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# Why Building an Email List Matters in 2026 (And How to Start)
- URL: https://www.skalecube.com/building-an-email-list/
- Published: 2026-09-04T03:30:40.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-19T04:46:00.000Z
- Author: Aljin Vijayan
- Tags: Email Marketing

In 2026, search is no longer just about clicking through Google results. 

AI-generated answers and AI search tools are giving people information directly, without requiring them to visit the original website.

And social media is not predictable either. 

You may have thousands or lakhs of followers, but algorithms decide how many of them actually see your posts based on your post performance. 

Paid advertising can help you reach the right audience, but getting traffic continuously through ads can become expensive.

That's why building an email list is really important today and in the coming days.

Here's the proof.

We have already grown one of our brand newsletters,([devopscube](https://newsletter.devopscube.com/?ref=skalecube.com)) to thousands of targeted subscribers and started monetizing it.

So, before starting, here are some interesting **email marketing statistics** you should know.

Based on [HubSpot Marketing research](https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/marketing-channels?ref=skalecube.com), **39.3% of B2B marketers** use email marketing as their second most used marketing channel.

![Statistics: 39.3% B2B marketers are using email marketing as their second most used marketing channel](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/Email-Marketing-Usage-Among-B2B-Marketers--1-.png)

Still, many B2B marketers are not taking email marketing seriously. But those who are investing in it now understand how valuable it is, and will be in the future.

Also, in a survey of [1,500 small-business owners](https://www.constantcontact.com/blog/small-business-now-q1-2026-inflation-report/?ref=skalecube.com), **41%** of them use email marketing as a valuable channel.

![41% of small business owners use email as their valuable marketing channel](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/Email-Marketing-Usage-Among-B2B-Marketers--2-.png)

Let's get to know why collecting an email list is really essential nowadays, and along with that, I will tell you how we grew ours, and you can implement it in yours.

## What is an Email List?

An email list is a collection of email addresses from people who are willing to receive updates, guides, resources, or offers from a company or creator.

People will subscribe to your newsletter if you provide useful and valuable content or something they genuinely want.

You should regularly send useful content directly to their inbox. 

Eventually, you can build trust with your subscribers. They may start trusting your recommendations and eventually become long-term users or customers.

## Why is Building Email Lists Important?

I am pretty sure, in your mind, you are thinking about **why collecting emails really matters**, right?

Actually, that is completely normal. Because I had the same question a year ago.

So, let me give a clear answer and the practical reasons.

Let me ask you one question, if someday Instagram or [YouTube](https://www.skalecube.com/how-youtube-algorithm-works/) is no longer going to work for your business or earn you money, how will you talk to your audience or customers?

I am pretty sure, you don't have an answer to this question, and even we don't!

Because nobody knows what will happen tomorrow...

So, in our strong prediction, and as many experts say, collecting an email list will definitely help you talk directly to your audience.

Another great example is [Brian Dean](https://x.com/BrianEDean?ref=skalecube.com), the founder of [Backlinko](https://backlinko.com/?ref=skalecube.com), [Explodingtopics](https://explodingtopics.com/?ref=skalecube.com), and [Programs.com](https://programs.com/?ref=skalecube.com).

See his latest tweet about email lists.

> When Semrush was evaluating Exploding Topics, they asked us about a lot of things.  
>  
> But one thing that never came up? Our social media followers.  
>  
> What they DID ask about was: our email list.   
>  
> List size  
> Open rates  
> Click through rate  
> Unsubscribes  
>  
> IMO they were smart to focus on…
> 
> — Brian Dean (@BrianEDean) [September 18, 2026](https://x.com/BrianEDean/status/2100906450985857392?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=skalecube.com)

So, email marketing and newsletters are not going to die anytime soon.

💡

****Pro Tip:** Research which of your social media platforms has the strongest audience engagement. Create something genuinely useful that encourages your audience to join your email list, and add a signup form to collect their email addresses.  
  
Do this across all your social media platforms, but focus more on the channels where you have the highest engagement to collect more email subscribers.

