why your network is your secret list building weapon

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Email Sound Booth with Liz Wilcox

Episode: Why Your Network Is Your Secret List Building Weapon
Release Date: May 19, 2025
Host: Liz Wilcox

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In episode 137 of The Email Sound Booth with Liz Wilcox, Liz delves into the pivotal role that networking plays in building a robust and profitable email list. Tailored for online businesses seeking to enhance their email marketing strategies, Liz outlines how leveraging your existing network can act as a powerful catalyst for list growth and sustained success.

1. Instant Trust Transfer

Liz begins by emphasizing the concept of instant trust transfer as the foremost advantage of utilizing your network for list building.

"When someone in your network shares you with their audience, you borrow their credibility." (02:15)

By partnering with trusted individuals or brands within your network, you tap into their established trust with their audience. This borrowed credibility significantly increases the likelihood of email signups and sales, as the audience is more inclined to engage with recommendations from a trusted source.

Examples Cited:

• Freebie Swaps: Exchanging valuable freebies with network partners results in mutual trust and increased signups.
• JV Webinars: Collaborative webinars, such as those Liz conducted with Brock Johnson and Nina Clapperton, demonstrate how shared credibility leads to successful sales and engaged audiences.

"It’s that instant trust transfer, right? From me to Brock." (10:30)

2. Built-In Warm Leads

Networking ensures access to built-in warm leads, targeting individuals who are already interested and aware of their needs.

Liz explains that collaborating with others who serve similar audiences allows you to reach potential subscribers who are actively seeking solutions related to your offerings.

"Collaborating with people who serve similar audiences means you’re going to reach folks who are already interested, already problem aware, likely searching for a solution." (16:45)

Collaborative Insights:

• Aligned Audiences: For instance, Brock Johnson's focus on email marketing complements Liz’s expertise in social media, creating a synergy that benefits both parties.
• Warm Engagement: These partnerships eliminate the cold pitching typically associated with advertising, fostering more genuine and effective connections.

3. Opportunities You Can’t Google

One of the hidden benefits of a strong network is access to exclusive opportunities that aren't accessible through conventional means.

Liz highlights that networking opens doors to speaking engagements, private bundles, podcast features, referrals, and affiliate deals that are not discoverable via a simple online search.

"It’s all about your network, who you know." (22:10)

Personal Anecdotes:

• Introductions Through Coaches: Liz recounts how her business coaches, Roberto and Warren, introduced her to Brock Johnson through personal connections, leading to collaborative ventures that enhanced her business growth.
• Event Invitations: Securing speaking slots at events like Epicon in Oklahoma City is made seamless through network introductions, showcasing the practical advantages of a well-maintained network.

4. Faster Growth with Less Effort

Networking accelerates growth with minimal exertion compared to traditional marketing tactics.

Liz articulates that leveraging your network allows for rapid expansion without the extensive effort typically required for strategies like paid advertising or content creation.

"It’s faster growth with less effort. It did not take me any effort to book that speaking gig." (28:05)

Strategies for Efficient Growth:

• Direct Outreach: Simple actions like DMing event organizers can lead to significant opportunities, such as securing speaking engagements.
• Collaborative Promotions: Email shout-outs and joint ventures enable easy and effective audience expansion without the complexities of setting up ads or managing multiple marketing channels.

5. Long-Term Momentum: Compounding Relationships

The final advantage Liz discusses is the compounding effect of long-term relationships formed through networking.

Building and nurturing relationships within your network leads to ongoing collaborations that continuously drive growth and brand visibility.

"The more people you collaborate with, the more future collaborations come together... that's when you’re going to see that exponential growth." (35:20)

Key Points:

• Sustained Collaboration: Early partnerships, like those with Lizzie Goddard and Nina Clapperton, have led to a cascade of new opportunities and introductions, demonstrating the exponential benefits of long-term networking.
• Brand Awareness: Continual interactions and joint ventures naturally enhance brand recognition and attract new subscribers organically.

Upcoming Event: List Building Challenge

Towards the end of the episode, Liz announces an upcoming List Building Challenge focused on networking for collaborations. Scheduled for June 2-4, 2025, this challenge aims to equip listeners with the tools and strategies to effectively find and collaborate with partners to grow their email lists.

