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Giveaway free report question?

by Evan H
17 replies
When you give away your free report in exchange for a "opt-in" do you like have a recommendation of an affiliate product in the free report itself (like a soft sale)...If so does this strategy convert well for you?

I haven't tried this method yet but think it could be useful.
#free #giveaway #question #report
  • Profile picture of the author Steve B
    Go ahead and try it - lots of folks do.

    Others like to nurture their new sign-ups and show them the value of being on the list before they attempt to push for a sale.

    It's been done effectively both ways. Why not set up a split test and track which approach works best for you?

    Good luck to you,

    Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author Evan H
      Originally Posted by Steve B View Post

      Go ahead and try it - lots of folks do.

      Others like to nurture their new sign-ups and show them the value of being on the list before they attempt to push for a sale.

      It's been done effectively both ways. Why not set up a split test and track which approach works best for you?

      Good luck to you,

      Steve
      Yeah I think that is my best option...I was planning on doing it subtly and see what type of results I get...I am currently not using this strategy but like you said I will have to split test it and see which works best...Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author Samuel Adams
    Building trust with your potential customers is essential to keeping them happy. So you might want to wait before injecting a soft sell pitch into your report. But, you won't want to wait too long. Just be sure your free report includes contact details such as links to other free reports or email series you are offering. Hopefully that will keep your reader in the loop.
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  • Profile picture of the author aleksbogata
    Great thread, thanks. Was thinking about doing that when I launch my free WSO. Reading the advice given however I think if you say it's free then make it free and that will be a good foundation for building trust. Well that's what I am going to do anyway. Can always sell a few follow up emails down the line...
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  • Profile picture of the author Rory Singh
    I used to give a way free stuff to get leads. But I personally found that people that opted into lists just to get stuff, weren't inclined to buy stuff. I used to attract a lot of 'FREE' seekers. Some guys even offer free stuff to collect emails to build solo ads.

    Maybe the free offer may work for some marketers but it didn't work for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author Evan H
    Thanks for the replies guys...My content is very valuable in the report and I could absolutely sell my Free report for a price...So I figured I would soft sell (recommend) an affiliate product in there since there is a lot of valuable content...I will let you know the results when everything is up and running!
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  • Profile picture of the author Kecia
    An alternative to the soft sell - you could make sure to mention a product or two and simply include your affiliate link. Don't necessarily draw attention to it, just write in a way that having the product or service would make the reader's life easier.
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  • Profile picture of the author Greg Ray
    It's certainly an option you can test, but as Kecia notes, I think it should be a very soft sell if you choose to do it.

    Generally, I make a soft reference at the end of my freebie with good results.
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  • Profile picture of the author veekay31
    Surely your report can provide good information on "What" and at the end of the report you can add a link that leads them to your paid product that provides the step by step "How to" information. Make sure you track all the links so that you know what works well.
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    • Profile picture of the author Evan H
      Originally Posted by veekay31 View Post

      Surely your report can provide good information on "What" and at the end of the report you can add a link that leads them to your paid product that provides the step by step "How to" information. Make sure you track all the links so that you know what works well.
      Good information...And I plan on tracking my link to see what is working for me and what is not
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  • Profile picture of the author zimzalabim
    Yes. By all means include something relevant as a way of monetising your givaway. As others have mentions, be subltle about it. don't turn your freebie in to a series of adverts or you'll soon turn people off.

    A nice quality freebie suitably monetised is a nice way to give your subscribers something worthwhile and earn a bit fom it yourself. Add to that the list building potential and you're looking good.
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  • Profile picture of the author gcbmark20
    Hi,

    It'll all depend on the depth and quality of the report you give away
    I suppose.

    I know affiliates who give away a FULL blown system for FREE that
    shows the reader a ton of work that would need to be done in order
    to set this particular system up.

    But then goes on to gently offer those readers an alternative route
    that will shortcut that process by offering a PAID alternative that
    gets them there quicker.

    Now that the reader is excited about the possibilities of the system
    and how they can pay to get most of the set up done makes making
    the affiliate sales ten times easier.

    What this does is warms people up to an idea that can earn them
    an extra income first then shows them how much work is involved
    and then offers them a very nice solution to avoiding the work load.

    It's as if by the end of the report they are thanking you for showing
    them such a short cut and are glad to pay for the fast track option.

    All the best
    Gavin
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  • Profile picture of the author Evan H
    Thanks everyone for the replies...These are all great answers and I am definitely going to split test this, once everything is up and running...I was thinking of mentioning a product towards the beginning like "Before you take a look at this Free e-book, the offer below has helped me blah blah blah" and then subtly at the end again...My report is about 9 pages long and the content is quality and to the point...I am very new to this method but am looking forward to testing this out
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  • Profile picture of the author Austin357
    If you can help people solve a problem and prove to be an authority in that space then they would be happy to buy. I have done split tests with both scenarios in my niche. What worked for me was to give tremendous over the top value right from the initial opt-in.

    Building the trust and guiding them through land mines and other obstacles. I also put out a survey on what they would like to learn or hear about. Based on that input, I modified my content to address the new market needs. My engagement rate shot up dramatically and in turn increased my conversions on the back end as well.
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    • Profile picture of the author Evan H
      Originally Posted by Austin357 View Post

      If you can help people solve a problem and prove to be an authority in that space then they would be happy to buy. I have done split tests with both scenarios in my niche. What worked for me was to give tremendous over the top value right from the initial opt-in.

      Building the trust and guiding them through land mines and other obstacles. I also put out a survey on what they would like to learn or hear about. Based on that input, I modified my content to address the new market needs. My engagement rate shot up dramatically and in turn increased my conversions on the back end as well.
      Thanks for the advice...I will absolutely be building trust with my list and I over-deliver with very helpful content in the free giveaway...I understand more people will be looking just for the free information but I figured "hey, if my content is very helpful and valuable to the consumer, then they would be inclined to purchase a recommendation as well....or at east a small percentage of them" Looking forward to trying this out, I still have a little ways to go on this project but I will report back with my results
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  • Profile picture of the author H.Miller
    I think its fine either way. If you want to put an affiliate link or a link back to one of your products in your giveaway report go ahead. As long as the content is valuable people won't mind.
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  • Profile picture of the author xpesos
    yes i do have a selling item on my free ebook,
    But just make sure you are using redirect links as affiliate or selling links,
    Because you cannot change URL's from already given away ebooks,
    This was bit problem for me in start, then i used pretty links plugin in wordpress for redirect urls
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