subject: To Sell More Information Products, Give More Away by:Neil Asher [print this page] It may sound paradoxical, but that really is the way I have developed my career in information marketing. It's the premise that drives all my businesses: To sell more, give more away. I call it free-line content.
When I create a piece of free-line content for lead generation, I always focus it on the single biggest pain point my prospects are feeling. I look for that one biggest emotional hot button or the biggest need that my prospects have. Then, I go and figure out how to advertise to the world using free and paid channels that I'm giving away the solution for free.
Why does it work? It's because, in the world of Internet marketing and selling information products, sales don't happen immediately. It's because it's not realistic to expect visitors to pull out their credit cards the minute they arrive at your web site. It's because trust is the key factor in information marketing, and trust doesn't just happen, it has to be developed.
I have a philosophy that goes like this: Move the free-line. Give away a massive quantity of really valuable information and build a relationship with your customers. They need to really get to know you, and like you, and trust you. They need to get it that you are not just trying to talk them into buying your stuff.
Instead, what you're doing is showing them that you've got the real deal. You're giving them things, and not a bunch of junk, either. You're giving them information products that they can use in their lives. You are giving them things they can take into their world, into their relationships, into their businesses, and they can use them to get more success. They can make more money, or attract a mate, or live a healthier life. You are helping them avoid pain and really improve the quality of their lives.
When people get thatthat you are about helping themeverything changes. When they realize that you've got the goods and you are out to help them, they are going to come back to you. They are going to avail themselves of more of what you offer. And the more you give them, the more they will want to do business with you.
You are going to build trust. They are going to want to get to know you better. They are going to feel like they can come to you when they need advice.
And that is the critical moment. That's what I'm always looking forthat level of trust. That's the idea behind giving away all these high value information products, and helping my customers get the relationships; get the money; get the health, get the travel, and get the enjoyment they want in their life, BEFORE I ask them to give me money and buy my products.
Of course, if you visit any of my web sites, you will see sales copy. You will see the standard information product sales copy that's got a headline and a bunch of text where I'll make the case for buying my information products. There's an art and a science to good sales copy, and it's important, too. But you would be totally missing the point if you just looked at the sales pages and thought, "Oh, that's how Neil does it. That's how he gets so many sales."
No, it's the relationship building that makes the sales copy work. And the relationship, the trust, comes from giving away the free-line content. The more you give away, the more you will sell.
About the author
Neil Asher (http://www.neilasher.com/freestuff.htm) has built five multi-million dollar companies from zero, including one he took to $8 million in sales in under two years. He has created and sold successful franchises in England, Italy, Ireland, Australia and South Africa. Visit his web site for access to 17 FREE videos, 6 FREE books and two hours of audio training, revealing "How To Make BIG Money Selling Information Products On The InternetEven If You Don't Have A Website And You've Never Sold Anything On The Internet Before."
