Help! Addicted to One Time Offers!

by Lunar
11 replies
Hi Warriors, I've recently had success selling products online , but only though One Time Offers (order by Friday and you'll get 20% off plus a bonus, etc.). That is a highly recommended tactic that worked for me to get people to buy.

However, my long term goal is to generate consistent, passive sales that don't need much upkeep or time-heavy product launches. Sales that continue for months (or years) after the product is debuted.

Increase the value of the products, sure. Maybe the one time offers work because they cross a threshold in the customer's mind, not because they're limited time.

Large corporations do this by continuing to market the product and continually offering small incremental versions/generations (Apple iPod, Flip).

But other than that, any suggestions on turning a one-time-offer into a long term seller? :confused:
#addicted #marketing #offers #one time offers #oto #time
  • Profile picture of the author lowjo
    I don't tend to go for 'time sensitive' OTO, instead I often use a low cost (or free) entry product to enter the 'circle of trust' then OTO for upsell / cross sell etc.

    What approach I'd take totally depends on your product offering.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692800].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author lowjo
    I guess it's thinking in terms of a sales funnel and lifetime customer value rather than a one time sale....
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692806].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Lunar
      I see, that's a good thought. Focus on the long term.

      So do you do a per-customer OTO? Someone downloads your free offer, and then they have 5 days from that download to purchase? Or do you do the OTO across all customers?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692824].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author lowjo
    Depends on the niche and the product etc but usually I capture the lead info through Aweber before they download, Aweber redirects all customers to a OTO page after submission.

    Then I'll send a series of follow ups for 5 to 7 days which combine hard sells and soft sells for the OTO.

    After that I might periodically send out some useful info and a plug for an alternate offer and slowly drip on them.

    One thing that works well for me is asking them after 1 to 2 days why they didn't buy the OTO. A number of people respond with questions, I answer them and a surprisingly large number go buy straight away.

    You can build major credibility by asking and answering questions plus if they ask that means 100 others will have the same question so I email an FAQ with answers to all prospects and I can take that info and modify the pitch if I need to based on feedback.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692868].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Daniel Brock
      Alright, here is what I have gathered for this(this is something I am working on right now).

      You need to make a defined sales process.

      Lead them from a low price item to perhaps a continuity program(make money each month on autopilot), then to higher priced items.

      You can do that from the start by selling one product and doing the other as upsells.

      You can also link products together in the PDF. At the end of the product you can say:

      'if you liked this report, I highly recommend you get my course on _____ here. Here is what people are saying about it: [insert testimonial].

      Again, that url is ______________'

      So if someone likes your first product, most likely they will buy your second.

      You can also follow up with additional offers on the back end to continue the cash flow.

      Again, someone I am working on ATM because it's not like you can have all of this in place overnight...it takes time to develop high quality products you wouldnt be ashamed to put your name on.

      Just my 2 cent
      Signature
      Clickbank #1 Best Seller: The Deadbeat Super Affiliate.
      Click here to learn how to make money online in your bath robe and gym socks!
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692878].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author lowjo
    Hope that answer your question a little.

    I know I'm being a little vague but it is an excellent question and a very deep subject if you keep digging.

    Daniel is on to it for sure with his sales process.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692880].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Lunar
      @lowjo: It makes sense. In my personal experience I haven't had much luck with gaining customer trust via free download + autoresponders. I tried my same product in the past with that method, and among several downloads, no one opened the emails or clicked the links. It was all just people who found the site, downloaded the free offer, and left forever.

      It wasn't until I started a blog and developed regular readers over time that I began to get user engagement and sales.

      I like the idea of answering people's questions personally.

      @Daniel: Upselling is a definite possibility. I'm just beginning to scratch the surface of what customer lifetime value means. Like you said though it does take long term planning.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692914].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author lowjo
        Originally Posted by Lunar View Post

        In my personal experience I haven't had much luck with gaining customer trust via free download + autoresponders. I tried my same product in the past with that method, and among several downloads, no one opened the emails or clicked the links. It was all just people who found the site, downloaded the free offer, and left forever.

        It wasn't until I started a blog and developed regular readers over time that I began to get user engagement and sales.
        That's interesting and yes it can be a struggle. Best you can do is give killer information in your free offer and in every follow up email so people want to hear from you. Some markets really do not respond well to this.

        I have to admit that I have better success selling a $2 to $5 item and then upselling - some people just automatically assume FREE is junk.

        A blog is an excellent tool. I use blogs as well, then I take my blog entries and create videos and post those on YouTube then embed the videos on my blog. Catches the readers and the watchers attention and is a great trust building tool which is most of the marketing battle.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692958].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author lowjo
    Attachment 3842

    Here's an example of one of Stephen Pierce's sales processes, the product is irrelevant but it demonstrates the principles.

    He's made a few million using this formula and I'm sure he won't mind me sharing it with you, in fact I think it is freely available.

    Of course one of the key points is to cross promote your products from within your products, emails etc...within the same niche.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1692933].message }}

Trending Topics