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Understanding The Power Of 'Free' In Marketing

Forbes Agency Council
POST WRITTEN BY
Kirk Deis

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If you build it, they will come. After all, you took the time to build a mobile-friendly website. You did your research and found a secure server. You are knocking out blank pages with words, filling your site with valuable, actionable content. They will come. They must. Right?

It doesn’t matter what words you string together if nobody ever sees it. This is a fundamental roadblock new businesses suffer from on a daily basis: They create content and are lost as to why traffic isn’t crashing their server. 

Once that doubt begins to lurk, they shift gears and try a different marketing approach. I see this all the time. They publish content never realizing that search engines like Google operate on a unique algorithm.

You can’t predict when Google will index a piece of content. And you can’t get The Rock to give you some Instagram love. So why even waste any time on this at all? 

There is value in free. Think of the long-term value your brand could capture if you gave customers something like free service for 30 days, 100% off or bonus features that only premium plans have access to? If your product or service is proven to be killer, clients will rave about it, and that freebie will be a taste to get them hooked (and possibly turn into your largest ad). 

The Cost Of 'Free'

You have server costs, site costs, content creation costs, marketing costs and, if you’re addicted to daily coffee runs, well, there’s that, too. It all impacts the bottom line. 

Nothing is free. When you launch a piece of content and a lead finds it, there is an unspoken agreement happening. In your eyes, you’re giving them a taste of Utopia with the assumption they will pick up the phone and sign the dotted line. In their eyes, they’re feeling you out, doing the pros and cons and picturing themselves possibly doing business with you. It’s like dating: Sometimes you’re the windshield; other times you’re the bug. 

The problem is you can’t afford to not have these freebies and be slapped aside. If all things are equal, your competition is offering freebies. So, how do you get the upper hand? Ideally, your marketing is laid out, and you have remarketing on your content setup, email campaigns ready to launch, pop-up triggers on standby and new, follow-up freebies coming out tomorrow. 

The most successful type of marketing is the kind that fires multiple rounds at once on different channels. 

Leveraging A Trial Period

I know what you’re thinking: I’m asking you to focus on freebies, spend a bunch of revenue supporting them and on top of it, give them time to pan out. You’re running a business; you need capital now. I get it. For companies on edge about this concept, consider leveraging a free trial period.

The great thing about trial periods is they give customers a sense of your brand, they have the freebie element, and they're a low-risk option for you. Yes, you’ll still need to support this marketing, but you'll sleep easier at night.

Marketing Isn't Always About Sales

How do strangers become friends? They talk to each other. How do startups get leads? They talk to them. Making your product or service free is all about communication and a great icebreaker. Most brands don't have unlimited bandwidth, so it's important to work within your means.

Understand that no matter what stage you are at, there is value in free. As a takeaway, I encourage you to review your brand and ask: What have I given away for free lately? If the answer is nothing, it's time to consider a change.

Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?