#118 - Why Your Email List Isn’t Converting (And the Simple Fix Most People Miss)

Growing your email list… but not seeing sales? This episode is for you.

In today’s conversation, I’m breaking down one of the most common mistakes I see entrepreneurs make with email marketing, and why more subscribers won’t fix it.

Email marketing is still one of the highest ROI channels available (bringing in an average of $36 for every $1 spent), but most people are missing the strategy that actually turns subscribers into buyers.

Inside this episode, you’ll learn:

•  Why your email list might not be converting 
•  The simple mistake most people make after someone opts in 
•  The 3-part system that turns subscribers into clients 
•  How to build trust so selling feels easy and natural 

Whether you already have a list or haven’t started yet, this will help you understand how to make email marketing actually work for your business.

🎯 Want help setting this up?

I’m hosting a free live workshop where I’ll walk you through how to build a simple email system step-by-step.

→ Register Here

You’ll also get access to a bonus email template + the opportunity to book a free 20-minute funnel audit!

Mindset to Market is a Luminous Creative Production. If you'd like to learn more about our business coaching program and group coaching container, please visit us online at DeborahcSmith.com.

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Mindset to Market is produced by Deborah C. Smith and designed to inspire and support big-hearted creatives in finding their own unique path, building a sustainable business, and creating financial, spiritual, mental wellness and abundance.

