Free is Not Good Enough

[ZekeLL]

Why Nothing in Life is FREE
“Nothing in life is free.” That old saying rings true when it comes to offering online freebies. Even when you offer something FREE to consumers, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a “cost” behind that freebie.

Everyone is shaking up the Internet with freebies – sign up for this spectacular newsletter and receive a FREE SPECIAL report, whitepapers, or the latest and greatest trial sample.

Freebies don’t necessarily equate to “high value.” Have you ever tried a free sample and thought “Aw, no wonder they gave away that product for FREE!” It just wasn’t THAT great! You don’t want to be that kind of online marketer!

Sometimes the “buck stops there” – literally! Companies think they can blast out their freebies and consumers will automatically jump all over these freebies.

The Art of Persuasion
What makes YOUR freebie better than your competitors? With all the free offers floating around on cyberspace, you need to give people a GOOD REASON to sign up for your freebies.

How many times have you unsubscribed to newsletters because they were boring and didn’t offer relevant information? The last thing you want is to send worthless content to your subscribers.

“Time is money” and your visitors/customers don’t have a lot of free time on their hands. Monetary costs are just one aspect for consumers– what about the time it takes to READ your free content and marketing campaigns?

What can you do to PERSUADE people to actually WANT to read your content and actually USE your free samples?

It comes down to sales persuasion tactics!

Persuasion gives people the choice to make an informed decision – persuasion is not about manipulation or hype.

However, persuasion will only get you so far. Reel them in with free stuff BUT give people want they actually want. VALUABLE content is what makes people come back for MORE…and WHY people will buy your products and services!

• INCORPORATE POWERFUL CALLS TO ACTION

o HOW will your free content SOLVE crucial problems for people?

o What VALUE do you offer them to make them WANT free information?

o How will it CHANGE THEIR LIVES on a positive, long-term basis?

o Add URGENCY to your call to action – they NEED to read/try your content or product NOW. Give them every reason to take action immediately!

• SOCIAL PROOF – People will “jump on the bandwagon” and copy other people’s action (especially if they like and trust them). Use testimonials and endorsements. SHOW benefits that other people have experienced as a result of signing up for your free newsletter or report.

• VISUAL ELEMENTS – Use photos, music and videos as part of your freebie offers. People are visual creatures and you are more likely to really CAPTURE their attention through visual elements.

• SHOWCASE YOUR AUTHORITY/EXPERTISE – Show you’re an authority/expert in your field. Link to third party sites to back up your facts when offering free information (people will trust you even MORE!) Reference figures of authority (i.e. government/political officials, health leaders, etc.)

If you liked this article, please tell your friends about it. If you really liked it, feel free to publish it on your blog or website (please don't forget to mention www.TheOutsourcingCompany.com/blog as the original source).

[noob]

I disagree. While I can see your argument exist, there are ligitimate free type businesses that offer free products, services, or info without any strings attached what-so-ever. Google is a good example. They offer TONS of free products and services. They just created a market where they are able to monetize their free offerings a different way. There are millions of companies out there that offer stuff that have no strings attached. MySQL is another example, or Wordpress, etc... Sure they have other monetization model and upsell but they certainly never email you, spam you, or charge you for downloading/using their services/products.

There are people out there that offer free help, guides, mentors, etc... The list goes on. It really depends on the business, the people, the offer you're getting yourself into. There are multiple sides to every argument and while I can see your general argument, its not always true. And the case in point is you don't always have to sign up to a newsletter to get these type of services and in many cases, you never get a single email either.

Of course getting back to your main point, it wasn't to argue that things aren't truly free, just how to go about it to capture market. Just realize, it doesn't always have to have a catch

[inle]

I figue want TS meant is this..
How to differential & add value to your audience from your free offerings to the many thousands & millions free offerings out there..

[jmeijers]

If everyone is giving crap for free, try this:

Sell good things.

That will make you stand out. The tips you give are in my opinion vague and while I understand what you mean, some good examples would make the post more understandable.

Also I think that if you put this much effort into making good content, you can get people to buy that content. For example; I am an expert in outsourcing software projects which you can run single handed. I.e. you can run 2 at a time on your own. These are projects of roughly 250.000-500.000 Euro's per year.

Question 1Would you pay for a book that outlines exactly how I go about conducting this business? From selecting your preferred partner to communication to translation of the application, etc?

Question 2
What would you think about the same book if I gave it away for free?

Answers
I think you would be willing to pay. Also, I think that if it would be free, you would be hesitant it really contains my secrets.

Correct me if I'm wrong though. And there is nothing wrong with good free content, I have free content on my blog, which I try to make as good as possible. If you are giving away your trade secrets though (which to me would be the ultimate content), I would think twice about not charging.

[businessman413]

If you want to be successful online, you need to give them good quallity content in your free offer, but always leave room for more. Basically, It's like you are just giving them an appetizer. They get a little taste of what you have to offer, but if they want the full course meal, they have to pay you for it. Granted, your free offer needs to be something of great value, just don't put "too" much value in this, you don't want to give away your entree for free.

[ZekeLL]

What I'm saying is that just because something is free, it doesn't mean that people will want it. You still have to sell people on downloading a free software, a free report, sign up for your free newsletter, etc.

People won't just get your stuff because it's free. Everybody is offering free stuff. Make sure yours is better and worth their while.

[clp11479]

If the free item is something tangible, such as a t-shirt, keychain, even a pencil, you will get literally thousands, if not tens of thousands of people to give their mailing information to get it. Guaranteed. Once it hit the deal sites and freebie sites you'll see that traffic come through. If you're giving away a free online report then you may have a hard time giving it away.

[nonrate]

there are ligitimate free type businesses that offer free products, services, or info without any strings attached what-so-ever.

Noob, you misunderstand, that statement is very false. There certainly are strings attached to every apparent "free" service on google. What you are giving them in exchange for their service is:

* Your search criteria, used for global trending data, storing your IP address and search results, to be used and shared by google however they wish
* Access to your information via email
* Access to your web browsing habits
* Access to your web site stats, via google analytics
* Many, many more

Basically, you are paying for their services by exchanging your private information with them. It's a fair and fine trade, in my opinion, as they (we hope) are legitimately using this data to make their core products more competitive, such as google ads.

As for other "free" products you are claiming google provides, they aren't free in any way, shape or form if you are agreeing to an SLA. You know, that screen of legal information you or no one else actually reads. You press "I accept" to a document you have no clue what the contents are. Many times, these SLA's, or EULA's or whatever, are specifying you agree google can do this or that with your information. Read one of them sometime. How can something be free when you have to sign an agreement?

There is no free. The poster is right. You need to get the concept of free meaning "exchange of products or services without using a form of currency" out of your head.

[jonathanfigaro]

What I'm saying is that just because something is free, it doesn't mean that people will want it. You still have to sell people on downloading a free software, a free report, sign up for your free newsletter, etc.

People won't just get your stuff because it's free. Everybody is offering free stuff. Make sure yours is better and worth their while.

What items do you think are worth while to be given free to customers?

[Ergo1]

What items do you think are worth while to be given free to customers?

Anything that you own a direct compliment to (that can't be easily supplied by someone else).

[BusinessAdviser]

Cost is only an issue in the absense of value.

[Jersey Angels]

In all honesty, nothing is free. I dont' believe in true altruism either, especially from businesses. And there's nothing wrong with that, it's how business should be.