Give away your goods or services? I can hear you asking if you’ve read that correctly. I need you to take a deep breath and stick with me because there are instances in which giving away a sample of your goods or services just might garner you more clients and brand advocates!
Why do you think the grocery stores have employees standing at the ends of the aisles cooking food and offering samples? They want you to take a bite. Enjoy that tiny nibble in the hopes it will whet your appetite enough to purchase the entire product. Admit it, there are times you enjoy that sample and do just that, right?
Here’s a look at how a free plan can make you money:
- Free may convert to sales. We’ve shared that example above. Grocery stores know what they’re doing. Give your clients a sample of what your full product is. Become a critical part of their daily life and they may find they need more than a sample. What kind of sample can you give? Information in a blog post. A short video snippet that whets their appetite. News in your enewsletter that is intriguing but doesn’t give away the farm.
- No obligation trial. If you and your competitor are offering essentially the same item and if it is a high-priced item, you will have a competitive advantage if you offer a free sample. Why? There is no obligation to buy, but you have found a potential client who is interested enough to sign up for your sample and may convert to a client simply because of that sample. Offer a free version of your product or a trial version and look for conversion.
- Brand ambassadors. Who better to “sell” your brand and its goods or services on social media than an audience member who has tried it and loved it? Don’t pay for a focus group when you can ask current clients to try out your new product or service for free in exchange for word of mouth.
- Free may mean free public relations opportunities. Depending on the type of product or service you provide, you may be able to leverage your free trial into free local publicity.
- Free might help you work out the bugs. If you’ve been working closely on a project you may not see any of its faults. If you give away a free product in exchange for feedback those who are getting the product free may be able to point out shortcomings you hadn’t envisioned. You want this feedback before your product goes to full-scale launch.
Businesses need to look at products — whether physical or information products as a way to build their business and bring in passive income. Stumped on what type of product you could offer? Talk with our team to uncover what your unique offering could be.