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Special Offer vs One Time Offer

by Andrey Doichev
10 replies
I passionately dislike the idea of offering a one time offer right after an opt-in.
Why? Because it's cold traffic in my opinion, why not redirect them to the OTO without calling it one time.

The Pros:
The leads will likely go thru your free product, which if done right will install great trust and credibility, then you can follow up with your offer. You wouldn't be able to do that if you've called it an OTO or you'll look like a bozo.

The Cons:
Won't be able to call it OTO
#offer #special #time
  • Profile picture of the author imfusa
    They feel to be quite almost the same. Except that the one time offer it is a special offer but can be offered one time.
    I think special offers should be placed on holidays and one time offers when you feel that sales are dropping.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrey Doichev
    I only said "special" because I couldn't think of something else and just "offer" sounds boring.
    I guess my real question is - why the hell would anybody position their product as an OTO. Last time I checked, the concept of email marketing and the whole idea behind building a list is to follow-up with the leads.
    Would love to see some light shed on this topic.
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    The reason a one time offer is used is because of scarcity. The same reason advertorials say the bonus is only good for the next 30 callers. The same reason people put countdown clocks on their offer or only sell a limited number of copies. Scarcity is well known to increase conversions and drive people into action they might otherwise not take.

    You will find a lot of marketers who use the term One-Time-Offer actually offer the same package to people at a later date as well so they aren't really doing a One-Time-Offer in the true sense of the word.

    Having said that, what I prefer to do is to use a One-Time-Offer of sorts in that people get a special offer if they act right away. They can still purchase that package at a later date but the price will not be as good as if they buy it right now.
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    • Profile picture of the author Andrey Doichev
      Originally Posted by WillR View Post

      The reason a one time offer is used is because of scarcity. The same reason advertorials say the bonus is only good for the next 30 callers. The same reason people put countdown clocks on their offer or only sell a limited number of copies. Scarcity is well known to increase conversions and drive people into action they might otherwise not take.

      You will find a lot of marketers who use the term One-Time-Offer actually offer the same package to people at a later date as well so they aren't really doing a One-Time-Offer in the true sense of the word.

      Having said that, what I prefer to do is to use a One-Time-Offer of sorts in that people get a special offer if they act right away. They can still purchase that package at a later date but the price will not be as good as if they buy it right now.

      I do grasp the concept, but unless it at least triples conversion - it'd be more lucrative to use follow ups.

      I don't really like sleazy marketing so and I do care about my relationship with the leads so I really wouldn't like to go down this path.

      Thanks!
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      • Profile picture of the author WillR
        Originally Posted by Andrey Doichev View Post

        I do grasp the concept, but unless it at least triples conversion - it'd be more lucrative to use follow ups.

        I don't really like sleazy marketing so and I do care about my relationship with the leads so I really wouldn't like to go down this path.

        Thanks!
        Andrey,

        Scarcity will almost always increase conversions. How much of an increase it creates depends on a lot of things -- the offer made, the type of scarcity used, the market, and so on.

        Using something like a One-Time-Offer does not have to be a negative thing and does not mean you do not care about your list. When someone first joins your list that is THE time they are MOST passionate about what it is they opted in for. That is why they have just filled out your form and joined your list. Some of those people are going to want to buy a solution right away so by not offering them a solution to buy you can actually be doing some people a disservice. Obviously you don't have to use a OTO everytime you could just present them with a regular offer.

        But why not do both? Offer them a product when they join and have consumed your free content and then use followup emails to offer them further valuable content and further products. That way you get the best of both worlds.

        Scarcity and OTO's are fine and you are not mis-treating your subscribers/customers so long as you give people a logical reason as to WHY that special offer is only being made once.
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        • Profile picture of the author Andrey Doichev
          Originally Posted by WillR View Post

          Andrey,

          Scarcity will almost always increase conversions. How much of an increase it creates depends on a lot of things -- the offer made, the type of scarcity used, the market, and so on.

          Using something like a One-Time-Offer does not have to be a negative thing and does not mean you do not care about your list. When someone first joins your list that is THE time they are MOST passionate about what it is they opted in for. That is why they have just filled out your form and joined your list. Some of those people are going to want to buy a solution right away so by not offering them a solution to buy you can actually be doing some people a disservice. Obviously you don't have to use a OTO everytime you could just present them with a regular offer.

          But why not do both? Offer them a product when they join and have consumed your free content and then use followup emails to offer them further valuable content and further products. That way you get the best of both worlds.

          Scarcity and OTO's are fine and you are not mis-treating your subscribers/customers so long as you give people a logical reason as to WHY that special offer is only being made once.
          All I meant was that I'd never use follow ups for an OTO (since it's a ONE time).

          I don't consider offering an inexpensive product right after opt-in to be detrimental, and since thats when leads are most active it's obvious that I need to capitalize on it.

          I'll probably position my offer as a special "less than a big mac 'n fries" deal and use 3-5 follow ups over the course of the first week increase conversions.
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    • Profile picture of the author mrelk159
      Originally Posted by WillR View Post

      The reason a one time offer is used is because of scarcity. The same reason advertorials say the bonus is only good for the next 30 callers. The same reason people put countdown clocks on their offer or only sell a limited number of copies. Scarcity is well known to increase conversions and drive people into action they might otherwise not take.

      You will find a lot of marketers who use the term One-Time-Offer actually offer the same package to people at a later date as well so they aren't really doing a One-Time-Offer in the true sense of the word.

      Having said that, what I prefer to do is to use a One-Time-Offer of sorts in that people get a special offer if they act right away. They can still purchase that package at a later date but the price will not be as good as if they buy it right now.
      Yes I agree, creating scarcity has always been a sale tactic ever since the beginning of time. The less availiable an prodcut or service is the more percieved value that product or service will have and if it goes accordingly usually an increase of sales will occur.
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  • Profile picture of the author paul nicholls
    this is why i always like to call it a "low ticket" offer or a "special offer"

    a oto means that it's only available one time and if you still try to promote or sell the oto product within your follow ups it's not really a oto

    i class it as my low ticket offer and then any upsells after that :-)
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    • Profile picture of the author robestrong
      This has already been said, but it's a scarcity tactic.

      That said, everyone who's been in IM for more than a week knows that any OTOs (at least in the IM industry) are bull****. You can bookmark them (I always do), and 9 out of 10 times if they go to the trouble of making an OTO (or even an upsell), they are going to promote the heck out of it to you, in their auto-responder, on the purchase page, and in the product itself.
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  • Profile picture of the author louie6925
    I agree, I don't like them, although I fully understand why people use them, its just something that I think is a bit sneaky and not the way to do business! If you want to upsell, I believe you should put that within the original product, that way if the original product is good, then the conversion of the upsell will be too!

    OTO says to me, quick buy this, before you see how rubbish my products are!!

    ....maybe thats just me! not slamming anyone though!
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