Now, lets get to know why you should collect emails nowadays and in the coming days.

### Search Engine Traffic Has Changed

Over the past few months, you may have seen that few people are clicking the links because of [Google's AI overviews](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI%5FOverviews?ref=skalecube.com).

Google now provides direct answers on the search results page, along with source links.

This means that even a top-ranking blog may not get as many clicks as before.

Based on the report, [68% of users](https://sparktoro.com/blog/in-2026-less-than-one-third-of-google-searches-still-send-a-click/?ref=skalecube.com), don't click on any link after performing a Google search.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/out-of-100-Google-searches--2-.png)

So, businesses that depend only on Google for traffic may already be seeing the impact. 

For example, in the image below, I have shown the difference between **HubSpot's organic traffic** in 2024 and 2026.

![Hubspot organic visits of their site of 2024 and 2025](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/Hubspot-Traffic-Analytics--1-.png)

Its a significant drop. They were getting **13+ million organic visits per day in 2024**, but now they are getting around **5+ million**.

But they didn't just depend on Google for their audience.

So, a few years ago, no one expected AI to change search and website traffic this quickly.

But, I am not saying [**SEO IS DEAD**](https://backlinko.com/is-seo-dead?ref=skalecube.com), it is evolving with different metrics, and strategies.

Maybe one day search could become almost 100% [zero-click](https://www.semrush.com/blog/zero-click-searches/?ref=skalecube.com). That's just an example, but who knows?

That is why you shouldn't depend only on search traffic. 

So, till you have time. 

Create valuable and shareable blog content that makes readers subscribe to your email list.

### Email is the Direct Distribution Channel

I have been creating content for the past three years, and I know that creating good content really takes time.

Once you create quality content, you will publish it.

But you don't know when or whether it will reach your audience through Google rankings, YouTube recommendations, or social media.

Email is different. It gives you direct access to your audience.

When you publish a new blog, video, report, product, or course, you already have a set of people who are interested in hearing from you.

Let's say you have already built an **email list of 20,000** in the AI in Digital Marketing Niche.

If you do in-depth research related to the topic in this niche and create a valuable report, you can send it directly to those 20,000 subscribers. 

You don't have to wait for the report to rank on Google or depend on an algorithm to reach them.

But, yeah, not everyone will open emails. But the important thing is that you have a direct way to reach your audience.

And the average good email open rate is **32%.** That would be your first sign to know that your newsletter is performing well.

![Email Audience vs Rented Audience](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/Copy-of-Copy-of-Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text--3-.png)

⚠️

****Note:** Don't spam your subscribers with promotions all the time. I would recommend keeping 80% useful, and educational content, and around 20% promotional.

### You Can Generate Revenue Through Email

Do you believe you can earn $5,000 to $10,000 per month with 20,000 email subscribers?

Yes, it is possible.

Here are a few ways you can make money from your newsletter.

- **Sponsorships:** You can partner with relevant tools, platforms, and brands in your niche.
- **Products or Courses:** You can promote and sell your own products, courses, and other resources.
- **Affiliate Marketing:** You can recommend relevant products and earn a commission when someone purchases through your affiliate link.

![Newsletter monitization options](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/Copy-of-Copy-of-Copy-of-Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text--1-.png)

But to monetize your newsletter, you first need to build an email list and earn your audience's trust. Only then can you make them your customers.

The most important thing is to consistently create quality content.

When people find your content useful, they will automatically subscribe to your newsletter.

And when you build an engaged audience, relevant brands will show interest in sponsoring your newsletter.

So, in the next section, I am going to show you how to build your email list and the strategies you can use to collect more email subscribers.

## How to Build an Email List?

I believe you now understand the importance of collecting emails.

And I know you have some questions in your mind, like: how to grow an email list from scratch, what are the ways, is there any strategy, right?

Yes, there are email list-building strategies. 

So, I will give a practical example of how we are collecting the emails, which you can implement in yours as well.

So the first step is that you need to select a better email marketing platform. Let me help you out.

