How Big is a "Big List"?

Discussion in 'General Marketing' started by SEO-UK, Jul 19, 2010.

  1. #1
    I've been asking myself this question all week, since I sent a newsletter out to my double-opt in subscribers of one of my websites ... and my host went loopy :)

    OK, it's not the smallest list in the world, but I didn't think my list was big *shrugs in all innocence*.

    I have over 25,000 in my list.

    So - how big do you think a list has to be before it's called a big list?

    (P.S. I didn't ask them to join, didn't do any marketing, people just turned up and decided to join, but that's the point of SEO isn't it)
     
    SEO-UK, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  2. cmorley

    cmorley Peon

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    #2
    Is this the first time you were sending out the newsletter to your list? If you had done this regularly then your host wouldn't of have had any issues.

    There is not such thing as a big list... it can be any size.
     
    cmorley, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  3. RightMan

    RightMan Notable Member

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    #3
    The ''big" or ''small" size is defined always in relativity and hence there can never be any fixed number to determine it. A 'big' list to you might seem 'very small' to others and vice-versa! :)

    Regards,

    RightMan
     
    RightMan, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  4. EvanP

    EvanP Banned

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    #4
    Compared to other mailing lists I've heard of, yours is very small.
     
    EvanP, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  5. Le Dangles

    Le Dangles Member

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    #5
    I've heard of people generating thousands of dollars from a list your size and smaller. But like everyone else says 25,000 probably isn't that much compared to other lists people have built. I know your list is bigger than mine though!
     
    Le Dangles, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  6. Stephen Meyer

    Stephen Meyer Peon

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    #6
    If your list is targeted it is a good sized list, if it's targeted buyers list it's a huge list, if it's just random names collected with no purpose it's a tiny list.

    Truth be told, most marketers don't have any where that number on their list and some don't want it. 200 buyers can make you more money than thousands of lookers. But, your list is fairly big in comparison to most and is probably why the host took a hard look at you. Most of the time when a first email is sent to a large list like yours the list was purchased. That's against manyl host policies. Why would anyone collect names and wait until they had 25k to send an email? The norm is to send out regular emails to an ever growing list, not a first email to a huge list.

    If this is your first email to this list it would make me wonder where you got the names.
     
    Last edited: Jul 19, 2010
    Stephen Meyer, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  7. khulet22

    khulet22 Member

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    #7
    25,000 is to big list for me.. :)
     
    khulet22, Jul 19, 2010 IP
  8. MikeHumphreys

    MikeHumphreys Peon

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    #8
    The better questions to ask are:

    1. What's your typical open rate of your emails to your list?
    2. What's your average conversion rate when you promote something to your list?

    A small list of buyers is far more valuable than a huge list of freebie signups.
     
    MikeHumphreys, Jul 21, 2010 IP
  9. Sirago

    Sirago Member

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    #9
    I think quality of the list is just as important as size.. and the niche you're targeting. It's going to be relative to those two things.
     
    Sirago, Jul 21, 2010 IP
  10. KPHudson

    KPHudson Peon

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    #10
    I guess it is all relative. that being said, 25,000 is fairly large in most books :)
     
    KPHudson, Jul 21, 2010 IP
  11. Justin_Dupre

    Justin_Dupre Peon

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    #11
    25,000 is a large list indeed. However, I agree with Sirago.. the quality of the list is just as important as the size!
     
    Justin_Dupre, Jul 22, 2010 IP
  12. iwilberin5

    iwilberin5 Peon

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    #12
    you have to constantly feed high quality info to your list, so they might keep in your list, people come and people go, so without carefully treating your list, you can't build a trust with them. They said, if you are build good trust with your list, you could probably earn the number of money as your list number per month. So, if your list is 25,000, you should be making $25,000/month. But it's just a reference. So,.... treat them well....
     
    iwilberin5, Jul 23, 2010 IP