Are you as obsessed with checking your email as I am? Sure, it’s like the regular mailbox where 90% of what you get is a flyer you throw away immediately, but sometimes you get a personal email or a newsletter from your favorite email list you wait all week to read. Those moments are the best—when something cuts through all the clutter and noise and makes an impact!

To create real relationships with fans and sponsors, an email list is key. And not just one where you spam people daily with me-me-me content; you want to build an email list that people wait all week (or month) to read the latest about your career.

I’m going to teach you the basics of starting your own email list and how to use it to keep your fans and sponsors coming back for more.

Why is an email list important for race teams?

An email inbox is a special place — it’s as close to a personal connection as we can make off the bat these days outside of social media. It’s where you and your fans hang out and build relationships and it’s where you and your sponsors get to know each other. There’s a marketing stat that people love to throw around that says for every $1 you spend on marketing, you can make an average of $30 back through email. That’s a massive return on your investment! To build your recognition with your fans and build trust in your sponsors before they invest the big bucks — an email list is essential.

What would I say to an email list?

The age-old question we ask about our social media, too. What do I even say? First, I’d suggest figuring out a cadence. Do you want to send an email every week? Or just once a month? How else are you connecting with fans and sponsors that your email could point to or support? Another question — do you want to separate your fans from your investors to send them different content? Or are you content to share everything you got with everyone who will listen? 

Like with social media, consistency is as valuable as content. I’d suggest starting with a monthly newsletter and start increasing from there as your audience grows. Provide some updates on your racing and any new merchandise that is available, and make sure to flaunt your success to make yourself attractive to sponsors.

How do I do that, tech-wise?

There are lots of email softwares for you to choose from. I’ll highlight two for you to get started with:

MailChimp

MailChimp is the industry standard when it comes to email marketing. It’s not the most user-friendly but it’s great at tracking audience data. This can be good for when you’re specifically wanting to connect with potential sponsors separate from fans, or wanting to send select fans extra content to keep them really invested.

Pros: MailChimp offers a pretty powerful free version to get you started. Learn more here.

Cons: The more subscribers you get, MailChimp will start to charge you a monthly fee the more your list grows. Also it’s design templates can be limited in style and are not non-coder friendly to adjust.

Flodesk*

Flodesk came on the market just a few years ago and has made a strong case for itself as the most beautiful email marketing software ever. If aesthetics and simplicity are important to you, Flodesk is the way to go. Since it’s still in the beta phase, you should note that its audience tracking isn’t robust yet and there are more frequent updates than with a program like MailChimp. But it’s so dang pretty, and the price will never increase no matter how large your list gets! I personally use Flodesk and recommend it.

Pros: Flodesk does offer a free trial, and after that it’s $38/month (but if you want half-off for life, use my affiliate link here: https://flodesk.com/c/2GUMVO).

Cons: Setting up workflows and segments can be a little tricky with any email marketing. I’ve accidentally deleted all of my subscribers (twice) from my email list and the only way to get them back on is if they volunteer to sign up again. That’s why I’m here to help you get set up without worrying if you accidentally deleted or unsubscribed someone, and we can make you a template for your newsletter here, just select newsletter setup and design and we will get started right away!

How do I get people on my email list?

If I see you post a “join my newsletter for updates” anywhere (like the one below) I’m personally coming for you so we can have a real heart-to-heart. When has anyone actually wanted updates on a person they are not particularly close to? Almost never.

The best way to get people on your email list is to provide them with free value like updates to your racing schedule, the latest press release, your newest race recap video, a highlight from a previous race, points structure for your series, and showcasing a sponsor and sharing affiliate links.

It’s your turn to start your email list and watch your success grow with each new subscriber after each race!

*Heads up! I make a small commission from the Flodesk link at no extra cost to you. All opinions are my own.