A great way to boost response and effectively generate leads with direct mail and email is with a “double” variation on the free information offer, called the “free-on-free” offer.
The classic example of the “free-on-free” is the e-zine sign-up offer: You offer your prospect a free subscription to your e-zine or newsletter. Then, as a bonus for signing up, you also offer a free white paper, report or e-book on a topic your prospect is interested in.
A free report on top of a free subscription. Hence the name: free-on-free.
The reason the free-on-free works is because you’re offering your prospect more value than he was expecting. You entice him with all the valuable knowledge he’ll gain from your primary offer. Then, just when he’s ready to decide, you pull out your second offer. It’s the same tactic used in those late-night TV “infomercials” where they keep saying, “But wait, there’s more…”, just applied in a more subtle way.
The free-on-free offer is one of the most effective ways of building an e-zine mailing list. But you can use it for other lead-gen offers as well. And in a variety of combinations.
Here’s an example. Say your latest lead-gen offer is a new white paper. On top of that you could offer a subscription to your e-zine. Then you mention that, as a subscriber, the reader would also receive an additional bonus – a special report, tip sheet, or whatever your e-zine sign-up incentive happens to be – and you describe that. Now you’re offering even more value: a free-on-free-on-free offer!
Take a tip from the infomercials. For promoting your e-zine, or for your next lead-generation campaign, try a free-on-free offer.
