About this column
Like all rules in business, this one is neither hard nor fast.
Well, it is kind of fast.
It’s about your freebie opt-in gift — you know, the [buzzphrase alert!] “incredibly valuable content” you deliver to subscribers in exchange for their email address and permission to market to them in their Inboxes.
Lest I sound too jaded, let me explain why I put “incredibly valuable content” in quotes.
Your freebie opt-in gift should be something that feels valuable to your Right Person reader and potential client or buyer.
It should feel helpful, remarkable, and desirable. And yes — those are very subjective characteristics. All the more reason for you to get to know your business’s Right Person in a much deeper way. (And I’m not talking about whether she’d rather have tuna salad on nine grain or pastrami on rye for lunch).
One of the top questions on new Voice Bureau clients’ minds is: What should my opt-in gift be? What do people want from me? What would dazzle/delight/serve them so well that they want to keep coming back for more?
I’m all for you creating incredibly valuable freebie-in opt-in content. (In fact, we’d love to help you with it!)
But many values-based business owners take the advice to “give them something they can’t believe they’re getting for free” a little too far.
Yes, your opt-in content needs to be good. It should hook your Right People into the ongoing conversation you want to have with them through your brand, over time. Ideally, it should be attractively presented, with high production values (as high as you can swing right now — there’s always room for improvement later as your budget grows).
But please hear me: your freebie opt-in content does NOT need to be the definitive tome on your topic area (ceramics? dog sitting? graphic design?). It does NOT need to be a 20-part video series edited by someone fabulous, with amazing, originally commissioned background music and custom graphics.
And (especially as a first time brand creator) you do not have to spend 20 hours crafting your freebie opt-in content.
In fact, when it comes to free content, shorter is better.
Why? We’re busy. Your Right People feel busy. Chances are, they want to spend as little time in their Inbox as possible.
So you need a gauge — a way to know how long is too long for them to spend consuming your freebie opt-in content, and how long is too long for you to spend creating it.
Here’s the Voice Bureau’s 10-Minute Rule (non-hard, but fast) about opt-in content.
Your opt-in content should:
- take 10 minutes, tops, for someone to consume, if it’s delivered in one fell swoop (i.e. something they receive one time and that’s it — an e-book, a screencast, a quiz)
- take 10 minute, tops, for someone to consume in each sitting if it’s delivered in segments (i.e. a 5-piece e-course that’s delivered via email over the course of 3 weeks)
- take 10 minutes x 10 (that’s 100 minutes, or under two hours) for you to create — this window of time does NOT include things like graphic design, editing, etc., although it might
Remember, incredibly valuable content does NOT have to be long, exhaustive, definitive, or complex. People learn best in small slices, not in huge dollops.
In the comments, I’d love to know:
What’s the best, most helpful, or most memorable free opt-in content you’ve ever received? Did it fit the 10-Minute Rule?
Hello, you.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
My opt-in freebie is good content, every time you get my newsletter :)
I got sick of so many “freebies” rampant on everyone’s site, so I nuked mine. I’ve instead gone with a testimonial on my signup screen instead (http://eepurl.com/rBHUf) and I’m actually getting more signups now.
There is technically a freebie for mine, a discount on my book, but that’s a surprise once someone’s subscribed. I had the same discount advertised and present previously, but I actually get more purchases now that it’s a surprise (people like surprises I guess?!).
But don’t tell anyone, don’t want to ruin the surprise…
I like hearing about someone bucking the ‘give ’em a freebie!’ trend. I definitely think that for new and still-getting-established business owners, a little incentive to sign up for updates is a wise thing. But I hate to see new business owners going overboard with massive investments into freebie design and hours upon hours of content creation, only to shift their focus 6 months into their business because their current focus isn’t “taking” with their audience. Love your idea of a surprise bonus upon sign-up.
Love your sign up screen, Paul! I just wrote a post recently on how much is enough free content. I’m tired of feeling like I’m giving away the store for free. I do have an opt in freebie but it’s short and sweet. I was thinking I should create a new one but you’ve just inspired me to not.
I’m off to sign up for your newsletter.
Such a great topic, Abby! I too, am interested in hearing about people bucking the freebie system as it seems so expected and overdone at this point. Really, what are you offering that someone else hasn’t already offered? I struggled with this a lot and ended up with something I believe (I hope) my people would appreciate, which is also NOT what I offer in my business services. Is that the right way to do it? I have no idea, and still freak out about it sometimes. But it’s up and it’s done and for now (at least), I’m going with it!
Hey, Morgan!
