I now HATE Giveaways with a vengence!!

thinkrich

15 years ago

I agree that having so many duplicate gifts is not good.

I always scan current gifts and find something unique.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603744].message }}

anth.elias

15 years ago

I'm also in that giveaway, and it has been very good to me so far. The issue with duplicate gifts is the contributor most times does not know that his or gift it has already been submitted. My gift was also duplicated but I was lucky enough to be near the front so most people saw my gift first. It is up to the admin to remove the duplicates, however if it is newbie contributor maybe it is the only gift he or she has, besides I think everyone who puts the effort to entire the giveaway and contribute and promote the giveaway should have an opportunity to grow their list.

Thanks
1 reply

Signature

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603792].message }}

Jeremy Kelsall 15 years ago

In the Year and a couple months I've been in Internet Marketing, I've taken part in ONE giveaway...

I don't even bother anymore because of the duplicate products and the hoops you have to jump through.
- Thanks
Signature

A Blog With Reviews, Drama, and a Few Swear Words.
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603806].message }}

Anna Johnson

15 years ago

Is it just me, or have giveaways lost their charm for the participant. I am sure for the contributer they are nice, but for the participants...

I think they have lost their charm for all concerned. As have the giveaways designed to promote someone's book to the top of Amazon.

Well, until someone comes up with a way to make them work better...

Thanks

Signature

Discover a REAL Internet marketing newsletter
News, comment, research, tips and more.
(And great freebies when you subscribe...)

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603807].message }}

Ken Nubo

Banned 15 years ago

[DELETED]

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603818].message }}

CurtisN 15 years ago

Originally Posted by Ken Nubo

OP -- it's easy, just ignore the giveaways.

This is a rather dumb comment...but maybe I'm just biased.

Mubarak, I also hate it when people just "set and forget" their giveaway event. Obviously, the entire purpose of that giveaway was to make money and to build a really big list. This creates a giveaway where people can get away with submitting spam and crappy gifts.

Giveaway marketers like Scott Case and Rodger Hyatt are hardcore against this kind of stuff. You should search them up on Google to find their giveaways and join. It is people like this who are working extremely hard to prevent the giveaway marketing industry from being flushed down the toilet.

One example of a really good giveaway you should join is the Back to Basics Giveaway. That's the link to sign up as a member, although it is in pre-launch. I can't for the life of me figure out how to provide a link to sign up as a contributor without using my affiliate link, so I won't be posting that here.

Curtis
- Thanks
Signature
Curtis Ng (blog) - Product Launch Manager
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[603870].message }}

artwebster

15 years ago

Give aways are symptomatic of what is wrong in the tiny internet marketing niche.

A product or programme is created that works very well for the originator.

The product gets copied by imitators who have the technical know how to do that.

Someone invents the latest, greatest list building tool (ie. sells the methodology in click of the mouse format) - operate your own giveaway - and sells it for $7 - $27 and destroys the concept.

Thanks

Signature

You might not like what I say - but I believe it.
Build it, make money, then build some more
Some old school smarts would help - and here's to Rob Toth for his help. Bloody good stuff, even the freebies!

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604080].message }}

jlandells

15 years ago

I took part in one giveaway with my own, original software product. It generated me a list of around 150 people which has proven to be TOTALLY unresponsive! Many of the original emails were obviously created through those temporary emailers that are available. Many others are clearly setup only to grab free stuff from giveaways.

From my own perspective, taking the time to produce something original and to set everything up to participate was a complete waste of time.

The other thing that I've noticed is that I also went through Russell Brunson's giveaway as I was curious that he was getting involved and thought it might be different. Whilst there WAS some interesting new content in there, it's also interesting that my spam from un-related websites has gone through the roof! I suddenly seem to be the benefactor of half of the world's corrupt regimes....! 8)

-John.

Thanks
1 reply

Signature

Internet Marketing | Video Marketing | Affiliate Marketing
Learn Video Marketing

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604216].message }}

ExRat 15 years ago

Hi,

I now HATE Giveaways with a vengence!!

