I will never forget the first advertising business, which I created and put on the Internet: a free guide that helps you to expand your Instagram support.
I wrote the entire copy in a Word document and threw it out to my audience. Within a few hours I had a few hundred new subscribers on my e -mail list. To see how people in exchange for the value I offered to jump on my list was an exciting feeling. After that I was addicted.
Over the years I have done dozens of giveaways to expand my e -mail list. I learned what a giveaway generates successfully.
Table of contents
What is Freebie Marketing?
Freebie marketing is a strategy in which companies offer a product or service free of charge for a customer action. Advertising gifts can be digital or physical and the most common customer actions include registration for an e -mail or text list, the terms into social media or downloading an app. Freebie marketing has the power to increase the perceived value, customer loyalty and leads of a brand.
Does a freebie marketing strategy work?
In most purchasing decisions, customers carry out an analysis of the mental cost-benefit benefits to determine whether a purchase is worth the costs and the risk.
However, an interesting phenomenon takes place with giveaways. Psychologists have found This labeling of an article as “free” rotates the traditional cost-benefit analysis. It increases the perceived value of a product, sometimes even above a paid article with a higher quality. This phenomenon, which is known as the “zero price effect”, activates an emotional reaction in our brain. For me it feels like a dopamine hit. A giveaway can:
- Increase value perception.
- Promotion of customer loyalty.
- Lower inhibitions and guilt.
- Increase quantities and order quantities because you get more for less.
Does Freebie Marketing now work to convert your new leads into paid sales? It depends on how well you have geared your giveaway to your audience – and what you do according to the offer.
How to select the correct giveaways to give away
There are hundreds of giveaways. The false could appear outside the brand or attract the wrong audience. However, the right can increase their visibility and give long -time Lurkers the impetus they need to take measures.
First look at the wide range of giveaways to attract customers – some of them are better for B2B, while others for B2C.
Freebie marketing ideas
- Free product samples
- Free test periods
- Downloadable templates such as project management trackers, social media calendar or budgeting tools
- EBook or white paper
- Quiz results
- Free advice
- Discount codes or vouchers
- Online course or webinar
- Cheat sheet or checklist
- Content bundles such as templates, leaders or videos
- Transfer program, e.g. B. offer gift cards or discounts for the transfer of new customers
- Brands -Swag
- Bogo (buy one, get one)
- Free Shipping
Here you can find out which is best suited for your company.
1. You know your audience.
First of all, I always ask what is number one with which my audience is struggling with.
Advertising gifts should feel like an abbreviation to solve this. For example, many small E -Commerce companies have to deal with the selection of the right Tech stack and overcoming platform restrictions. Perhaps I would like to consider creating an “e-commerce-tech stack cheat leaf” with a list of free and affordable tools and the best third-party apps for each of the most important e-commerce platforms.
2. Use what you already know.
Second, the best giveaways are those for whom you don’t have to grab.
Think of checklists, swipe files or tools that you have already created for clients or internal use. What are the topics you can get on a soap box and can speak for 30 minutes without warning? One of my best lead magnets came from a slide deck that I almost deleted.
If you are a company -based company, you don’t want to give yours entire Proprietary framework gone, but you can offer a dismantled preview of what you do for customers. Consultants and service companies often do not share their process with potential customers, but this offers just enough insight into potential customers to feel comfortable to set them.
3. Select the correct format.
Next, look at the format for your giveaway. If you offer a consumer goods product for an giveaway or a bogo offer, choose something inexpensive and high in part that works across sizes and genders.
On the B2B page, think about which format your audience is most likely to react. Should it be long -term or short? Interactive or static? Text or multimedia? Here are a few formats that worked well for me:
- PDF checklist: Fast victories in a decent format
- Email-mini course: A drop of several days that builds anticipation
- Interactive quiz: High commitment, especially for social
- Presentation or Google leaves templates: Practical and immediately useful
4. Test and iteration.
To test whether you have found the right giveaway, start small. Start a free offer or an A/B test several offers, follow your conversion rates and optimize the offer or format based on the reaction of people.
Freebie marketing examples
Here are six examples of how brands used the Reebie marketing to achieve their goals.
1. Drift Kings Media marketing plan templates
At Drift Kings Media we love a good giveaway. And we learned that they love it too. Most marketing, sales and service professionals have not studied in the field in which we end up working – our work changes quickly and we find everything while we go. For this reason, free knowledge templates are worth their weight in gold.
We built a library of 116 (and count!) Free business templates Driven by HubSpot tools to gain knowledge employees at work every day. A popular one is our Free marketing plan templateA Google document that can simply copy and complete marketers.
The template is filled out with a example to make the planning quickly and easily, with tips for filling out each section. Other templates are a Content calendar in social mediaA Sales planand a Coding template.
2. Grow with Google Ai Training
Most small business owners know that AI can save them time, but they don’t have the skills to get started.
Enter Google: In cooperation with the America’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) you are began to offer free AI training For small business owners. They offer a one-hour workshop, two 10-hour courses and a AI course for educators.
This is an intelligent step for Google, as small business owners make up a large part of their customer base for work areas and ads. The more qualified you are, the less customer care you need and the more you use the Google products.
And of course it is advantageous to help business owners, to learn and grow.
3. Free bowling day of the dairy queen
When I picked up my daughter and girlfriend from school recently, they asked me to drive them to the Dairy Queen for the free day of the bowl. When I keep an eye on being hero, I drove her to the next DQ. While we only save about $ 6, everyone was happy and the victory felt much larger.
A year In a cheek “study”, in the Wangene, “, DQ found that a free cone made 92%of people happy, increased traffic in the shop by 10%and drove sales in business by 12%.
