Author, copywriter, and business lead generation consultant Craig Garber, from MaxMoneySecrets.com, says "Conventional wisdom tells you ‘The money's in your list.' But this is simply NOT true. Most entrepreneurs, even those with small lists, are leaving so much money on the table, it's not even funny -- especially nowadays. They have no idea of the untapped potential in their list, if they only knew how to work it right."

And Garber should know. He's the author of "How To Make Maximum Money With Minimum Customers: 21 Proven Direct-Marketing Strategies Anyone Can Use." His book reveals how he made almost $600,000 with a small online list of less than 5,000 names, without spending any money on advertising. Here are three of the most critical and costly mistakes entrepreneurs make, which Garber says, prevents them from maximizing their income:

• Too much content - While ‘content is king,' as every entry-level marketer knows, many people are actually providing too much of it. "Believe it or not, people may come to you for specific information, but they'll stay with you because of your ability to entertain them. People can only take ‘so much' information about marketing, puppies, magic tricks or whatever. If you're not constantly putting a smile across their face and making them think about things above and beyond your core topic, they're going to unsubscribe pretty quickly, no matter how much good content you offer," Garber notes.
• Quality over quantity - Most people are obsessed about the size of their list, when they should be far more concerned about the quality of their leads. "You'll make a lot more money and spend your time a lot more wisely if you're pre-qualifying your leads and speaking to the right people in the first place." Time is the most valuable asset you have, and nothing wastes it more than spending it with tire-kickers. "Focus on creating some kind of a funnel that makes your leads self-qualify, right from the very beginning. Otherwise, you wind up with cheapskates who are looking for ‘good deals,' at your expense. Don't convince people to buy, instead, attract those who already want to buy."
• Frequency of contact - Believe it or not, Garber e-mails his list every single day, and has a very low percentage of unsubscribes. "There are only two things that determine the quality of any relationship you have. Those two things are, the intensity of your interactions, and the frequency of them. And your relationship with your list is no different." says Garber. "If you want to create and maintain meaningful relationships with your prospects, and rapidly convert them into paying customers, then speak to them often, and make sure you're saying something worthwhile. If you do this, they'll be thrilled to hear from you, and they'll buy from you."

In Garber's book he reveals how to overcome each of these three mistakes, by showing you how to entertain your list, 5 different ways to "pre-qualify" your prospects ahead of time, and 8 reasons why people unsubscribe from your list. "Having a big list is like owning a big company. Unless you know how to manage it and get the most out of it, you wind up missing loads of opportunities and eventually it winds up giving you far more headaches than it's worth." For more information on Garber's book, go to MaxMoneySecrets.com