged, responsive, and—here’s the kicker—ready to buy.
When we launched our next product, email marketing alone generated 73% of our total sales. Not only that, but our customer acquisition cost dropped by 64% compared to social media advertising.
If I had focused on building and nurturing my email list from day one, I could have saved thousands of dollars in advertising costs and countless hours of social media anxiety.
What I Wish Someone Had Told Me (So I’m Telling You)
If you’re making the same mistake I did, consider this your intervention:
- Your email list is the only marketing asset you truly own. Platforms come and go (RIP Google+), but your email list remains.
- Email marketing still has the highest ROI of any digital channel. On average, you can expect a $42 return for every $1 spent. Try getting that from a Facebook ad these days.
- Building a list takes time. Start now, even if you don’t have anything to sell yet. Future You will thank Present You profusely.
- Consistency beats perfection. My subscribers respond better to authentic, regular emails than they do to the occasional perfectly polished newsletter.
- The money is in the relationship. Email gives you direct access to your audience’s most personal online space: their inbox. Don’t abuse that privilege with constant sales pitches.
How to Avoid My Mistake
Starting an email list isn’t the hard part—nurturing it is. After my wake-up call, I realized I needed a system that would help me manage my list effectively without becoming another full-time job.
That’s when I discovered Magnet Manager, and it changed everything about how I approach email marketing.
With Magnet Manager, I was able to:
- Create targeted segments to send more relevant content
- Automate sequences that nurture new subscribers
- Track which emails actually drove sales (not just opens)
- A/B test different approaches to continuously improve results
Instead of dreading email marketing day, I now spend about 2 hours a week on it, and it drives more results than all my other marketing efforts combined.
Don’t Be Like Past Me
If there’s one thing I could tell every entrepreneur just starting out, it would be this: your email list is your most valuable marketing asset. Period.
Start building it now. Nurture it consistently. Treat your subscribers like the VIPs they are.
And if you want to avoid the years of frustration and missed opportunities that I experienced, check out Magnet Manager. Your future self (and your bank account) will thank you.
Have you been neglecting your email list too? Let me know in the comments below—misery loves company, and I’d love to hear I wasn’t the only one making this mistake!