If they make you feel that emotive, then the best thing you could do is to never pay attention to one again - at least from the 'consumer' perspective.

Even better, if you honestly examine why you were there in the first place, you will understand one of the major motivators used in any marketing campaign - it's not pretty and it's called GREED.

If you're big enough to accept that you are human and have this gene by default, then you will start to recognise it everywhere you look and may be able to tap into the greed of others in order to achieve greater success for yourself (another aspect of greed ). You may not rid yourself of the vice, but you may master it - rather than have it mastering you.

The only reasons these giveaways exist in the first place is because people can't control their greed. I've done it too. I've wasted time downloading a bunch of stale, outdated, worthless crap to my hard drive just because I could and because it was free. Then I recognised the reasons why I had done it, and decided to learn about it instead.

This propelled me further on the joyous and enlightening journey from consumer mindset to marketer's mindset. I recommend it to everyone for a whole host of reasons - not all success and greed based.

Apart from anything else, it's progressive and self-educational and frees you from certain bonds and habits.

Sweet
- Thanks
Signature

Roger Davis
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604236].message }}

kswr123

15 years ago

All the comments are very valid and I take them all or board.

Perhaps, then, what we need is a giveaway script to STOP duplicate products, or amybe highly targeted giveaways, like the grpahics giveaway. Any thoughts...

I would not want to abandon them altogether, and certainly I find 1 or 2 good products in most giveaways, put they definately leave a sour taste in your mouth when you check your inbox

Thanks

Signature

Minisite Design

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604233].message }}

kswr123

15 years ago

true... I guess that greed led me to all the freebies...

So there is a marketing lesson to be learned then! Offer something to tap into people's greed. Then offer something better for a few dollars, and keep increasing!

Mubarak

Thanks
1 reply

Signature

Minisite Design

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604273].message }}

ExRat 15 years ago

Hi Mubarak,

So there is a marketing lesson to be learned then! Offer something to tap into people's greed. Then offer something better for a few dollars, and keep increasing!

If that's what you want to do with it.

My point was purely to -

a) not waste any more time, either - downloading junk, or getting worked up about it

b) use your own failings to learn about the universal aspects of human nature

What you do with that information is entirely up to you, but I'm definitely not suggesting that the wise thing to do is to jump straight from recognising your own greed regarding downloading junk to using that greed to get others to download junk for your benefit.

Two wrongs don't make a right.
- Thanks
Signature

Roger Davis
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604305].message }}

kswr123

15 years ago

I guess so. So why are there so many JV giveaways then? Now I ONLY participate if I see something I like on the first page where you preview a selection of the products.

Thanks

Signature

Minisite Design

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604318].message }}

dsmpublishing

15 years ago

im with you on this 200% with my list i checked lately those that had signed up via giveaways when i did a few end of last year and some had email addresses like thanksgivinggiveaway1@gmail or similar and it really annoyed me and as i put all the giveaways on a seperate list name i had a look back with aweber and found that from my weekly ezines for example i was getting a 10% open rate compared to with signups from my mainwebsite that stood at a minimum of 40% usually higher.

Plus i found that as i had used the same optin box that it was the same people visiting each event so if you went on to do a second or third your numbers were lowering and lowering as the same person cant join your list twice.

Ive also found a couple of times that the giveaway organisers have actually changed the start date etc to suit themselves without telling you.

Here is a thread i started about giveaways when i first left them

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ay-events.html

also has anyone ever though of using twitter to build there list i can get what i would get from three giveaways in one day on twitter and the great part is i get the sales too. Heres a copy of an article i wrote on my blog it may help you out if your new to twitter or looking for an alternative to giveaways (plus there is no duplicate with twitter its just too big):

When we start out in our online business we are also told by everyone the importance of list building and how it is the most valuable part of our business. We also hear that as soon as we have a decent list the sooner our income will dramatically improve.

If you wonder around internet marketing forums, social sites or even private groups you will find this that and the other expert telling you that you must do it this way and their way is the only RIGHT WAY.