Really, what are you offering that someone else hasn’t already offered?
And this is JUST the question to be asking. Or rather, what CAN you offer that someone hasn’t already offered to YOUR Right People in just the way that YOU can? If you reframe the question like that, well, the answers become endless! (Or, endless enough.)
I’m curious as to why you are offering a freebie that doesn’t relate to what you sell through your business. Is the intent to not dilute the impact of your paid offers? If I were advising you (not that I am), I’d encourage you to look for an angle that answers the question, What do my Right People need to know BEFORE hiring me? Think in small slices that’ll whet their whistles. :)
The most helpful,memorable, and best freebie? All rolled into one, it was Jay Abraham’s collection. He put up all of his old products and only gets money from consulting and higher level work now.
Last I knew, there were 36 items in his freebie collection, and it takes months to get through all of it. Opposite, much? ;)
Offering his old work makes sense for him, because he’s charging I think it was $5,000 per hour. His products were pocket change, and outdated at that. If they were to be sold today, they needed to be redone with more emphasis on the internet, and less on direct mail marketing. Plus, he’s building a market of potential clients that 1) can afford him and 2) are already loyal to him. His target market is actually quite small, so building it and creating an automatic competitive advantage at the same time is genius.
(Despite the outdated details, if you look at the principles he teaches, you have GOLD.)
Interesting post and interesting comments. Maybe it’s my weird niche, but I don’t have a classic “freebie”. The freebie is free consulting time which is valuable. You get to ask me questions about whatever you’re wrestling with. But the wording is not about “free” anything, just didn’t fit. My big challenge is my right customer –not sure what freebie other than high service -would appeal to them. The don’t need stuff, quizzes, or other quickies. Art might work, something unexpected, I’m still working on it. My subscriber rate is very (frustratingly) low, but I’m not sure having a different thing to give away would make a difference (I could be wrong). Mostly my right people don’t hang out on social media so it seems I build my list one interaction, one friend of a list member, at a time.
When i launched, I created a free downloadable ebook – there was no obligation to sign up at all. And i spent a LONG time putting it together and got it graphically designed and it is gorgeous – I am so damn proud of that ebook.
But i felt creepy about asking people to sign up to download it. And I trusted my gut feeling about this – i want people to opt in to my stuff, consciously.
The ebook has been downloaded over 4000 times. My list of almost 500 now grows slowly and steadily with 3-50 new peeps joining a month. But heres the thing. In eight months of sending a monthly newsletter, less than a dozen people unsubscribed.
And my coaching spots are 90% booked out. Quality over quantity every day of the week!
“what CAN you offer that someone hasn’t already offered to YOUR Right People in just the way that YOU can?”
“What do my Right People need to know BEFORE hiring me?”
GREAT questions. Never thought of it that way actually.
I’m in the middle of changing my freebie, which was giving a free reading every month to 10 people. I realized that 1) it was cheapening what I do, b/c my intuitive readings ARE really good and a lot of info comes through, and 2) I was getting burned out; giving WAY too much of my time for something that ultimately ppl wouldn’t pay for.
I still want to do something related to intuitive reading on my freebie…maybe it can be listing the benefits of having an intuitive reading with me, why do moms need intuitive readings, or why my readings are different from your run-of-the-mill intuitive reading, etc. Basically why should you hire me in the first place, without sounding like that.
Anyway, I’m brainstorming out loud as you can tell! :)
Great post!
Thank you for this Abby! I’ve been racking my brain & procrastinating creating anything new but your 10-minute rule is definitely making my life easier. And I’m all about ease… :)
Wow Abby, thank you! This is exactly what I needed as I just launched my site and services and I’m working on a freebie right now. Your suggestions are very thought provoking and inspiring. Thanks a million!
Hey, are you talking about me and my 58-page ebook? I took that down a few weeks ago. People were downloading it, but I had an inkling that their first thought when opening it was “Oh, this is a lot to work through! I’ll do that when I have time.” And then that may have been the last time they ever set eyes on it. I like your idea of 10-minute segments, so maybe I’ll repurpose the masterpiece in that way some time. For now, I have a much shorter document giving people a preview of my consulting work.
I agree with this 100%. I often part with my contact details in exchange for a freebie that takes my interest, but sometimes I find they are either way to light on or way too much. I love the 10 minute rule!
A friend suggested that I make sure my opt-in thank you was simple, meaningful, and easy to digest and she was so right… I saved myself hours of work on something that would have completely overloaded my prospective clients.. and instead I have a lovely, lighthearted piece that I am proud of.
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