Emmie Houang
Marketing Communications and Content Specialist
Feb 16, 2026
Social platforms come and go, algorithms change, and paid advertising costs continue to rise, but email remains one of the most reliable and high-converting marketing channels available. Building a strong email list gives brands direct access to their audience without relying on third-party platforms. Email marketing continues to deliver some of the highest returns in digital marketing, generating an average of $36 in ROI for every $1 spent, according to HubSpot’s industry research. However, success requires more than just collecting contacts. Businesses need an engaged email list built on genuine email subscriptions, provide valuable video email content, and capitalize on AI capabilities.
This guide explains how to grow and attract email subscribers, design email content, implement video in email, and maintain a healthy email list that converts subscribers into customers.
Email: Your Most Valuable Owned Channel
An email list is a collection of contacts or subscribers who have opted in to receive email communication from your business. Email subscriptions are valuable because subscribers have shown interest in your brand, products, or expertise. Unlike social followers, your email list is an asset you own. It allows you to:
Promote products or services directly
Share content, offers, and updates
Nurture leads over time
Build long-term customer relationships
Drive consistent website traffic and revenue
The key is quality over quantity, a smaller engaged email list often performs better than a large list filled with inactive contacts. However, people don’t just subscribe because of forms, they subscribe because something captured their attention and value was clearly communicated. Video is increasingly the fastest way to create that impact.
How to Grow Your Email Subscribers
Building an email list from scratch requires making email subscription opportunities visible across all customer touchpoints. The most effective methods are website or landing pages, content, and social media.
Website and Landing Pages
Your company website should be your primary email subscription engine. Visitors already show intent by landing there, therefore, the goal is to convert traffic into email subscribers. Website pop-ups and Calls-to-Action (CTA) are the main strategies used to increase your email list.
Website Pop-ups
Website pop-ups are one of the highest-converting list-building tools. According to HubSpot’s marketing platform research, optimized pop-ups and signup forms can significantly increase email subscription conversion rates compared to passive forms. The key is to offer value rather than interruption in the customer journey.
Best practices for website pop-ups include:
Exit-intent pop-ups when visitors are leaving
Delayed pop-ups after engagement
Offer-based pop-ups with value exchange
Mobile-friendly formats
Website Calls-to-Action
Calls-to-actions should appear naturally throughout your website. Combining clear messaging like “Join our email list for exclusive content and offers” with interactive video content makes subscribing feel beneficial, not promotional. They should appear in:
Homepage banners
Blog articles
Footer signup forms
Product pages
Checkout flows
Value Through Content and Video
People rarely subscribe just to receive promotions. They subscribe for value, therefore, offer something useful in exchange for email access and subscription. Unbounce recommends offering high-value lead magnets aligned with your audience’s needs to drive email list growth. The stronger the perceived value, the more likely visitors will complete an email subscription.
Offering free resources or tools through video such as:
Free guides, checklists, and templates
Early access or discount codes
Exclusive reports or research
Webinars, workshops, and event replays
Interactive or online tools
Product demonstrations or previews
How-to tutorials and on-demand training sessions
Product walkthroughs or feature highlights
Social Media Strategies
Social channels play a major role in directing audiences to your email list. As they are mainly discovery channels, they allow a simple path from social discovery to email subscription. However, retaining audiences on social media can be challenging; therefore, it is essential to use video-driven email content to deliver deeper engagement, consistent messaging, and ongoing value.
Many social media platforms offer the same features, therefore these strategies work for most social channels:
Share previews of email video content “Subscribe to receive the extended video version”
Regularly promote email subscription benefits and subscriber-only perks
Run giveaways requiring email entry
Promote lead magnets or free resources
Pinned subscription posts or comments
Link in bio subscription link or signup pages
Social channels have varying features from one another, however, many of them are turning into more video-based platforms since the rise of YouTube, TikTok and Instagram Reels. Videos originally created for social platforms can easily be repurposed and embedded in emails using Playable. Video drives much higher engagement compared to using only static images. Videos created for social platforms can also be repurposed within email, therefore, utilizing both social features and videos can grow email subscribers.
What to Include in Your Email Content?
Now that you’ve got subscribers to your email list, the real opportunity begins: engaging your audience with content that informs, excites, and converts. Your emails should provide value while strengthening the relationship with your subscribers. Here are some types of content to consider, including:
Weekly newsletters focused on a specific topic
Expert insights: advice, findings, or research relevant to your audience
Business updates: news, changes, or upcoming initiatives
Celebrations: milestones, wins, or award announcements
Leadership messages: notes from the CEO or executive team
Key dates: events, workshops, or new product releases
How-to guides and video tutorials showing products or features
Case studies or success stories demonstrating real-world results
Email Frequency
The timing and frequency of your emails are just as important as the content itself. The ideal schedule depends on your audience’s preferences, content type, and engagement patterns. Test different approaches with A/B testing to identify what resonates most. Modern AI-powered tools can now help determine the optimal send times and dates based on audience segments, maximizing engagement and conversions while revealing which content your subscribers love most.