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Transcript

Oh my goodness, you guys, I got an email from one of my clients this week where she told me that she had just sold a $1,200 package, and I quote from just two emails and she was thrilled, right? She was also a little surprised that it actually worked, and so I had to remind her that this didn't just happen because of those two little emails. This happened because of the decisions that we made and the strategy that we set in motion about three months ago. So we decided she was gonna start showing up consistently, sending very simple weekly emails that build trust, share her perspective, you know, her point of view, tips on her topic of expertise, and actually just connect in a wholesome way with her audience. No over complicated funnel, no constant selling, just consistent, intentional connection and communication so that when it's finally time for her to start selling and make an offer, it feels easy. It feels natural, and people are ready to buy, right? They've, she's built that trust with them. So that's what we're gonna talk about today. We're gonna talk about email marketing and the strategy behind it all. And I am gonna share with you why it's not enough to just grow your list, why you absolutely have to nurture it, and the three simple steps that you can take to do that. So let's get into this. Hey there. Welcome to the Mindset to Market podcast, your go-to space for practical tools and solutions to the everyday challenges of being a creative and soulful entrepreneur living in a material world. I'm your host, Deborah Smith, a holistic business coach and marketing strategist with 17 years of experience. I help my clients bust through mindset blocks and learn daily marketing practices that balance personal wellness with financial growth and impact. I'm here to offer you support with creativity, mindset, practical how-tos, and getting into imperfect messy actions so you can experience daily breakthroughs as you grow. If you're a purpose-driven entrepreneur building an online business, you're in the right place. Let's dive in. Hey you guys, welcome back. Uh, and if it's your first time listening, welcome to Mindset to Market. My name is Deborah. So excited to be here. Um, before we get into today's topic, which is gonna be about email marketing strategy and mistakes that people make, I just wanna say shout out to Jen from Michigan for, um, the email where she commented on the intro music of the podcast. In answer to your question, I did create that myself, but I. Did not play the instruments. I do play bass guitar. Um, I do not play flute, but I used garage band and the loop sampler to put together that little body of music. But thank you so much for asking that question. 'cause of course it's part of the creative process and I quite enjoyed it. So it was nice to hear from you. Also, just a little bit of housekeeping, a couple of things to mention. For anyone listening to this in real time, it is. April 21st when you'd be hearing this. And I'm teaching two live classes tonight at 7:00 PM and tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time for both of them. And the topic is how to grow your email list and make sales. And so we're talking about it today on the podcast. If you wanna learn the strategy from me live in person, come to that webinar. The link is in the show notes. It's also pinned to all of my social media. And of course on my website. So that's just, if you want to go further with this, if you're thinking about how to employ email strategy, if you wanna meet me in person and ask questions, definitely come to that or register for it and then, you know, sign up to get the replay. Okay. So let's start with this. Just like a funnel does not sell your offer. You sell your offer. The same is true for your email list. Your email list doesn't sell your offer. Your email list is a curated list of people who have raised their hand and said, I'm interested in what you do. So the overall purpose of an an online marketing funnel system of any kind is to automate all the parts of lead generation and sales that you don't personally have to be present for, to give you back hours to days, two weeks of your time, while ensuring that your dream clients and all the people coming to into your world are getting taken care of, are still getting nurtured. They're getting the information that they're seeking, they're getting to know you. They get to hear from you and feel supported. Even though you're not actually there typing out every single response, right? It's automated, but the funnel system that you build is only as powerful as the strategy behind it. So today we're gonna talk about email marketing, list building, and that most simple of funnels, which is just offering people to come into your world in exchange for some type of valuable content, and then growing a relationship with them. And if you're wondering, the answer is yes. In 2026, email marketing is still one of the highest return on investment marketing channels out there. I did a little updated a little research this week. It's roughly 36 to one. So if you're investing in dollar in having an email marketing system and hosting platform, and you're actually following a strategy. You can expect approximately $36 in return for every dollar that you spend. And it makes a lot of sense if you think about it, because it's one of the most direct cost-effective ways that you can connect with an audience, right? So unlike social media, you're not building on borrowed land. You're not praying that the algorithm works in your favor. You're not hoping that your content hits and doesn't get scrolled past. No, you have said. I've got information about a problem that you have and I have a solution. Come onto my email list and I'll, I'll teach you what I know. I'll help you find that solution. You own that email list, and so it's way more than just a list of names. This is a group of people who have raised their hand and said, yes, I'm interested in what you do, and the power in that is really in your hands because. And hear me when I say this. It is not enough just to get people to opt into your list. Once they're in there, what you do next after they join is so, so powerful because you have the opportunity there to really forge a connection and build an actual relationship. And with that relationship, build trust. And as we know, trust is the cornerstone of all sales. So a list by itself does not convert people to sales. It's not enough. To just get them on your list. You need a system and a strategy behind what you're doing next. So here's what happens all the time. This is pretty typical. You create a freebie or a lead magnet or something enticing to your audience and you start getting people on your list. Then maybe you send a few emails here and there. But there's not really a plan for what's gonna happen next. There's no clear pathway from someone signing up to becoming a buyer. So your list just kinda sits there. And even if you're sending weekly emails. It's kind of this fluffy content. It's not necessarily strategically setting them up for making a purchase, or maybe you have a whole bunch of offers, so your messaging is kind of messy and it's all over the place. Once they get on their list, or you feel like you're constantly trying to figure out, what should I be saying next? What am I gonna tell them this week? You know, what am I doing here? And this is when people typically think, you know what? I just need to get a bunch of new subscribers. I need more people. But the truth is that more people will not fix a system that isn't there. So let me say that again. Adding more people will not solve the problem of having non-existent strategy, right? We need to have a plan in place. For where we're guiding them each step of the way. So, and I see this in two different groups of people. Some, some people haven't even started their email list yet at all because it feels really overwhelming. It feels kind of confusing. Maybe you think the tech is gonna be too much to keep up with, or just the, it feels daunting to think about writing an email week after week. Um, other people have a list, but it's not yet converting. To, to sales and creating new clients. Um, and the root issue is the same in both cases, which is that what's missing is a very simple system. So there needs to be a bridge between someone raising their hand and saying, Hey, I'm interested in what you do, and then actually being guided towards working with you. So what you have is a collection of email addresses instead of a process that leads to sales and. Email marketing strategy is extremely simple, but there's some work to do to set it up for sure. So it's, you know, I'm not gonna lie to you, it doesn't just happen overnight. Like I said in the beginning of this podcast, my client has been consistent for three months and then made. A simple sale, but those three months have to be counted in part of that process because she's been laying the groundwork for that. So the good news is that it's really easy to fix this, right? You don't need to do anything complicated. Like I said, it's very simple. Um, but you do need structure and you do need to commit to. Following