Experience with offering money-back guarantees?

8 replies
Hello Warriors,

What are your experiences with offering your clients money-back guarantees if they don't like your copy?

It's a great way to reduce risk in your prospect's mind, but does making this offer also open up opportunities for your clients to take advantage of you?

Is there a way to strike a balance?

Thanks.
#experience #guarantees #moneyback #offering
  • Profile picture of the author DanielleLynnCopy
    Originally Posted by CopyAcolyte View Post

    Hello Warriors,

    What are your experiences with offering your clients money-back guarantees if they don't like your copy?

    It's a great way to reduce risk in your prospect's mind, but does making this offer also open up opportunities for your clients to take advantage of you?

    Is there a way to strike a balance?

    Thanks.
    In my experience, you don't offer money-back guarantees with copy.

    You're providing a business with a service, not a product. If they ask you for a refund, who is going to compensate you for all the hours you spent toiling over the copy?

    What you can offer is revisions to copy, and set up meetings at different stages to ensure you're both on the same page.

    For example, when I'm working on a large project;

    First, my potential client and I talk. I ask them a series of questions about themselves and their product/service/business to see if we'd work well together (and to see if any red flags go off).

    If everything seems peachy, then set up working on a project with them (If they want to do a lot of projects with you, try working on a smaller project to start so you can get a feel for each other).

    The way I cut back on 'revisions', is I create and share different levels of copy with the client. First I create an outline, then a draft, then a final. At each stage, the client can tell me if they like/don't like something. This makes it far less likely that there will be extreme changes at the end.

    Bottom line: No money-back guarantees on copy. Offer revisions or a "kill-project" fee.

    Best wishes,
    Danielle
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  • Profile picture of the author Dean Jackson
    I agree with Danielle, you'll learn how to spot these kinds of people who will keep jerking you around early on with the way they communicate with you.

    ... but whatever you do, do NOT offer a money back guarantee.

    Minor revisions are OK, but this is something that can easily be resolved with good communication.
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    • Profile picture of the author copyassassin
      i love it when a professional has the balls to back up their service or product with a guarantee.

      and yes, i think a guarantee when producing copy is good thing.

      i've always offered some form of a guarantee.

      here's what you can do:

      Performance Based Guarantee:
      Landing page converts at X
      Sales at XX
      OTO at XXX

      Now, I already know what you're saying , "But Adam, conversion depends on your source of traffic"

      Here's the work around:

      Do a PPC campaign to get enough of the sample to see how the site converts.

      Also, a house list should convert higher. Ask your client to send a special offer to a sublist to get a sample of it converts there.

      Also, ask a JV partner to send a limited time offer to your page to see how it converts.

      Now, you're smart. And I bet you're asking ,"But Adam, know do if the client is lying about their conversion on my copy?"

      You'll know the PPC conversions because you'll be doing that. For house and JV conversions, insert tracking code and make sure you have access to those stats.

      And now you're asking, "But PPC costs so much. Its so much work"

      Look, banks offer crappy interest rates because why?...

      ...Because the risk is low you'll lose your money.

      In other words, their is a premium for risk reduction.

      Therefore (and here's the magic)...

      ...CHARGE YOUR CLIENT FOR THE GUARANTEE!

      Hey, if you have the balls to guarantee your results, you need to charge a premium for that...

      ...Because:
      1. it costs more
      2. it takes more time
      3. you'll eventually fail

      I want to focus on the last one for a bit.

      YOU WILL FAIL....

      ...Eventually.

      Will you know for sure you'll get 2% conversion rates.

      No.

      Its a calculated risk.

      And hopefully, just like Vegas, the odds are on your side.

      Because when the odds on your side you'll win in the long run.

      Hope that helps.

      p.s. sorry for grammar. labtop about to die
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  • Profile picture of the author DougHughes
    Everyone's got their own take on this.

    I usually try and prequalify prospects with a consultation. You pay me X amount of dollars to go over your project. That way neither of us is wasting our time.

    In most cases I avoid markets I am unfamiliar with, and I am always honest with the prospect about the offer, channels, etc...

    I don't take every project. I try to only take projects with a high likelihood of success.

    If after talking with the client on the phone I decide to take the project the consulting fee is waived.

    Additionally, if the client feels the consultation wasn't worth the money they paid I refund the consultation fee and we go our merry way.

    Like others have said, you will get a feel for clients. Watch out for charismatic ones who try and sell you on opportunity and the success of their product.

    Look at the offer. Listen to the client's marketing strategy. Ask if they've had other copy written, and by whom. Feel them out. My experience has been that clients who try and sell me on their products and future work don't pan out.

    People who are willing to spend money and see this thing through are much better clients. Ideally, I am looking for people with media budgets, failures, and successes and who are honest enough to say so.

    Experienced marketers understand risk. If they've had failures and lost a bunch of money they likely have a good idea what makes an offer work and with what audience.

    Good luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author Russell Barnstein
    I have offered my clients a 100% money back guarantee since the day I started writing way back in the mid nineties. In 15 years I've never had a single client ask for a refund and I have no intention of changing our guarantee.

    Is it a risk? Yes. But what isn't? I'm a friggin' freak about over-delivering for every client, every time. I could offer a 200% money back guarantee and never sweat it at all. Why? Because I do exactly what DanielleLynn said: I screen my clients, I make sure that we fully understand their needs and that we're a good match, and ONLY then do we proceed.

    Remember, you don't have to offer a guarantee that your copy or work will sell your client's products because you have no control over their sales methods/funnels/etc. Therefore, it's the work itself that is guaranteed: if it's written according to terms and the client accepts it and releases final payment, then the project is completed. If the client never accepts the work and revisions cannot meet their needs, then it's refund time.

    I'm certainly not saying that those of you who do not offer refunds are wrong. I'm simply suggesting that if you always do things right and you screen your clients appropriately, then the incidences of refunds will be so slight that any money that you give back to clients will be insignificant when compared to the amount of business you can obtain/retain by offering a guarantee.
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  • Profile picture of the author Cam Connor
    Originally Posted by CopyAcolyte View Post

    Hello Warriors,

    What are your experiences with offering your clients money-back guarantees if they don't like your copy?

    It's a great way to reduce risk in your prospect's mind, but does making this offer also open up opportunities for your clients to take advantage of you?

    Is there a way to strike a balance?

    Thanks.
    Hey CopyAcolyte,

    I'd highly recommend offering all your clients a money-back guarantee. People want to know you can back your stuff up. ;-)

    It'll pay off, if you're clients know that you're willing to stand by your copy with a 100% money-back guarantee. I've personally never had someone ask for their money back... They just see how the copy converts, and it's more valuable to them to be able to use your services again and again.

    A good copywriter is hard to find.
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  • Profile picture of the author cryst
    see giving money back gurantee is not so good.. because u are selling e-book if some one reads and if he doesn,t like it ...then he applies for refund....... how it will be possible.....
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  • Profile picture of the author Affiguy
    For me it works like this:

    before taking any project, I do a small part of the copy. If it is what the client wants we proceed further. No hassle or problems.
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