Back in 2005 when I started out there wasn't that many ways to build a list it was lots of different old fashioned methods. I remember it well selling the one pound e-book on eBay and offering buys the opportunity to join your list and yes they came in their droves because not that many people were doing it at the time.

In the same way internet forums via the signature offered a fantastic way of list building, but by not clogging my signature I could add much more than most. Many would try and use this system to offer many different products for sale in this signature. But I could always add a lot more through one well presented link.

Now we have arrived in a new era thinks are some what different. There are more people in this business than ever before and as a result the likes of eBay and the warrior forum don't have the same results that they once had. I blame myself for this, I created several viral e-books telling people how to build their list. I should have kept quiet all this time!

Over the last year the internet has provided some new and amazing ways to build your list, some I love and some I hate with a passion.

For Example: using Giveaways don't appeal to me in the slightest. I have tried and tested several of them over a four month period and I have decided that it is not something that I want to pursue. Firstly if you're new to Giveaways and really don't know what it is they are very similar to Advert Swaps. You list a product for FREE and do it like you would if you were listing an item on eBay or in an online shop with a picture, description and opt-in link. Then when people sign up, they're automatically sent to a download page.

But Giveaways present these problems...............

*People visit Giveaways as they are free and will simply create an email address with the likes of Gmail or Hotmail, download the gifts and simply never open this email address again
*Unlike other sources unless you act pretty much straight away with your lists it's very hard to turn those customers into paying customers.
*The same people go to the different Giveaways so this stops you getting variety on your list and it can mean that new members can slow down after taking part in a few events.
*Low rate products are associated in Giveaways with a lot offering products that were released over a year ago with bad or no e-book covers.
*Having to spend hours promoting the event in order to have enough points to take part or alternatively having to make a payment to take part.
*As many pay to take part in Giveaways they can then download your item for free and you don't get that person on your list.

Social Networking now has this great appeal for adding lots of people onto your mailing list. One update a day on the likes of Twitter or Facebook can easily add anything from 250-500 new subscribers to the average persons list. These social sites generate a lot of attention and if someone likes it can be passed around like the Trojan Virus. Imagine if someone posts "Thanks that e-book was awesome" imagine how many others will also want it.

Those that have been in the business a long time had to wait ages to achieve a list like this in such a short space of time.

Just think about it..........What if you was on 10 Social Networking sites you could be adding thousands of new subscribers every day for the equivalent of an hours work or less.

The most important part is to make sure you offer something of value, your e-book must be better than other peoples and must be about something that will get people talking.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604378].message }}

Mrs S

15 years ago

I found quite a lot of dups in the Bronson giveaway - and some wierd ones too like links to ebau auctions! I did pick up a couple of unique gifts but 80+ pages to trawl through is just way too much. I prefer the smaller giveaways.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604400].message }}

kswr123

15 years ago

yeh! I want to go back to specific giveaways like the graphics giveaway

Thanks

Signature

Minisite Design

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604414].message }}

Tracy Yates

15 years ago

Two wrongs don't make a right.

Yeah Roger, but three rights make a left, right?

Tracy

Thanks

Signature

WFH: Professional Ebook Formatting Services | 2 New Ebook Template Packs - On Sale! | WSO: Kindle Template Bundle - Limited PLR Available Now!

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604527].message }}

Mike Hill

15 years ago

Originally Posted by saq3m

Ok, I have just been through Russell Brunson's massive giveaway, and I am pissed.

I must have seen some products 7 or 8 times. Why can people not just create their own products, or just stop spamming giveaways. There are a silly amount of pages (near 80-100 I think). About 20+ were just repeats!

Is it just me, or have giveaways lost their charm for the participant. I am sure for the contributer they are nice, but for the participants...

Let's just say why bother contributing if giveaways are going to be like this... I had to quit half way through 'cos I was bored...

Mubarak

It all depends... if giveaways had rules by their owners then it would be a lot better (ie. The product must be created by you)

That would greatly help I'm sure...

