Having a big list is a key to creating supportive income in your business. If you’ve spent much time in internet marketing circles, you’ve probably heard the phrase “the money is in the list.” But it’s actually not ALL about the money.

Having a list means that you are reaching and connecting with the right people, and you’re creating a business nation full of people that need your services and products. And it’s important to connect with the “right” people - you don’t want this giant list of people who don’t really resonate with you. That’s not going to do your business any good.

We’re going to delve deeper into list building in the next couple of weeks, but before we go much farther, I feel we should talk about the foundation of a great list. Before you start giving your business tons of exposure, there are a few foundational pieces you need to have in place:

1. Your niche - having a targeted niche will help you see where to effectively market your business, and it will help your voice be heard - instead of talking to “everyone,” you’ll be connecting with the people who deeply resonate with you.

2. Do what you love to do - not all marketing activities are fun for everyone. Find the ones that you love to do and focus on those. You can’t be everywhere all the time anyway, so focusing on just a few activities will make your marketing time more efficient and more effective.

3. Technology - you must have the proper technology to connect with your niche. It’s near impossible to manage an e-mail campaign and a list through your e-mail service provider. Take a look at services like Aweber, iContact, and even Yahoo Groups to see which might be a good fit for your business.

And here are a few things to keep in mind as you build your list:

1. Responsiveness - if you are making offers to your list, and they aren’t responding, there’s a disconnect somewhere. It could be niche; you’re not reaching the right people for some reason. It could also be within the marketing activities… examine what you’re doing and see where you might be attracting people who aren’t resonating with what you’re offering.

2. Unsubscribes aren’t all bad - when someone unsubscribes from your list it’s simply because they’re not resonating with you for one reason or another. And your list should be fluid like that. But this is why you need to build momentum and keep reaching more and more people who need you.

3. Size matters - yes, in this case it kinda does. The larger your list, the more response you’re going to receive. And, as your list grows, the income that you can create from it gets more and more predictable - how cool is that?

So, those of you who have a rockin’ list - share your tips and techniques with us. And those of you with questions or challenges, share them and we’ll help ya out!