Those of us with online-based businesses can easily get sucked into “constant-launch” mode.
There’s always a new program or offering to launch, and everything we do in launch mode is about building the list, building the list, building the list.
Get people to sign up for the preview call or webinar. Get those who signed up to actually come. Get the people who do come to the call to sign up for the program. And on and on in a repetitive cycle of list-building, launching and selling.
Even those of us with a ton of free content like e-books, blogs and newsletters (hel-LO — I have a blog with 1,435 published posts) typically require some sort of opt-in, and sometimes forget that it’s okay to give something for nothing. (And here’s a blog post I wrote about people who are just plain afraid to give stuff away for free because they fear their community will just take and take and never actually become paying customers.)
So I will, from time to time, offer a gift to my list or on social media, just to say “Thanks for being a part of my community.”
One year, I offered a “Buy Nothing Day” giveaway the day after Thanksgiving, an audio interview I had on hand that hadn’t been made available to the public. Another time it was a free e-book that I’d just finished. No upsell, no expectations.
Just recently, I decided to offer my e-book on my experiences with panic attacks as a free download with no opt-in required, after Robin Williams’ death got me thinking about how hard it is for some people to find the resources they need to deal with their mental illness.
Without a community, it’s awfully hard to transform people’s lives, and it’s awfully hard to have a business.
Today’s Challenge:
Come up with a free treat for your community to show your appreciation and gratitude for their loyalty.
Once you’ve decided on your gift, come visit us on Facebook and tell us what it is and how you’ll share it. Was it easy for you to find something? Hard? No right or wrong answers here — we’re all just experimenting!
Image credit: Leyton Parker
