10 ethical ways to grow your email list for free (this week)

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

— Thomas Edison (American inventor and businessman)

Growing an email list is really hard.

For some, they go out and buy leads, run competitions, buy ads, or plaster “SUBSCRIBE!” across their website with in-your-face popups.

I know you read this newsletter because you’re better than that.

The good news is, for folks at purpose-driven organisations, there are plenty of simple ways to invite the right people in — without spending a penny.

Here are 10 worth trying. They may take a little time but not too much, and they can be done on a budget of zero.

We previously wrote about ethical ways to grow your list, and it proved popular, so this is a new, condensed, and easy-to-skim version for those in a rush.

1. Put the sign-up form where people already are

Add a simple email invitation to your website header, footer, contact page and most-visited pages.

Don’t just say “Subscribe”. Tell people what they’ll get.

Get one useful idea for making your organisation more effective, every Friday.

2. Add a link to your form in your personal email signature

Your team probably sends hundreds of emails every month. Often to your highest priority prospects and customers.

Add a small line to your signature:

P.S. We send practical ideas like this every week → Join the newsletter.

One tiny change, multiplied by hundreds of touch-points. That’s a lot of chances to invite new subscribers.

3. Turn your best content into a reason to subscribe

Do you already have a popular guide, report, checklist, or blog post?

Add a call-to-action at the end:

Want more like this? We send our best ideas by email.

You’ve already done the hard work of creating something useful.

4. Ask at the right moment

Someone has just attended your event, downloaded a resource, made a donation or contacted your team.

That’s a great moment to ask whether they’d like to hear from you again.

Not before, or with a pre-ticked box. Just a clear, relevant invitation when they’re already giving you their attention.

5. Give people something genuinely useful

It doesn’t need to be an elaborate ebook. Besides, who needs another one of them?!

Try a checklist, template, a monthly roundup, a useful dataset, or a list of industry-specific resources.

The best “lead magnet” can often be something your team has already created.

6. Make your social posts point somewhere

Instead of constantly asking people to “follow us”, occasionally give them a reason to leave the platform.

We’ve put together five practical ways to improve your email strategy. Get the full guide here.

Then let the guide do the selling.

This isn’t always easy. Most social platforms really don’t reward you for linking out, but it’s worth a shot every now and then, and in comments, when there’s a genuine benefit on offer.

7. Put a QR code on things you already print

Posters. Event programmes. Exhibition stands. Business cards. Leaflets.

Point the QR code towards your newsletter sign-up page.

Just make sure the destination explains exactly what happens next. No one wants to put their email address into a scary form without explanation.

8. Let your best people invite people

If your organisation has passionate supporters, partners, volunteers, or employees, give them something easy to share.

We send a useful monthly briefing on [topic]. If you’d like it too, sign up here.

You don’t need a complicated referral programme to do this. With the right trust and alignment, many people will gladly support your efforts when asked.

9. Make your newsletter worth forwarding

The simplest growth loop is also the oldest:

Someone reads something useful → forwards it to someone else → they subscribe.

So funnily enough, it’s a good idea to write things people actually want to share.

This is a bedrock for everything else. I’d argue that without this you might as well forget the rest and go home.

10. Stop trying to collect everyone

A smaller list of people who genuinely want to hear from you is more valuable than a huge list of people who are completely disengaged after signing up three years ago.

Focus on relevance, permission, and trust.

The goal is to build the best list, not the biggest.

One thing to try in the coming week

Pick just one of these and spend 30 minutes putting it into practice.

You probably don’t need a completely overhauled growth strategy. And you certainly don’t need one to try any of these out.

Make it a little easier for the right people to say, “Yes, I’d like to hear from you.”

James

This week’s illustrations are of the bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) from François André Michaux’s Histoire des arbres forestiers de l’Amérique septentrionale (Paris, 1812–13), via the Biodiversity Heritage Library. Mighty oaks, little acorns, and all that.