As I discussed in my previous blog, often business owners are faced with the decision of whether or not they should offer free services in order to attract more customers.
Although it’s tempting to dish out discounts, there are plenty of things you can give away to prospects without damaging your margins or increasing your workload. In fact, they just might boost your brand and make you money.
Free Advice
A common concern for business owners is whether giving away free advice damages their ability to win a client. Successful business owners understand that there are many fantastic ideas in the world, but not much fantastic execution. If you are speaking to a prospect and the answer to their question is clear, share your knowledge! It costs a few minutes of your time, and it builds the kind of trust you need to convert prospects into clients.
Free Referrals
Everyone loves new business. To offer referrals to potential prospects, work this question in to conversations:
“How would I know a good lead for you if I came across one?”
This is an easy way to start building your referral network. It costs nothing, and the rewards are high. If people do not reciprocate, you can send your referrals to the people who do.
Free FAQ Pages
Post a page on your website with transparent answers to your most frequently asked sales questions. Add another page with the solutions to the most common IT problems your organization addresses. This shows value to clients and will help get your business noticed by the right prospects. Including step-by-step, numerically listed answers also increases the chance that search engines will prioritize and rank your web pages above those of competitors.
As a business leader, your time and money are extremely valuable. Don’t spend hours providing free services to prospects who may or may not become clients at the end of the day. Likewise, don’t leave money on the table by slashing product prices because you neglected to get creative. Offering something special to a customer or prospect it should also benefit your business in the short term and long term.
Author Corey Bloes is channel marketing strategist at AppRiver, a Zix company. Read more guest blogs from Zix AppRiver here.