"We are doing a list building challenge specific for networking for collabs, finding people for collabs so you can grow your email list." (40:10)

Listeners are encouraged to stay tuned for more details and to participate in this transformative event.

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Conclusion

Liz Wilcox's episode on leveraging your network as a secret weapon for email list building offers actionable insights and real-world examples that underscore the importance of strategic networking. By facilitating instant trust transfer, tapping into warm leads, accessing exclusive opportunities, achieving faster growth with less effort, and fostering long-term momentum through compounded relationships, Liz provides a comprehensive blueprint for online businesses to enhance their email marketing endeavors effectively.

For those looking to deepen their understanding and implement these strategies, participating in the upcoming List Building Challenge is an excellent opportunity to apply the concepts discussed and witness tangible growth in their email marketing efforts.

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Timestamp Reference Key:

• 02:15: Explanation of Instant Trust Transfer
• 10:30: Example of Trust Transfer with Brock Johnson
• 16:45: Benefits of Built-In Warm Leads
• 22:10: Exclusive Opportunities Through Networking
• 28:05: Achieving Faster Growth with Networking
• 35:20: Compounding Relationships for Long-Term Momentum
• 40:10: Announcement of the List Building Challenge

Transcript

[Liz Wilcox]

What's up? Liz Wilcox here. This is episode 137 of the Email sound booth podcast. I am so excited you're here. Let's talk about why your network, keyword network. Why your network is your secret weapon when it comes to building your email list. This is super, super important. The number one reason, it's instant trust transfer, okay? When someone in your network shares you with their audience, you know, AKA, like, freebie swap, whatever, you borrow their credibility, right? We've talked about this on the podcast a bunch, but it's basically, you know, if I share you, my people know, like, trust me, I share you. The people that come over to you automatically have some of that trust transferred to you. Right? Because I'm not going to share crap with my audience because they trust me. I want them to continue to trust me. So I'm only going to share good things. Right? So you borrow their credibility when they share you. Right? Okay. This makes signups way more likely. This makes sales way more likely. This is why freebie swaps work really well. I share your freebie, you share mine. There's that instant trust transfer. This is why JV webinars work really well. Heck, at the time of this recording, I've done two today where I've shared other people. I went live for email sound booth extended edition over on YouTube. Brock Johnson came in. He shared his Insta Club hub. We made some sales. People are happy, people trust Brock. And that's actually something y' all. When I first started talking about Brock Johnson, and I'm not going to name any names, but some people, and I say it was love, some people were, like, kind of skeptical. Like, really, Liz, you're going to share Brock Johnson? And I'm like, okay, just because he has a large following and his skin color is white doesn't mean he's a jerk. You know, I actually really like him. Here's ABC reason why. And those people were now more open to learning from Brock Johnson. It was that instant trust transfer, right? From me to Brock. So, anyway, did Brock this afternoon in the ESB Extended Edition, make sure you go to watchliz.com, hit the subscribe button so you don't miss out on our live email sound booth videos. And then this afternoon, I hung out with Nina Clapperton because SEO is another thing that y' all need. And we did a webinar, made some sales there again, that instant trust transfer. And actually, we had almost a hundred people at the webinar. It was awesome. So, so fun. Okay, on that note, the instant trust transfer, it makes people more likely to sign up, right? Which means when you network, you have built in warm leads, right? Collaborating with people who serve similar audiences means you're going to reach folks who are already interested, already problem aware, likely searching for a solution, right? So Brock and I, we have collaborated a few times, right? His people need email because he always says if you don't have an email list, you don't have a business. Which I tend to agree with him on that, right? So his people need email. My people sometimes need social media help, right? They, they love Instagram, but they don't love that it's, you know, not working for them, right? So we have similar audiences. So it's not cold pitching, it's not advertising. There are built in warm leads. Your network has them, I have them. You know, it's. It's a beautiful thing. The third thing is that when you have a network, you can have opportunities that you cannot Google, right? I can't Google how to collaborate with Nina or Brock or whoever, right? I can't Google