Everyone loves a freebie!
I just came back from a few days in the States, where I met a group of enlightened
entrepreneurs who are refusing to lie down and suffer the consequences of the economic
downturn. One of their crunch-busting techniques is as old as the hills, but they’ve
recently refined it to an art form. It’s called giving stuff away!
You know the lovely warm feeling when you pull on a pair of jeans you haven’t worn for
ages and find a ten pound note in the pocket? And don’t those free deli samples in
Sainsbury’s taste so much better than the stuff you actually buy?
Well, that's how your customers feel when they get more than they are expecting from
you.
And, imagine how your prospects will respond to your marketing when they receive a free
gift - without even making a purchase!
Giving "more" is a simple, inexpensive way to instantly improve your relationship with
both customers and prospects.
Ideas for gifts... that cost you nothing!
1: Free reports, info packs, fact sheets and market analysis: these can all be made
available online or by email to really slash the costs of delivery.
2: Newsletters: regular info and offer-packed communiqués to your database of prospects
and customers.
3: Industry specific freebies: appeal to who you’re trying to sell to: recipes, sports tips,
discount coupons, travel guides
4: Trial offers: get them using your products for free and they’ll often need or want to
continue and pay.
5: Buy one, get one free: this really does cost you nothing, providing your gross margin is
more than 50%!
Ideas for gifts... that cost you a small amount
1: Company-branded items: hats, water bottles, mouse pads, pens etc
2: Non-related materials: stuffed animals, chocolates, alcohol, sports tickets
3: One of your products or services at no cost to them
4: Rewards for referrals or recommendations
5: Calendars and diaries: clichéd, corny, but nothing lasts a whole year like something
with 12 months of dates on it!
The return on your "gift" investment could be worth thousands of pounds in sales. Make
that extra effort and give your customers more than they are expecting.
Have a question you'd like Jon Cooper to address? You can submit it by either adding a comment to this post online or by e-mailing it to jon@jupiterdawn.com
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