Easy ways to kill your list's momentum in 2025
It's a little sarcastic, but I spend most of my time with my clients fixing or improving on the five problems below. If you can cross off every one, you are doing better than 95% of businesses out there.
1. You've hidden your sign-up form
You've got sparkling web pages, but your newsletter sign-up form is buried at the bottom of your website like a forgotten treasure. In 2025's world, this is the digital equivalent to locking your best salesperson in the cellar!
The solution: Put your sign-up form in the top third of your website or use a well timed pop-up. Don't just say "Subscribe to our newsletter" - tell them exactly how you'll transform their business or solve their problems.
2. You don't have a thank you page
Your thank you page isn't just a quick click-off; it's your first date with a potential long-term client. Many businesses miss this crucial opportunity by displaying a basic "Thank you for subscribing" message.
The solution: You need to use your thank you page to set the stage for your welcome email. Tell your new subscriber where to go and what to do next. Remind them to add you to their inbox and how you will solve their problems.
3. The Silent Treatment After Sign-up
You have got a triggered welcome email, right? If you are still manually sending them out; we need to talk. In fact, we need a full-scale intervention, with coffee, templates and a zoom call. Drop me an email with the subject line: "Silent Treatment".
Meanwhile, for sane and sensible blog readers, make sure your welcome feels genuiune. Check it's still relevant and up-to-date and don't be afraid to have more than one type of welcome email, depending on where people sign up. (I've got three welcome flows, depending on which freebie people want to download).
The solution:
Always cover the basics in your first email:
- Remind them who you are (even if they just met you)
- Explain how you can help them
- Tell them when you will contact them again.
4. The "Wing It" Approach to Nurture
This mistake makes me bellow like King Kong!
Skippping your nurture strategy is like trying to build a relationship by randomly texting someone whenever you remember they exist. It doesn't have to be complicated - some coaches email their lists bi-monthly and offer a package every quarter - but it does have to be consistent.
This is your community, with people (I hope!) that you want to spend time with. Make them feel valued and build up your reputation by showing up, when you said you would.
The solution: Take an hour to map out how people find you and what they need to know or do next to work with you. That's the basis of your nurture strategy. Turn it into your email series.
5. You don't kill your zombies
This goes back to last week's post, where you need a way out for your contacts, as well as a way in. It's not just about the unsubscribers, but those who go quiet and never respond. Keeping these contacts will hurt your stats and inflate your costs.
The solution: Put in place a sunset policy for zombie subscribers who haven't opened or clicked in 12 months (less; if your sales cycle is faster).
Quality over quantity. You wouldn't keep texting a Tinder date who ghosted you, after all?
Next Steps
If you are making one or more of these mistakes, they are easy enough to fix. I'm here to help - either on a 1:1 basis, or through my new monthly membership (doors open next week).
Week by week, you can build an email marketing machine that works for your business, not against it.
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