that. But because I have a network, things are happening, right? Like even the Brock thing. Not to make this whole video and podcast about him, but I met him because my business coach, Roberto, and the other one, Warren, they're good friends with Brock's mom, Chalene. Warren now works for Chalene. Right. Because I am very, very, very close with Warren and Roberto. You know, eventually when my business built up, they said, hey, let me introduce you to Brock. You guys have that similar audience we were talking about in point number two, right? Now we're off to the races together. We're actually, at the time this comes out, we'll be meeting finally in person for the first time in two days because we're going to the same event again. The event is hosted by a lady named April. It's called Epicon. It's in Oklahoma City. It's going to be amazing. It's going to be so fun. But how did Brock know Apryel? How did I know Apriel, Roberto and Warren? It's all about the network, right? Your network can bring access to speaking engagement, to private bundles, podcasts, referrals, affiliate deals, et cetera, right? It's all about your network, who you know. Okay? Reason number four, your network is your secret weapon, is it's faster growth with less effort, right? How did I book April's conference? I literally DM'd her because I wanted her to come in to list Building Live, which was in March 2025. I said, hey, can you Come, you know, it's just a ten minute boxer chat. Can you do it? She was like, yeah. Then she comes back and she's like, hey girl, do you actually want to come speak at my event? It's in Oklahoma city, end of May 2025. I was like, oh my gosh, yes. Amen. Let's do it. So when I go to that event, I don't know what's going to happen, but hopefully I'll gain new subscribers, I'll get, you know, some awesome new members for email marketing membership and maybe even a couple more speaking gigs, a couple more podcast interviews, right? That's faster growth with less effort. It did not take me any effort to book that speaking gig. I literally just reached out. Also, when, you know, if I, let's say you and I collaborate, I give you an email shout out. That's going to be easy growth for you. That's easier than, you know, setting up Facebook ads, creating 10 Instagram Reels, setting up many chat, et cetera, et cetera, right? Hang on, my phone's ringing. Can you hear that? I hope not. Anyway, we're moving on. So we've already talked about instant trust transfer. We've talked about built in warm leads, we've talked about opportunities you can't Google and faster growth with less effort. That's why your email list or your network is the secret to growing your email list, right? It's that secret weapon. And the last thing is that long term momentum relationships compound. I just told you, Warren and Roberto, I knew them, they were my business coaches. They introduced me to April, introduced me to Brock or whatever, you know, like a compound compounds. The more people you collaborate with, the more future collaborations come together, right? Visibility, you're going to naturally attract it. You're going to naturally have more brand awareness. Another good example of this was actually my very first, like, woohoo, I've made it somehow. When I launched email marketing membership, Lizzie Goddard heard of it, right? And she shared, she was like, hey, I just found this EMM thing. It's $9 weekly templates. I think she put it in her Facebook group. My email list started growing, my membership started growing and from there I met so many people. The Nina, Nina Clapperton that I mentioned a few minutes ago that we did an SEO webinar with today. I met her in Lizzie Goddard's Facebook group. She joined my membership, we started talking, she became an affiliate and who, like, who knows what's going to come next from, you know, Nina's webinar with me? If I do a good job. You know, maybe she says, hey, let me introduce you to so and so. Or let me do a webinar with you, Liz. For my team or for my people, right? It's so, so awesome for long term momentum. And that's what you want. This should have been number one because at the end of the day, it's easy to do short term stuff, but when you buckle down, you slow down for that long term game, that long term momentum, oh my gosh, that's when you're going to see that exponential growth. And you can do that with networking. So your network don't forget it. It is your secret weapon, my friend. On that note, we do have a list building challenge coming up. Can't sign up yet. Can't sign up yet. Maybe I'll have a wait list. Maybe I won't check the show notes. But it's a list building challenge. Networking for collabs, specifically. It's coming up. Let me look at the calendar. I should have done this before I hit record. Hang on, hang on. Okay, I had it right. June 2, 3rd, 4th, 2025. We are doing a list building challenge specific for networking for collabs, finding people for collabs so you can grow your email list. Super excited about it. Stay tuned as always. I'm Liz Wilcox. You're awesome. And I'll see you on the next episode.