jfgrissom wrote:freemoney wrote:Free samples may win you customers, but in my experience it has little value in winning over business builders.
This happens with some of my business builders. But it doesn't need to.
If you are giving your business away in the form of samples it is because you
are thinking like a consumer not a business owner.
As a business owner you have to reverse this thought process... consumers want stuff for free
but business owners only offer free stuff if they have some assurance of profit.
When you do give out free samples it pays to be smart about it right?If you are selling your companies products, you want to offer a continuity proposition.
Here is how it works:
Offer a free trial, ONLY when your prospect commits to using
the product regularly "IF THEY LIKE IT".
You get their payment information and have them agree to be billed
monthly "IF THEY LIKE IT". If they don't like it they have to take action
to cancel it.
If they won't offer payment information one of two things is happening.
1) Your offer doesn't have a strong enough value proposition.
2) They are dead-beats that are just looking for a freebie.
You can't control scenario 2 so control scenario 1 by improving your
value proposition.
If you are selling your business, your funded proposal needs to have
a continuity offer also. (Like Mike Dillard's Inner Circle Newsletter.
I love it because I see this in my mail box every month,
"WooHoo! Do a little money dance" when I make $11.98 every month
for my leads that have joined it either through magnetic sponsoring
or building on a budget. I don't remember which actually offers the
"Inner Circle News" letter. Sorry I got side-tracked there.)
Say you offer a club or membership that trains new business builders.
Some funded proposals start with a low cost entry. A nuisance fee of
$6 or $9 for processing or sample training material.
(Offer is free but it costs a few bucks to ship it or process it.)
Afterwords they agree to be billed $20 or $40 per month with the option to
cancel at anytime if they don't like it.
If someone pays, it proves they are serious, and in a
position to build. It also proves they see value in your offer.
So what does all this boil down to?In the end
a sample is free ONLY if they will agree to
buy contingent upon liking the product.
If you feel like you need to give your product away,
it means You're Not Building Enough Value for your customer.There are many ways to create value in the eyes of
your prospect. Have you done your research to figure
out how to build value in your offer?
Claims don't do it... measurable value propositions do it...
A claim looks like this: "You're going to feel Awesome. So good you'll be worried! Better than you have ever felt! EVER! REALLY EVER!!!" (hehe hype hype hype...)
An example of value is different... off the top of my head it might look like this: If you could lose 100 pounds in the next 30 days is that worth $1000 dollars? (Lots of people have spent WAY over $1000 over the years and not lost 100 pounds.)
How about losing 20 pounds in the next month for $80 with a guarantee that you will love the product or get your money back?
Or something like this:If you could feel really good right now for $2.00 or $60 for a month.
(The price of a Monster drink or a Red Bull in the US)
Would it be worth your while to feel awesome everyday for only $1.00 a day or $30 for a month?
(The cost of your comparable product.)
See the difference between hype/claims and a value proposition?
When you build enough value in your product offering,
you won't need to give your business away in the form of samples...
Free Samples are only Free to those who deserve it.
Reward only those who deserve not those who need.Give your products, time, and energy to those who prove
they see the value in what you offer. You will know they see
value when you get payment info.
If you are not comfortable asking for payment. Reavaluate your offer...
Your offer should be seen as THE answer for your customer.
When you demonstrate it is the answer to their problem, your target
customer is happy to commit to you in exchange for a sample.
Best in Business To You!
Sincerely,
JFGrissom