### 1\. Choose the Best Email Marketing Platform

There are more email marketing tools out there in the market, but not every tool will be the best one, right?

Whether you are starting out or already building an email list, check whether the email marketing tool you select has all these options and features, which I have mentioned below.

1. Analytics dashboard
2. Custom newsletter editor
3. Subscriber segments, automations, polls, and surveys
4. Custom website builder
5. Pre-built templates for newsletter page, and the site
6. It should have MCP support. It's a mandatory one in this AI era
7. External tools integrations
8. Creating signup forms
9. You should be able to export and import subscribers

These are some of the important things you should consider when choosing an email marketing platform.

I don't want to waste your time comparing dozens of tools, so let me tell you about one of the platforms we have been using for more than a year.

We are using [Beehiiv](https://www.beehiiv.com/?via=DCUBE20OFF&ref=skalecube.com) for our DevOpsCube Newsletter.

![This is our newsletter channel that we are running through Beehiiv](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-2.png)

But before switching to Beehiiv, we tried a few other platforms, and they didn't work well for our needs.

So, the best thing about [Beehiiv](https://www.beehiiv.com/?ref=skalecube.com) is that you will get all the features I mentioned above.

Additionally, you will get a few built-in monetization options, and you can also host a podcast and build a community around your newsletter.

I would recommend that you start with Beehiiv because it also offers a free plan. 

So, even if you don't have a budget to invest in an email marketing platform right now, you can start building your email list first, and upgrade later as your newsletter grows.

Once you select your platform, the next step is to personalize your subscribe button or sign-up form to attract more subscribers.

### 2\. Give a Proper Reason to Subscribe to Your Email List

If you are a beginner, this is the one mistake you will probably make. 

I have even seen some good newsletters making the same mistake.

If you look at many newsletters, you will see a simple **Subscribe** button without any explanation of what the audience will actually get by subscribing.

You might still get email subscribers, if only your article is really good, or some useful resource you put out there.

But, if you ask me, that is not enough.

Let me give you one example that we are doing for our DevOpsCube newsletter.

First, take a look at the content of the image below.

![pop-up signup form of devopscube newsletter](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-4.png)

What do you think?

This is the pop-up signup form that we implemented on our DevOpsCube website.

We clearly mention what the subscribers will gain from our newsletter. And instead of using the generic **Subscribe** button, we use **Start Learning**.

Its better than just saying subscribe, right? 

It feels more specific and gives the user a reason to join.

So, instead of simply asking people to subscribe, tell them what they will get from your newsletter and give them a clear reason to join.

### 3\. Send Free Useful Resource During Signup

Have you ever noticed that when you signup for a newsletter, you will immediately get a welcome email along with **free resources** like a cheat sheet, a research report, or something useful?

I hope you know that!

So, yeah. Many newsletters will send the immediately useful resource after someone subscribes.

For example,

If you are running an AI in Digital Marketing newsletter, you could provide resources like,

- SEO checklist or cheat sheets
- Free AI Digital Marketing Courses
- Marketing Research Report
- List of useful AI marketing tools, etc

You can include these free downloadable resources in your welcome email

In marketing terms, this method is called a **Lead Magnet**.

And don't create a lead magnet just for the sake of giving away something free.

It could be your audience's first impression of your newsletter and your expertise in the niche

So, it shouldn't be something random.

It should solve a small problem but a real problem for your audience, or send something that is very useful.

So, if they find your first free resource genuinely useful, they will have a good reason to open your next email too.

So far, you have chosen your email platform, learned how to give people a proper reason to subscribe through your signup forms, and understood the importance of creating a useful free resource.

Next up is...

### 4\. Email Signup Forms and Link Placement

To attract more subscribers, where you place your email signup forms and links matters a lot

Let me show you some of the best places that we are using to get subscribers.

The first one is that we placed it on our **DevOpsCube website** and **newsletter homepage**.

**Newsletter Homepage:**

![Newsletter's homepage signup integration](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-5.png)

**Website Homepage:**

![website's homepage signup integration](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-6.png)

This is the easiest place to tell your audience about your newsletter, because many visitors will see these pages first.

