The «Free Offer», is still a very effective lead generation tactic!

Here are 4 types of free offers that you can use to connect with qualified prospects (leads) to whom you can then present your product or service

Still today, any mention of «free» stops people, even the most jaded, and gets them curious, if not interested, to find out what is being offered!

A free offer, also known as a «freebie», describes any type of offer made by an organization regarding its products or services without asking for financial compensation.

Whatever one may think, the words free and no-cost will always possess an almost hypnotic power over most people, including even the most jaded. 

And still today, any mention of «free» stops people and gets them curious, if not interested, to find out what is being offered.

How does a free offer fit into a business’ marketing strategy?

Although widely used on the web, the concept of the freebie is not new to the digital world. Just think of the test drives offered by car dealerships; or the small packet of shampoo in your mailbox; or, again, the new bakery that distributes free cookies the day of its official opening.

That being said, to be effective for any marketing strategy, a free offer has to accomplish these two tactical objectives:

1- to get the pre-qualified prospects to essentially start a sales cycle by asking for the freebie;

2- to then get these prospects to trust the organization that made the free offer.

 Once the above is accomplished, the freebie has done its job

With a degree of trust now established, we can offer the prospects to move onto the next step in our business development process, such as scheduling meeting (virtual or live); or prepare a preliminary proposal; etc.

A free offer will be effective to the degree that it targets prospects that are in a «satisfy a need for…» mode

It is a daily fact that people are always looking to satisfy a need for something ; whether it is the need for a new pair of shoes; or the urgent need for someone to fix the roof; or maybe the need for improved productivity; or even simply the need for a fun activity to do with the kids.

So all services, products and activities serve to satisfy needs.

It is then a logical conclusion that if the freebie offered promises to help, in some way, your prospective clients to satisfy their immediate need, then they are most likely to respond favorably to that offer.

This is an example of how we use a Free Offer as our own marketing tactic

The following example is only intended to demonstrate the effectiveness of the Freebie.

Indeed, for our company VCOMMDESIGN (VCD), we have developed a freebie to help business owners that are looking for “someone” to make them a website; we offer a «Your Competitors’ Websites Analysis » to interested prospects.

To date, this offer has allowed us to meet qualified prospects, 60% of whom contracted us to make their websites.

For those interested, follow this link to view the full offer  — n.b. it will open in a new browser window.

Here are 4 proven types of free offers that you can implement in your marketing strategy

1- How-to information

Any information that promises to explain or show how to resolve whatever need is being addressed. Such information can be presented in any format: a booklet, articles, a study, a report, an audio-video presentation, etc.

• A management consulting firm offering a White Paper or Case Study on « How to create a strong team spirit »
• A travel agency that offers access to an online  « Video on What to See and Do in China! »

2- Trial offer

Getting interested prospects to try out and experience a service or product that you offer before they decide to buy it, has developed more business that one can imagine.

• The always successful free offers to : try a software, taste a product, read the first virtual magazine or the first chapters of a book;
• For a service type businesses the free trial has to do with having the prospects experience the quality of their service; this can take the form of an assessment, a market analysis, a consultation, etc.
• There is the caterer who offers a free plate of “lunchtime appetizers” to selected prospective companies; she specifically targets the executive secretaries who are often called upon to handle catering for executive meetings, among other things.
• A plumber that goes door-to-door offering a free inspection of the plumbing system for houses that were built over 50-60 years ago. As he does his inspection, he smartly affixes his labels, with his name and telephone number, all along the inspected pipes.

3- Purchase incentive

In this type of freebie, the prospect is offered some type of additional gratification upon buying; these are typically seen as promotional incentives. Note that the idea of «free» is still a core element of this type of offer :

• buy-one-get-one-free;
• free delivery;
• buy now and your first month is free. 

4- Contests

Contests are always free. And many a person will enter a contest to win a prize. However, from our marketing perspective, the prize needs to be related to the services or products in a way that it contributes to the business development process :

• Win Your Purchase Contest
• Refer a friend Contest 
• Ask a Quote Contest and win a prize

And, in all instances…

We can state that a well conceived free offer is the kick-off point of a structured business development process; once started then it is a matter of funneling the prospects towards a win-win transaction — and that falls under your conversion process.

What would be an effective free offer that you could implement in your own marketing strategy ?

Call us at  514-529-5669 to see what can be done, or send us a contact form.