People like stuff. Give people freebies and they’ll love you forever. Just watch an infomercial: “Buy this new breakthrough in adhesive technology and receive this free breath mint!” As ridiculous as it sounds, giving people free junk is a sure-fire way to make them buy your product. So just imagine what could happen if you give them the possibility of receiving something they actually need.
Surprisingly few businesses use giveaways to help sell their product or service. To some extent, this is often due to funding. However, there is usually a giveaway schedule that will be pleasing to both your customers and your accounting department, and they can be done right from your Web site.
Scheduled “raffle” giveaways are a good, cost-effective way of drawing in and keeping customers. Setting it up so they are entered into the drawing each time they buy – with the somewhat subliminal message that they improve their chances with every purchase – is a great way to get customers to come back over and over again. These giveaways can be daily, weekly, monthly or whatever schedule fits your business.
Per-purchase freebies can also work wonders. Again, consider an infomercial. These guys are making some serious money if they can keep airing their commercials, because TV time doesn’t come cheap. Of course, you can’t directly attribute this success to the free things they include in their “great” deals, but they certainly help. People will always be more and more inclined to buy with every added bonus they receive. Simply throwing in a complimentary T-shirt or cup can drastically improve your chances of a sale.
Giving things away free doesn’t just benefit businesses. Clubs and groups can benefit by offering similar giveaways to new members or holding periodic raffles for existing members. It works as an incentive for people to renew their memberships, knowing their club is trying to give something back.
Your Web site is, of course, a perfect way to handle these giveaways. For instance, if your site includes an online store, you can simply use that same store to enter people in drawings with each purchase. Web sites can also serve as a way to get the word out about your special promotion. Front-page announcements and reminders can ensure that your customers or members are aware of what is available to them.
The idea of giving things away is based on the theory that it takes money to make money. At first it may seem as if you are making a smaller profit, but if given a little time, the added bonus to your customers can actually increase sales or memberships. Just remember, people like stuff.
*Originally published at LangDesign.com
Rebecca Lang is founder of Lang Design, Inc. an Internet web design and development with an emphasis on marketing website business. Serving businesses nationwide, we are located in Wilmington, Delaware, just south of the Philadelphia Metro area.
