How to boost your newsletter sign ups
Newsletter sign-ups can be a vital aspect of visitor attraction businesses, connecting directly with potential new customers and returning ones.
An engaged subscriber base can be a great asset, and in our guide we'll explore different ways to boost newsletter sign-ups. You’ll see how some of the tips listed here have led to notable increases in subscriptions.
1. Compelling Content
Tailor Content to Your Audience
Understanding your target audience is key. What interests and excites them? Tailor your content to address their specific needs.
For many visitor attractions that appeal to kids, the number one demographic tends to be family-focused adults in their 25-45 age range.
What content could you tempt parents with? What would they be interested in?
Things they can do with their kids, special events and seasonal event information (such as Halloween, Christmas and any upcoming half-term periods) and importantly, ways they can save money.
Valuable Content
Offer content that provides real value. This could include insider tips, behind-the-scenes stories, or exclusive access to events.
Again though, at the heart of it all, a lot of people want to know how to save money. Even if you don’t have any money-saving promotions on, simply stating that your users could potentially get offers if they sign up can have a beneficial effect.
Signing up for “the latest news” is unlikely to stir up interest. What can your audience gain from that? Not much!
2. Implement a User-Friendly Sign-Up Process (H2)
Simplify the Sign-Up Form
Keep the sign-up form short and straightforward. Ask for only essential information, such as the email address and the visitor's first name only if possible.
Offer Incentives
Going back to how you can save money, enticing visitors to sign up by offering incentives like a discount on their next visit is an extremely attractive proposition, or perhaps information on how they can gain exclusive access to a new exhibit/attraction.
Why not experiment with a “win free tickets every month” promotion with sign ups as an entry?
Optimise Your Website
Prominent Placement
Place newsletter sign-up forms prominently on your website's homepage and other high-traffic pages. Ensure they are easily noticeable and eye-catching.
Mobile Optimization
Optimise your sign-up forms for mobile devices. You’d likely have made your website very mobile-friendly already, but it’s always worth double checking your sign up forms.
According to industry research, 41% of email views are done on Mobile, with 39% viewed on Desktop.
Exit-Intent Popups
Utilise exit-intent popups to capture visitors who are about to leave your site. They are overlays that appear when a user is about to leave a webpage, detected by their mouse movement or scrolling behaviour, with the aim to re-engage them with a specific message (such as signing up to your amazing newsletter!), potentially preventing them from leaving. Offer them a reason to stay.
You can use pop-ups to trigger according to any behaviour, such as a simple newsletter pop-window that triggers after a reader spends ten seconds on certain pages. One site which did exactly this experienced a 500% increase in signups.
Social Media Promotion
Using Social Media Platforms
Utilise your social media channels to promote your newsletter. Create engaging posts that highlight the benefits of subscribing. For example;
“Have you signed up to our newsletter yet? Subscribers will be alerted to any new promotions and offers before anyone else, be alerted to exclusive limited events..”
Run Contests
Hold contests or giveaways that require newsletter sign-up as an entry. It's a fun way to encourage participation.
Contests and giveaways could also be done without Social Media involvement of course, but it does provide a great platform to spread the word.
Increasing newsletter sign-ups for your visitor attraction business is an important step in building a loyal audience and keeping visitors engaged. By crafting valuable content, streamlining the sign-up process, optimising your website, leveraging social media and continuously analysing your efforts, you can grow your subscriber list and enhance your business's success.