Wendy’s has another turn for this campaign – instead of only offering frosts one day a year, they sell one $ 3, keyring with limited release Enable customers to claim a free cone all year round.
4. Pixory Product gift
Travel Brand Pixory knows how to do a giveaway right. This classic giveaway for social media offered the opportunity to win 11 different products, including flight tickets for NYC, a 5-star hotel stay, saxophone gift cards, new luggage and other luxury items for the winner and a friend.
In order to participate, the participants simply had to follow their account, then follow and share the contribution. The Instagram advertising ghost increased the commitment and visibility for the brand and received 32,612 likes.
5. Panera’s unlimited SIP Club Free trial version
The only thing that is better than a giveaway? Repeated giveaways. A few years ago I was happy when my mypanera Rewards account offered me a free coffee every day. You can bet that I was there most of the days this month before work and also bought some pastries.
Today there is still the offer in the form of the unlimited SIP Club membership of Panera. While membership costs a monthly fee, you can start free time with a generous two months before you pay something. This means that you can use a free hot or cold drink with unlimited refill two months after registration every two hours.
Like many other brands, Panera has learned that a giveaway can bring people into the door for larger purchases and build habits that will be difficult to break after the end of the test.
6. Jenna Kutcher’s list to start the course
Would you like to create your e -mail list? If I want to tackle something new, there is nothing more valuable than insiders from someone who was there. In the case of e -mail marketing, this is the Drift Kings Media creator Jenna Kutcher.
Kutcher’s list for starting Labor is a step-by-step design for the cultivation of an email list filled with core strategies, email copy templates and plug-and-play instructions for creating lead magnets.
As a main magnet, your genius offers a circulation in the free educational content and is worth it in advance to build trust and increase the likelihood of future purchases.
By offering valuable content such as gradual instructions for e-mail marketing free of charge, a certain target group is attracting that tries to do the same and later convert into paying customers.
Freebie marketing strategy: How to carry out a successful giveaway campaign
There is much more in a successful Freebie Marketing Campaign than Freebie itself. If I would start again, here is the strategy that I would follow:
1. Define your goal.
First determine which goal you want to achieve. Is it e -mail applications? App downloads? New social followers or demo requests? Make sure that your giveaway cards are directly on this result.
2. Create a high -quality giveaway and an offer.
Remember perceived Value is important. Let it feel on premiums – even if you only needed an hour. Try to offer a case study, data or juicy insider knowledge that is not yet available on the Internet.
Then write an offer that speaks the pain points of your audience (remember: solve your problems and just make your life!) And reflects your unique voice. A focus for my brand is that all of my offers really feel like you come from me because they are!
3. Create a dedicated target page.
Next, create a mobile-friendly, SEO-optimized target page with a clear CTA.
Here is the very specific, very implementable CTA that uses cutching for your course. On the target page you will find “Now” and “First steps for only 79 US dollars”, but this is most convincing.
Pro tip: Use lifting spots Free target page Builder How to create a mobile-friendly, SEO-optimized page for your freebie campaign with a clear CTA. You can even generate a first draft with Content agent.
4. Promote and distribute it with automation.
Here is the most important key to success with Freebie Marketing: You have to have a workflow for setting up what happens after Someone claims your giveaway.
For example, connect your gewing gift to a subsequent e-mail sequence that welcomes the potential customer and send them relevant content or another offer to bring you into the store or connect with you to get advice. You can add them to retarded advertising campaigns to remind them of using the giveaway or the upgrade to paid products or services.
This does not have to do manual work. Instead, use a CRM with automation to create several points of contact with the potential view. Reach them with website pop-ups or follow-up emails to control them for the next step of the trip.
Pro tip: Here Drift Kings Media Marketing Hub Really shine – you can do customer trips and segment based on what you have downloaded and what you click next.
5. Update and relaunch.
A frequent mistake that people make is to create a free offer and then put it and then forget.
For me it is a consistent practice to revise and refresh my first -class giveaways. I have to plan regular checks to see which parts do well and how I can keep them fresh and effective. If you have created a timely resource, you may have to either scrap or revise it to make you timeless.
Here are some questions that you can ask yourself when evaluating an existing giveaway:
- Does the giveaway still match my brand and my messaging style?
- Does the content of the giveaway still provide high -quality and valuable instructions?
- Does the giveaway have a sensitive language or outdated pop culture references?
- Are there any new knowledge or examples that I can add?
As soon as you have created updates (even smaller ones), it is time to redesign it. You do not have to hide the update and have the same old system switched on as usual. A concentrated burst or promotion could start a new wave of leads. You probably have a lot of people in your audience who have never downloaded this special giveaway (or who don’t even pay customers!).
A good memory here is that we talk less and less about our offers than we think we are. I recommend redesigning your giveaway with excitement and intentionality. Give your updated giveaway a mini-spotlight where it feels right for your company.
Put on leads and customers with giveaways.
A few years and countless downloads later, I am excited every time someone opted for one of my giveaways. Why? Because I know that the contents moved – and that I contributed to solving a real problem for someone.
I saw first-hand how a well-made giveaway trigger a meaningful commitment, grow a high-quality email list and open the door to long-term customer relationships. But I also learned that not every giveaway works. The most successful are rooted in deep understanding of the audience, in the valuable specialist knowledge and setting up their business goals.
If you are just starting with the Freebie Marketing, my advice is easy: Tail, test it relentlessly and are not afraid to place your ideas there. You don’t need a perfect PDF or a unusual funnel. You just have to solve a problem that interests your audience. If you lead with value, your audience will follow.
Note from the publisher: This post was originally published in August 2024 and updated for completeness.