Mike Hill

PS. It's not hard to create your own product RELATED to the actual market of the giveaway! The people who really clean up at these giveaways are the ones who have original products that are fantastic, they promote the giveaway giving them a spot closer to the front few pages and they have an offer go out within the next few days via email to each new subscriber.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[604628].message }}

oneempowered

15 years ago

When Mark Hendricks created the first giveaway event years ago (the 12 days of Christmas) it was great for everyone involved.

Now, they're hardly worth noticing.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606574].message }}

Bev Clement

15 years ago

[DELETED]

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606593].message }}

Jasim 15 years ago

I agree the charm has worn off on giveaways because you know that for months to come you are going to be hounded to buy stuff of little to no interest and just takes up time clearing out the emails. If it is a giveaway from the owner so as to get a taste of their style and product that is different you only have one person's emails to delete if you are no longer interested or you may find a goldmine of good information
- Thanks
Signature

Learn Important Facts To Building A Successful Business, The Healthy Wayhttp://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...-may-help.html
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606609].message }}
Philip John 15 years ago

The other problem with Giveaways is you have some serial offenders who just upload the same crap from one giveaway to the next. Guaranteed 90% of the downloads had been offered before on other giveaways.

If giveaways followed rules similar to the WSO - the owner is the creator (ie: no PLR or MRR) then many of these issues would be removed.

On a side note..

If you have your own product and you participate in a giveaway then it wont do you any harm to stand out from the crowd... sometimes it's smarter to look at what your competitors are doing - and then go in the opposite direction
- Thanks
- 1 reply
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606641].message }}
- countonuspr 15 years ago
  
  I have built a few lists through giveaway events and I find that they are so non-responsive to anything it is crazy. They will not open e-mails after the event, and they tend to unsubscribe within 24 hours of downloading the free product. It is always nice to add people to your list, but I wouldn't spend tons of time on them.
  
  Thanks
  
  Signature
  
  Generate Full Time Income With PLR
  
  Paul Counts, Host of the "Count On Us Internet Profits Radio Show"
  
  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606665].message }}

oneempowered

15 years ago

Originally Posted by Bev Clement

I'm in 2 giveaways at the moment, and yes I have the same product in both.

It is a brand new report, and was written especially for it. I sent it to my current list and was surprised at how few downloaded it.

Also very few people have downloaded it from both giveaways.

Here is an additional problem.

The first one I signed up to, the admin had to approve the report, he said he would download and read it. It is a short report, but he took time to read and approve it, which is a good policy.

Russell was immediately approved, nobody even bothered to look at it. That is why there is so much duplicated material there.

In all my time online I have done 4 or 5 giveaways, and each time I have created a product especially for it.

The report is very short, and I have sent it to a number of people recently. It contains a secret, why because so far only 3 people have said they knew about it.

It is to do with article marketing, and I was surprised when some experts in the field also said they didn't know the secret.

Hope that explains something of the problems.

Bev,

Have the recent lists been very responsive to OTO's or other follow-up offers?

Do you find they are less responsive from giveaways?

Thanks
1 reply

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[623264].message }}

Rodger Hyatt 15 years ago

Hey everyone,

I googled myself (mind out of the gutter please) and bumped into this thread, so I thought I would have a look..

I came from giveaways... I went from Drywall to being handed a giveaway with a 3hour tour on "how to"... I was like "Whu??"

Long story short, back then, giveaways were as pure as my intent on bringing them back to life.

I am only one man, but I put a large effort, DAILY... into making them better for everyone involved.

What does my list consist of? Freebie seekers..
Do i still drywall to pay my bills? Nope..

You do the math...

If you ever need a hand with "making the most" of these giveaways... I can always fit ya in... rodgerhyatt <at> gmail . com

Touche` !

My warmest regards,
Rodger Hyatt
- Thanks
- 1 reply
Signature

You plan on doing this as a career right?

Quality Solo Ads
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[627681].message }}
- DaveOffen 15 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Just Rodger
  
  I am only one man, but I put a large effort, DAILY... into making them better for everyone involved.
  
