Free vs. Paid Advertising - What is Best For People Who Are New?
Over the past few days I have been experimenting with some new advertising methods and let's just say the results have been SOLID!
One of the great things about networking with people on the web is the opportunity to learn from what others are doing. I'll be honest, I used to think I really knew "everything". What I have learned in the past 2 weeks is that I "do not know everything" and I do not have to be right all the time. There are many different ways to advertise your business! I used to think some were just a waste of time...I WAS TOTALLY WRONG!
So let's compare...PAID ADS VS. FREE ADS:
PAID: I joined an ad co-op after the recommendation from a friend who told me this was some of the best traffic he has ever had and over time, the people just seem to "buy". I spent $250 on the co-op and got about 70 leads...not great, but not bad either. $3.57 seems high, but so far, over the past 60 days, my average lifetime value for my customers is just under $100 and it's only going to grow over time because 60 days is not a very long time at all. For our business, the average LTV is anywhere from $500 per year to $1000 per year per basic member sign up, so realistically, I could spend $50-$250 per lead and still make money. So for my recent paid campaign, 70 leads, no sign ups, but there quite a few people who are emailing me and messaging me to ask questions. I typically try to be patient and look at my initial 90 day ROI before assessing a lead source. For this particular campaign, I am quite happy so far, I would expect to cultivate 2-5 new members from this campaign. I am in this for the long haul.
FREE ADVERTISING - I recently uncovered a very cool way to advertise on Craigslist (YES CRAIGSLIST) without getting flagged, ghosted or banned...and the ads are all FREE!
You don't want to do more than 10 a day because you'll get flagged, so 7 or 8 is a good number. I've now done about 10 ads total in the last 3 days and I have been adding about 10 leads per day into my autoresponder, and so far 13 have gone on to complete an additional form, including their phone number. I immediately texted or called all of them and spoke LIVE to 6 or 7 people. None of them signed up, but I am sure at least 2 or 3 of them will...they were extremely grateful to actually talk to a person and connect. Now this method is a little different for me because I really don't like to waste time on the phone, but once you do speak to someone, even for a few minutes, they really become a "warm" lead. If now isn't the time for them, then they may be more receptive a few days, weeks, or months down the line...that is why it is crucial to respect your leads and build a relationship. They need to know you are a real person.
So, what's the answer, PAID VS. FREE ADVERTISING? In this particular campaign, it's too early to tell. I will tell you, if you have the budget, good training, and a good follow up system, paid ads can pay off very quickly. If you are new and just need to get leads, then there is nothing wrong with using various free marketing methods to feed your auto responder...(oh, and if you don't have your own auto responder to follow up with your own leads, you don't really have a business of your own, in my opinion. It is an absolute must. How do I know? I went 5 years without building a list. I have added 550 leads in to my auto responder in past few weeks. Can you imagine how big my list would be if I had consistently been doing this for 5 years?!) Lesson learned...the hard way.
So in this particular comparison, I would have to say the FREE method wins in the short term because 6 or 7 warm leads who are getting to know, like and trust me, are better than a bunch of email addresses sitting in my auto responder.
What do you think?
If have any questions, feel free to send me a friend request and a PM on Facebook...Brett Basinski.
One of the great things about networking with people on the web is the opportunity to learn from what others are doing. I'll be honest, I used to think I really knew "everything". What I have learned in the past 2 weeks is that I "do not know everything" and I do not have to be right all the time. There are many different ways to advertise your business! I used to think some were just a waste of time...I WAS TOTALLY WRONG!
So let's compare...PAID ADS VS. FREE ADS:
PAID: I joined an ad co-op after the recommendation from a friend who told me this was some of the best traffic he has ever had and over time, the people just seem to "buy". I spent $250 on the co-op and got about 70 leads...not great, but not bad either. $3.57 seems high, but so far, over the past 60 days, my average lifetime value for my customers is just under $100 and it's only going to grow over time because 60 days is not a very long time at all. For our business, the average LTV is anywhere from $500 per year to $1000 per year per basic member sign up, so realistically, I could spend $50-$250 per lead and still make money. So for my recent paid campaign, 70 leads, no sign ups, but there quite a few people who are emailing me and messaging me to ask questions. I typically try to be patient and look at my initial 90 day ROI before assessing a lead source. For this particular campaign, I am quite happy so far, I would expect to cultivate 2-5 new members from this campaign. I am in this for the long haul.
FREE ADVERTISING - I recently uncovered a very cool way to advertise on Craigslist (YES CRAIGSLIST) without getting flagged, ghosted or banned...and the ads are all FREE!
You don't want to do more than 10 a day because you'll get flagged, so 7 or 8 is a good number. I've now done about 10 ads total in the last 3 days and I have been adding about 10 leads per day into my autoresponder, and so far 13 have gone on to complete an additional form, including their phone number. I immediately texted or called all of them and spoke LIVE to 6 or 7 people. None of them signed up, but I am sure at least 2 or 3 of them will...they were extremely grateful to actually talk to a person and connect. Now this method is a little different for me because I really don't like to waste time on the phone, but once you do speak to someone, even for a few minutes, they really become a "warm" lead. If now isn't the time for them, then they may be more receptive a few days, weeks, or months down the line...that is why it is crucial to respect your leads and build a relationship. They need to know you are a real person.
So, what's the answer, PAID VS. FREE ADVERTISING? In this particular campaign, it's too early to tell. I will tell you, if you have the budget, good training, and a good follow up system, paid ads can pay off very quickly. If you are new and just need to get leads, then there is nothing wrong with using various free marketing methods to feed your auto responder...(oh, and if you don't have your own auto responder to follow up with your own leads, you don't really have a business of your own, in my opinion. It is an absolute must. How do I know? I went 5 years without building a list. I have added 550 leads in to my auto responder in past few weeks. Can you imagine how big my list would be if I had consistently been doing this for 5 years?!) Lesson learned...the hard way.
So in this particular comparison, I would have to say the FREE method wins in the short term because 6 or 7 warm leads who are getting to know, like and trust me, are better than a bunch of email addresses sitting in my auto responder.
What do you think?
If have any questions, feel free to send me a friend request and a PM on Facebook...Brett Basinski.
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