Marketing · Lesson 4 of 7
Email Marketing
You don't own your social following. You own your email list.
After This Lesson, You Will Be Able To
Set up an email list, a lead magnet to grow it, and a 3-email welcome sequence using AI.
Why Email Beats Social Media
When Instagram or TikTok disappears (or bans your account), your email list survives. It's the only audience you truly own.
The Email Marketing Ecosystem
Email service provider (ESP)
You need a platform to manage your list, design emails, and track results. Best for beginners: MailerLite (free up to 1,000 subscribers), ConvertKit (creator-focused), or Brevo (formerly Sendinblue). All have automation, landing pages, and templates built in.
The lead magnet
No one gives you their email for nothing. You need a lead magnet — a free resource people actually want. Best-performing types: checklist, template, mini-guide, free mini-course, resource list, discount code. The lead magnet must be immediately useful and directly related to what you sell.
The welcome sequence
When someone joins your list, send them a 3–5 email sequence over the first week. Email 1: Deliver the lead magnet + introduce yourself. Email 2: Your story + why this matters. Email 3: Your best content or insight. Email 4 (optional): Your offer with context. Email 5 (optional): Social proof + CTA. This sequence does the relationship-building work for you automatically.
Growing Your List
Where to promote your lead magnet
Link in bio on every platform. Dedicated landing page. In the caption of your best-performing content posts. As a CTA at the end of every blog post or video. In your email signature. In conversation with anyone who asks what you do.
What to send (and how often)
Once a week maximum for most creators. Twice a month is sustainable and still builds the relationship. One topic per email. A genuine point of view. A clear link or CTA. No fluff just to fill space.
Exercise
~10 minutes · ChatGPT or Claude
Prompt to use
Help me build an email marketing system. My niche: [your niche]. My offer: [what I ultimately sell]. My target audience: [describe them]. First, help me: 1) Generate 5 lead magnet ideas that would attract my ideal audience (they should be immediately useful and directly related to my offer), 2) Write a landing page headline and subheadline for my lead magnet, 3) Draft a 3-email welcome sequence: Email 1 (deliver lead magnet + intro), Email 2 (my story + why I do this), Email 3 (my best advice + soft CTA to my offer). Keep each email under 200 words.
You could build 100,000 Instagram followers and lose them overnight if your account gets banned or the algorithm changes. If social media disappeared tomorrow, how would you reach your audience?
Key Takeaways
Email reaches 20–40% of subscribers vs 1–5% organic social reach. Email wins on distribution.
You own your email list. You don't own your social following. Build the asset you control.
A lead magnet that's immediately useful and relevant to your offer is the foundation of list growth.
A welcome sequence does the relationship-building for you automatically. Set it up once, run forever.
Create your lead magnet and set up your email list this week.
Pick one lead magnet idea from the prompt above. Create it in under 2 hours (a simple PDF or checklist in Canva works). Set up a free MailerLite account. Create a landing page. Write your 3-email welcome sequence. Add your signup link to every bio and your next 3 posts. You now have the foundation of an email marketing system.
Next Lesson
Organic Social Media Marketing
Marketing · Lesson 5 of 7 · 10 min