through on the consistent pieces of the strategy. So there's three basic pieces, the intentional opt-in, and it's not just any opt-in. As I said, they're intentional. So this is something that attracts the right people. And a lot of times people will put out a lead magnet or you know, dangle a carrot to get on their email list that is sort of broad. And that broad solution to a broad problem collects a whole bunch of people who are broadly interested in what you do. When your lead magnet is very, very specific and is hyperfocused on a specific problem that a specific group of people are facing, it's a lot more impactful. So your intentional opt-in is piece one. The second piece is just a simple email sequence, which is an automated series of emails. It's like a few emails that are just gonna build trust, tell a few stories, make a connection, share a little bit of your point of view. Um, this is done in very simple, you know, periodic drops of information. And then the third piece is the, uh. Clear next step that they can take if they want to solve that problem with you. So this is an invitation to work with you inside your offer. Set up a phone call, maybe sharing a link to a product that you sell, something that moves them forward and gets them unstuck. So they've been on your email list, learning more about you, learning from you, getting this nurture content, and then you can say, Hey, and if you wanna do. You know, take a next step. Here's the next step. That's it. That's the whole strategy. That's the whole system. So you're not trying to do everything at once. You're just creating a really clear path for them to walk. If they're ready to solve that problem and your solution is appealing to them, then it's as simple as getting that in front of them. So. This is exactly what my client did, right? She didn't suddenly become better at selling high ticket offers overnight. She built trust and she took time to nurture and show up consistently with this audience so that when she sent those two emails. They were very impactful and effective because the groundwork was already laid. So, and I know what you're thinking, you're gonna say, but Debra, I have a lead magnet or I have email, but it's not making me any sales. I've never sold anything from email, so I. There's a lot of different things that we can talk about in regards to, you know, what is your offer doing and what is the messaging attached to it? Like there's other variables, but assuming that your offer is validated and sale and people have bought it and gotten a transformation from it and it actually works, and assuming that your messaging. Is speaking directly to that right fit client and assuming again that your lead magnet is calling that right fit client in. In that case, the email marketing funnel should function for you. And I bet if I audited your email marketing funnel, I'd be able to tell you within a few minutes where the gap is because we all do the same thing at first. We rush into creating the assets. We get so excited about putting together this simple cost-effective, uh, email marketing funnel that we don't take time to test out the actual offers or ensure that the lead magnet is the right first step for this, this audience that we want to, to connect with. So, and then we have disconnected assets and. Disconnected messaging, so. This is where the strategy comes in. This is why the strategy is so important to the overall system. So if you've been holding off on using email or you've started, but it's not really working to create clients and, and converting to sales yet. Then I wanna invite you to get strategic about this and actually make it work for you. So, as I mentioned, I'm teaching a live workshop this week where I'm gonna walk you through how to set up the simple email system like this step by step. I'm gonna show you the high level overview. I'm also gonna share some of the very common mistakes that you don't make them. And I have a great bonus for people who show up live, which is a messaging template to set up the, strategically set up the series of emails that people should get when they opt in. So if that interests you, if you're trying to get your email marketing. Uh, funnel up to speed and strategically on point. Then I highly recommend that you join me. The link is, of course, in the show notes, and it's also linked to the top of my social media, and you can always email me if you can't find any of those things at hello@deborahcsmith.com. But I do urge you to consider this strategy as a, I would say a quintessential, critical. Asset to any solopreneur business. It's the easiest way to connect with the people that say they want to hear from you and make sales. And so I really do think we should all be doing this, um, whether you're starting from scratch. Or you're fixing what you already have, I would love to help you get it right. So I will also be offering a few 20 minute funnel audits. Um, this is for people who attend. So if you want personalized feedback, register for the event, and then you'll be on the email list and you'll get that information. And again, there's two different times I'm doing this tonight, Tuesday, uh. April 21st at 7:00 PM Eastern Standard, and then again tomorrow morning, Wednesday, April 22nd at 10:00 AM Eastern Standard, and those links are in the show notes. But even if you can't make it to one of those classes, here's what I want you to think about. If you're in the category of somebody who knows that you should be doing more with your email marketing, but you're just simply not doing it yet because either you're overwhelmed by the tech. You're not clear on your strategy or you're concerned about your ability to be consistent. Those are the three most common, uh, holdups. I would say, you know, take the time to check out. There's a link in my show Notes to Kit, which is an email service provider. I highly recommend them. They're the company that I work with and I have all my clients sign up with because they allow a lot of leeway on their fleet free plan, so you can really test it out. So just grab the link. Set up an account and start playing around with what's possible, um, and grab a 20 minute chat with me if you don't know how to do this. Um, because it is way easier than you think. But if you're somebody who has a list and you've been showing up, you've been sending weekly emails and it's not converting. Then we need to look at other variables in your system. So strategically, are you actually calling people to take an action? If so, are you presenting that, that step as a need to have versus a nice to have? So there's some other, you know, psychological triggers of marketing and sales that come into play There. And happy to check in with you about those things, but I just want you to think about the other pieces of your system. Is your offer already validated? If not, that could be the place to start. If so, is the lead magnet that you're putting out there to the world, the, the freebie or the way that you're inviting them to get on your email list, is that directly aligned to the the thing you sell? And then of course the connective tissue is all that messaging. So is the message that you're putting out there, walking them step by step from that initial contact to the sales. So think about those things a little bit and try to figure out where you might need to tweak some things. Um, and again, if you would like my help, just grab the link and jump on a call with me. This is something that I really like to do because it's easy. Oftentimes it's just having another set of eyes on your work. Like sometimes you just need someone to audit your work and say, oh, you know what? That doesn't quite make sense. Or, when you say this, it makes sense to you. But to the lay person who's not an expert in your field, it's kind of confusing and it doesn't quite make sense. Um, so sometimes we just need to tweak the messaging. So with all of that said, my friend, I really do encourage you to take a peek at your email. As an asset and think about setting it up strategically so it does heavy lifting for you, because if it's not converting for you already, um, it's probably just missing a bit of strategy and a bit of system behind it. So that's exactly what we're gonna try and fix this week. Hope to see you at one of those live trainings. And if you're listening to this in the time machine. You are welcome to click that very same link in my show notes, and that will be a replay of this training. So even if you've listened to this after the fact and you miss the live, you can join me for the replay and you can certainly use those links to connect with me personally and check in about having a conversation or potentially auditing your system. All right, my friends, let's be smarter about our online marketing. That's what email does for us. And I just want everybody emailing me saying they made. High ticket sales through emails. So that's why I wanna help you set this up. Um, so with that said, I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks to those who have been rating the podcast and leaving me reviews. It really means the world to me. And I will see you same time, same place next week. And until then, may you be vibrant.