31: 10k in Under 60 Days: My Amazing Email List Building Strategy Without Ads

In this episode of the podcast, I telling the whole story of my email list building strategy, from idea to execution – that took my list of email subscribers from zero to 10,154 subscribers in just 57 days, without spending a single dollar on ads.

This strategy isn’t specific to health coaches, but I’ve used it for both online and in-person businesses so I can vouch that it’s a flexible list building option!

What’s inside this episode: The BIG Problem The BIG Idea My ResultsThe Tech Stack 💡 Why It Worked (The 3-Part Framework)1. Purpose 2. People 3. Plan

Final Thoughts

Listen to the Episode FAQ Episode Transcript

Have you ever wished your email list would just grow itself? Or wondered how to get more visibility in your community—without shelling out for ads or begging for attention?

The BIG Problem

No List, No Traffic, No Recognition

In early 2020, like so many others, I watched local businesses struggle. Facebook was flooded with desperate posts—“We haven’t had a sale in days… we may have to close.”

These weren’t strangers.

They were the people who owned the yoga studios, bakeries, and vintage shops that made our community feel like home.

I realized two things:

People wanted to help, but didn’t know how.

Businesses didn’t have a centralized place to share updates or get discovered.

I had an idea: what if I built a website to showcase and support them?

The problem? I had no list, no traffic, and no brand visibility or authority.

The BIG Idea

Run a Contest That Does the Heavy Lifting

I asked myself: how can I build an audience and attract local businesses at the same time? What’s fun, shareable, and community-driven?

I decided to run a “Best Of” contest, asking locals to nominate and vote for their favorite small businesses in categories like best coffee shop, best personal trainer, best burger, and more.

The plan:

Nominations Phase: Let people write in who they love.

Voting Phase: Create a final ballot with the top 10 nominees per category.

Celebrate the winners: Use the entire process to drive traffic and capture email addresses.

And guess what? It worked way better than expected.

My Results

10,154 Subscribers in 57 Days

Here’s how the numbers played out:

Day 1: 45 subscribers

Day 3: 500+ subscribers

End of Nominations (Week 3): 1,600 subscribers

Final Day (Week 8): 10,154 total subscribers

During the peak, I was seeing 10,000+ pageviews per day, all from free traffic on Facebook—no paid ads, no dancing on TikTok, and no viral “hacks”,

The Tech Stack

I used tools I already had:

WordPress + Divi Theme for the site and contest pages

ConvertKit & SendFox to add subscribers to my email list

A form builder – I recommend Smart Quiz Builder

Canva for branding and graphics

a free Facebook page for traffic—no paid ads, just tagging and engagement

💡 Why It Worked (The 3-Part Framework)

After running the contest and sharing this email list building strategy in a few Facebook groups, I heard from people who tried it and didn’t get the same results.

That got me thinking… what made my experience different?

It turns out, there were three key elements that make a huge difference:

1. Purpose

This wasn’t just a contest, it wasn’t just an email list building strategy, it was a mission. People weren’t voting just for fun. They were helping their community thrive.

I tapped into an existing movement, which was already emotionally powerful and easy to align with.

2. People

I actively engaged local businesses and tagged them when they were nominated. That gave them a reason to share the contest with their audiences. The virality came from people wanting to support their friends, family, and favorite businesses.

3. Plan

I had clear messaging, simple tools, and a way to capture and validate email subscribers. It wasn’t fancy, but it was organized and systematic.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re trying to build your first 1,000 email subscribers or looking for a new way to connect with your commun