The next best place that works well for us is a pop-up signup form on **Blog Posts**.

![pop-up newsletter signup form in the blog post](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-7.png)

This method can work really well.

In fact, I have subscribed to other newsletters myself after seeing a pop-up while reading an article.

But, don't make the pop-up annoying. It should appear naturally while someone is reading a blog.

💡

Users will subscribe if they like the article they are reading. So create useful, high-quality content.

Another one of the best strategies is to add your newsletter signup link to your **LinkedIn content**.

![showing the startegy of newsletter link placement in the LinkedIn content](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b0/52/b052d846-efa0-441d-9e89-301a9c253aec/content/images/2026/08/image-8.png)

So, we create useful LinkedIn posts and include our newsletter link at the end of our content.

If someone reads the entire post and finds it useful, there is a good chance they will be interested in getting more content from us.

We are still using this strategy because it is continuously giving us subscribers.

So, identify the channels where you are already getting good engagement and start to implement them.

Also, dont forget to measure where your subscribers are coming from.

Track which forms, pages, or channels generate the most signups. This will help you focus more on the placements that actually work well.

### 5\. Do This Once You Have Got a New Subscriber

If you get a new subscriber, don't make them wait too long for the content.

Let me tell you why.

For example, just assume that you subscribe to a newsletter. 

And then you don't hear from them for 3-4 weeks. After that, you got your first email from them, but there is a high chance you have already forgotten why you subscribed.

You may not even open the email, right?

This has happened to me a few times. So, we were very careful about this with our newsletter.

This is the approach we follow.

You just need **four email automations** to get started. You don't have to manually send these emails to every new subscriber.

You can send them using **Beehiiv automations,** and each new subscribers will receive them automatically.

Your **first email** should be a welcome email with the downloadable resource that I mentioned in the previous section.

Then, in the **second email,** you can share some of your best content.

I would suggest you send content that is helpful rather than just sharing your latest blogs.

In the **third email**, you can teach them something that helps solve a real problem.

For example, if you are in the Digital Marketing niche, share a proven marketing strategy that they can implement in their work. 

Even better, show them the actual results you have achieved using the strategy.

This can help to show your expertise and build trust with your subscribers.

Finally, your **fourth email** can be a little promotional.

You can send your course, product or service, but do it naturally. Don't push subscribers to buy.

Instead of hard selling, explain the problem your product solves and the benefits they can get from using your product, service, or course.

Yeah, these are the way to get email addresses for email marketing or newsletter.

Initially, one question frequently popped up in my head, which is...

## How Many Emails Do I Want to Send Every Week?

There is no perfect number for how often you should send a newsletter

Some news-based newsletters send emails daily because their subscribers want daily updates. That's what they promised their audience when they signed up.

Other, some newsletters send only one email per week. But that one email will be really valuable content.

So, I would say, it depends on you, your content, and what your audience expects.

You can send one newsletter per week, two per week, or even seven per week.

But here is the one thing you have to always keep in your mind.

If you make a promise to your subscribers, stick to it. If you say you will send a newsletter every Monday, try sending it every Monday.

So, if you are just starting out, I would suggest you send one or two emails per week.

Do that consistently for a while!

Once you have the time and enough useful content to share, you can increase the email if it really makes sense.

💡

****Tip:** Don't send more emails just because you can. Quality is more important than quantity.

## Conclusion

In this guide, I have explained to you why collecting an email list is so important for all businesses and individuals.

I have also shared the strategies we use to collect emails from scratch, including the ones that have worked well for us.

Here is one of my favorite quotes from [**Ryan Deiss**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryandeiss/?ref=skalecube.com)**.**

> **The money is in the list, but the fortune is in the follow-up. The right emails turns subscribers into lifelong customers.**

And I believe that's absolutely true.

So don't delay in collecting the emails. Start today.

If you have any doubts about this blog, please let me know in the comments.

We will be happy to help you out.