Your email list is your most important asset. It’s the only channel you truly own, that isn’t subject to the whims of algorithms. And it allows you to build a relationship over time, becoming a trusted advisor with your subscribers (if done well.)

Which begs the question, “What’s the best way to grow my email list?”

It’s not a generic “subscribe to my newsletter.”

Nobody wants to subscribe to yet another newsletter. Most of us have declared newsletter bankruptcy already. Your audience most likely doesn’t want generic “insights delivered their their inbox.”

You need something different. Something that’s actually compelling. You need a content upgrade.

What’s Wrong with Newsletters?

There’s nothing technically wrong with newsletters. As a secondary call to action on your homepage, when you don’t know much about your visitor, it’s probably fine (although we’d suggest calling it something other than a newsletter.)

But for most firm, the bulk of their traffic will be on articles or content pages inside of their sites. That’s what ranks on Google. That’s what gets shared on social media.

Those articles are about something.

A call to action to subscribe to a vague newsletter is “low congruence”. It has nothing to do with the content the visitor is consuming.

Low congruence means low conversion rate. Which means fewer subscribers. Fewer opportunities to build trust with potential clients.

There’s a better way.

A Better Way: Content Upgrades

A content upgrade is a specific, valuable resource related to the content the visitor is reading that accomplishes a tangible goal.

If they’re reading an article about change management, it might be a change management readiness assessment. If they’re reading a post about how to build out their sales team, it might be a hiring scorecard.

The key is that it is tied to what they’re reading (which implies that it’s tied to something they’re interested in.) It’s not a vague promise of future value, but a specific promise of immediate value. Which is why they work so well.

Content upgrades are great for several reasons:

• They’re relevant. You’re catching someone when they’re actively thinking about a problem you help solve.
• They’re specific. Specificity doesn’t always work. But specificity plus relevance is incredibly effective.
• They provide data on (and potentially qualify) prospects. Someone downloading a change management template is likely dealing with change management challenges. Simply clicking on an article is a faint signal in our experience. But clicking on an article AND downloading a content upgrade signals a much higher level of interest. While they might not be in a buying window, they are at least giving you a clue into how you can further help them over time.
• They build trust. They are one of the best examples of giving away your secrets. Which as we’ve discussed before demonstrates your expertise to clients in tangible ways.

How to Create Great Content Upgrades

Perhaps the best thing about content upgrades is their simplicity. In most cases they are simpler than the article they are associated with. Templates, checklists, cheat sheets etc. are all valuable because they take all your knowledge and distill it down into concrete steps or takeaways. That’s not less valuable, it’s theoretically more.

Even easier - you can use artifacts from your actual work with clients. A great deliverable, generalized and packaged up for general consumption, doesn’t require a bunch of new work on your part. It shows potential clients what kind of work you do. And they likely still need help with implementation, because you have the benefit of pattern recognition and dozens of reps.

When you’re working on a new article or blog post, be thinking about the content upgrade at the outset.

1. What problems are your readers trying to solve by reading this?
2. What tools would make their job easier?
3. What frameworks do you use internally that could be valuable to them?
4. What templates or checklists could help them put your ideas into action?

Some proven formats that work well:

• Assessment tools and diagnostics
• Templates and frameworks
• Checklists and implementation guides
• Workshop facilitation guides
• ROI calculators
• Decision matrices

The key is making sure they're genuinely useful and relevant.

What Happens Next?

Obviously once someone requests a content upgrade you want to fulfill that for them. So make sure you send the email out as quickly as possible with the resource they requested.

From there you have a few options. You can simply add them to your house list, where they get invites to webinars and other communications. If that’s all you do it’s still better than current state - you have more subscribers.

But you can do better. You can design a series of messages around the specific problem they’ve indicated interest in.

So again, if they downloaded your change management assessment, you could send them a sequence of emails with additional change management insights. Not generic firm updates or random thoughts – specific, valuable content about the issue they care about.

Even better, you can send them an invitation to a webinar or event that goes into more detail abut how you think about change management. We’ve found webinars are a great way to cover pain points in more depth, and move potential clients closer to the point of raising their hands.

Lastly, you can enrich your contacts using tools like Clay and get their LinkedIn information, sending them a connection request. The goal isn’t to get them on a call, but simply to get them into your universe so they see your content on LinkedIn (which you have. Right?)

How to Get Started

A couple suggestions for how to start.

1. Look at your most existing popular content, with an emphasis on pages that currently drive the most traffic. What immediate value could you add to it?
2. Think about the tools you use internally. Could any be repurposed as content upgrades?
3. Ask your delivery team what templates or frameworks they wish clients had before engaging with you.
4. Create focused email sequences for each content upgrade that provide additional value around that specific topic.

One last note - keep your content upgrades specific and relevant to your Ideal Client Profile. Your goal isn’t to build the biggest list, but the most targeted. You want people opting in who might theoretically become clients at some point. The more specific you can make your content upgrades to their world, the better.

There is a place for your newsletter. But specific, valuable content upgrades are a much better way to drive signups from your content.

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