  Yeh Rodger, I know how much effort you put in. Not many giveaway organisers do like you and go through EVERY gift to ensure the quality of you event, and I applaud effort. I know what has gone into the 100% Giveaway.
  
  For instance, how many other organisers would have the balls to go through over 1000 gifts and bin over 600 of them?
  
  And Scott Case, of the Back to Basics event has got it right.
  
  His event is about building a list. Sure, he gets a big list, but with his strict gift guidelines, all the contributors should too.
  
  Maybe it's time for other organisers to put their members first, provide great gifts, bin the garbage, and take out all the quick buck making that goes hand in hand with so many events now.
  
  I know I have had a shed load of stuff contributed to my latest event, but alot of it wont see the light of day.
  
  Quality is key. And making it EASY for members to get their downloads. That means do away with all the OTO's and over elaborate opt in pages that are full of adverts, banners, other links etc.
  
  As for the quality of the list? I think thats a myth. More important is the quality of the list owner. If you hammer your new list with product recommendations and affiliate links, sure they'll hit the unsubscribe button. Provide em with quality content, build a relationship with em and you'll do OK.
  
  Sure, some may subscribe with throw away email addresses, but they'll do that for most offers anyway. But there'll be a whole load of genuine subscribers looking for genuine guidance. Give them that and you'll build a responsive list.
  
  But you gotta work at it!
  
  Thanks
  
  Signature
  Visit my blog at www.daveoffen.com for more of my views and experience in Offline Marketing.
  
  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[629945].message }}

understandyourniche

15 years ago

Agree that a give-away with like 92 pages are ridiculous. But I always find something useful.

Originally Posted by saq3m

Ok, I have just been through Russell Brunson's massive giveaway, and I am pissed.

I must have seen some products 7 or 8 times. Why can people not just create their own products, or just stop spamming giveaways. There are a silly amount of pages (near 80-100 I think). About 20+ were just repeats!

Is it just me, or have giveaways lost their charm for the participant. I am sure for the contributer they are nice, but for the participants...

Let's just say why bother contributing if giveaways are going to be like this... I had to quit half way through 'cos I was bored...

Mubarak

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606761].message }}

kswr123

15 years ago

yes there always is SOMETHING useful, but with 93 pages the useful:unuseful ratio is stupid

Thanks

Signature

Minisite Design

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[606916].message }}

Dmitry

15 years ago

As every other "cool marketing trick/technique" in the IM niche giveaways have been overused so they aren't what they used to be.

I remember when they idea was still new it worked wonders for some people and I've personally made some nice money off them.

And if I recall correctly this was one of the very first methods I've used to gather subscribers... I think it was through Stephen Dean's WaterMelon-something and I participated with Ryan Deiss.

Well the guy sure knew how to use those subscribers - I didn't (self-irony) LOL

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[630058].message }}

jasondinner

15 years ago

The best giveaways are those that have some or all of the following attributes:

- by invite only
- limited number of contributors
- must be completely new product/content (not rehashed PLR or MRR)
- has a specific theme (blogging, list building, traffic generation, etc)
- has a screening process for ALL products before they can be approved

That's about it.

Based on my personal experience, giveaways with any or all of the above (especially
the events that are by invite only and are limited to 'X' amount of contributors) have
always given me the best results.

I may have missed some, but I think you've seen these types of events in addition
to the really crappy ones where you see the same garbage products you've been
seeing in these events for years.

Cheers

Jason

Thanks

Signature

"Human thoughts have the tendency to transform themselves into their physical equivalent." Earl Nightingale

Super Affiliates Hang Out Here

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[630351].message }}

I now HATE Giveaways with a vengence!!

Trending Topics

How did you turn it all around?

A healthy fascination for Hollywood...

Any thoughts on golf's latest phenom...Scottie Scheffler??

What's the Best IM-Related Skill to Learn Today That Can Help in the Future?

best high quality crypto traffic.