Email Design
Strong design keeps readers engaged and drives action. By combining consistent branding with smart design choices, your emails become both visually appealing and conversion-focused. Some best practices for email design include:
Master template: maintain a consistent structure and style across all emails
Accessibility: add alt text to images and ensure sufficient color contrast
Clear headers: keep them simple, on-brand, and scannable
Prominent CTAs: place calls-to-action above the fold to capture attention quickly
Low-commitment CTAs: for example “Learn More” instead of “Buy Now”
Mobile-first design: most users open emails on mobile devices
Interactive elements: add videos or motion to hold attention and drive engagement
Video in Email
Video has become essential in email marketing. With attention spans shrinking, and inboxes overflowing, video captures engagement more than static images. Platforms like Playable enable high-quality videos to play instantly within the email itself, without requiring users to click-away. Playable automatically optimizes video format, frame rate, and resolution for each subscriber’s device, email client, and network connection. The simple Copy-and-paste HTML makes integration easy and is compatible with all major Email Service Providers (ESPs) and Customer Engagement Platforms. Using video in your emails not only increases engagement, but also helps communicate your brand story, demonstrate products, and convert subscribers more efficiently.
How to Maintain Your Email List
Growing your email list is only half the job; maintaining it is just as important. Twilio emphasizes that strong list management ensures messages reach engaged subscribers rather than spam folders. Remember: smaller, healthy lists consistently outperform larger, inactive ones.
A clean email list improves:
Open rates
Click-through rates
Deliverability
Sender reputation
Conversion performance
Best Practices for Email List Hygiene
Remove inactive subscribers: Regularly identify subscribers who never open emails and consider removing or re-engaging them.
Use double opt-in when possible: Confirm email subscriptions to avoid fake or mistyped addresses.
Segment your email list: Send relevant emails based on interests or behaviors.
Maintain sending consistency: Irregular emails cause subscribers to forget why they signed up.
Make unsubscribing easy: A simple unsubscribe option protects your sender reputation.
Run re-engagement campaigns: Invite inactive subscribers back with offers or content.
Conclusion
Growing an email list takes intention, value-driven content, and consistent promotion. However, the payoff is worth it: a direct owned communication channel that consistently converts. The most successful and engaged email list has these elements:
Have clear email subscription and opt out opportunities
Offer valuable incentives for joining
Promote on other platforms such as social and website
Conduct continuous list maintenance
Deliver relevant, engaging, and interactive video email content
An engaged email list doesn’t just grow in size, it builds trust, relationships, and long-term business results. By offering real value, making subscriptions frictionless, and nurturing subscribers thoughtfully through video content and AI capabilities, your email list can become one of your most powerful marketing assets.
References
AdRoll. (2024). 6 smart ways to build an email list from scratch. https://www.adroll.com/blog/6-smart-ways-to-build-an-email-list-from-scratch
Campaign Monitor. (2022, February 25). 50 newsletter ideas to engage and inspire your subscribers. https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/must-have-newsletter-ideas/
HubSpot. (2024a). 25 clever ways to grow your email marketing list. https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/32028/25-clever-ways-to-grow-your-email-marketing-list.aspx
HubSpot. (2024b). Email list building guide. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/list-building
Klaviyo. (2024). How to start an email list. https://www.klaviyo.com/blog/how-to-start-an-email-list
Mailchimp. (2024). How to build your email list. https://mailchimp.com/resources/how-to-build-your-email-list/
Fox, P. (2025, May 29). Email design: 15 best practices + tips for your 2025 campaigns. Klaviyo. https://www.klaviyo.com/blog/email-design-tips
Playable Video Help Center. (2025). What is playable video email? Playable. https://help.playable.video/en/articles/4876549-what-is-playable-video-email
Sanjai Kumar, H. (2024). The impact of video marketing on audience engagement. Shanlax International Journal of Management, 11(S1‑Mar), 78–86. https://doi.org/10.34293/management.v11iS1‑Mar.8089
Twilio. (2024). How to build an email list from scratch. https://www.twilio.com/en-us/resource-center/build-an-email-list-from-scratch
Unbounce. (2024). How to build an email list. https://unbounce.com/campaign-strategy/how-to-build-an-email-list/