Fishing For Opt-Ins?
When I was a kid I would go fishing all the time. I had a tackle box full of shiny lures fish would never bite, but I had fun. Imagine my surprise when one cloudy day… I forgot my lures at home and had to “settle” for worms. I never caught so many bass in 20 minutes before and I’ll probably never catch that many again. But I never forgot the lesson…
It’s all about the bait.
By now you’ve probably noticed that a lot of marketers give away free reports and videos to get people to opt in to their lists. Some have all the flashy lures, but still aren’t getting any bites. I’m still working on my opt-in offer so I thought… why not share some of my thoughts?
It wouldn’t hurt anyway.
You know, there’s so many things you could give away as a free bonus… that it really boggles the mind. It doesn’t mean one idea is better than another, just that you have plenty of options to pick from. And the bait that works for one market… well… it might not work for yours. So here’s a few more ideas top kick around.
“Writing Your Own Ticket”
E-books. These are kinda the traditional opt-in offer. You write a short book… give it a snazzy title and use it to get more opt-ins. Some people are finding it harder to do, but it really depends on your market and what your e-book is all about.
Reports. Basically an e-book, but usually shorter. The whole strength of a report is gonna depend on the topic you choose and the strength of your title. The main benefit is that it’s easier to write a four page report than a 100 page e-book.
White papers. A white paper is almost like a report but not quite. It’s more like a written solution to a specific problem your market is facing. I know that seems like a pointless distinction but in some fields they would laugh at you if you offered them a “free report”.
Checklists. I happen to know a guy who hasn’t changed his opt-in bonus in years. He’s doing quite well with a checklist. It’s a copywriting checklist he uses to evaluate websites but you could adapt the idea to your opprotunity without too much work.
E-mail. Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. “Who in their right mind would give me their e-mail address so I can send them more e-mail? What kinda opt-in bonus is that?” But think about it…
It’s all about concept. You could share a marketing tip a day. Maybe you’re give them 51 ideas that will change their life. Or you could give a seven step course about how to set up nerve centers or blogs… delivered entirely through e-mail.
Audio Recordings…
Teleseminars. I think people really underestimate the power of teleseminars. Not only are they a great way to sell your products… They’re also great opt-in bonuses and content for your site too. Talk about killing two birds with one stone.
Interviews. An interview is slightly different, but there’s nothing to stop you from interviewing an expert through a free or cheap conference call service and then sharing the recording as an opt-in bonus. Just be sure to get their permission.
Podcasts. These are quick and easy to do. You could record seven tips or secrets over the course of 10 minutes. Slap some royalty free audio on the front and back end of the recording and you’re in business.
Video Mania…
Videos. They call video the new paper these days. With cameras getting cheaper every day it makes more and more sense to get ahead of the curve. If you’re already giving away a free report then why not turn it into a video?
Courses. Just like e-mail courses, there’s nothing to stop you from sharing video courses. Look at Mike Dillard’s site. He offers a very cool seven video opt-in bonus that’s more valuable than most people’s products.
Webinars. I don’t know who comes up with these funky names, but a webinar is basically a teleseminar with visual elements online. Almost like those old training courses you used to buy on video cassettes or Power Point presentations. But the cool thing is, you can easily save these and use them as products… or even opt-in bonuses too. If you’ve bought Traffic Formula 2.0 then you know what I’m talking about.
Funky Opt-In Ideas…
Diagrams. The first time I saw this I was blown away. If you have formula, or system you use to sponsor more reps than anyone else then draw it out, scan it and give it away as a bonus! In some markets this could cause an avalanche of opt-ins because people are sick of all the free reports they don’t have time to read.
Software. I’m surprised that more people don’t do this. It’s relatively affordable to hire programmers. The other day I was looking for opt-in ideas and there was a guy giving away software that puts those little pop-ups on the foot of blogs. It was a great way for him to get opt-ins himself.
But that’s not all…
If you really want to get creative there’s no stopping you. I mean, you could give away anything digital as long as you have the rights to it. Graphics, templates, or even blogging widgets if you have the budget.
In closing…
I feel like a brain leech got me and sucked my ideas out. I don’t know if you ever got the feeling you missed something, but right now I’m getting that feeling and I’d really like to know what’s missing.
So If you have an idea I left out… it would be awesome if you could share it with my friends by leaving a comment below.
Who knows?
Maybe you’ll drive some traffic to your nerve center and get more opt-ins too?
See you soon,
Jason The “Better Networker”
P.S. One more thing: If you’re new here then why not join the fun? Put your name and e-mail in the little boxes below and I’ll send you a quick note whenever something new is posted. It’s worth it.
7 Comments
Rebecca Geiger on November 24th, 2009
Nice!
I am working on my own wee opt-in. I think the struggle is you first have to decide WHO you want to attract before you pick a product to give away.
I am trying to figure out who that person. really is and what they would need to learn.
[Reply]
November 24th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Yeah, I know what you mean Rebecca.
The market is everything. I think that’s
something that holds a lot of people back.
Hey! You could even give away something
about that… picking the ideal market and
prospects for you… hehe.
You always spark ideas.
[Reply]
Shelley Belcourt on November 24th, 2009
What do people think about collating information that is already available on the internet and putting it in a readable form, as a bonus???
[Reply]
November 24th, 2009 at 10:21 pm
Hey Shelley.
I can’t give legal advice but I can give an opinion if that helps.
Rewriting content collected elsewhere is generally frowned upon
but if you collected a bunch of links to resources then that
might be something.
The big thing is that copyright laws
still apply to a lot of content even if it’s freely available
online. So you have to be really careful. Even giving
credit to the authors is NOT enough to protect you against
infringement in most countries.
[Reply]
Derek Alvarez on December 3rd, 2009
Hey Jason, My wife and I recently set up the simplest capture page and promote it with daily Youtube videos and on Facebook and Twitter.
Well, we’ve already collected as many opt-ins in one month as we have in 4 months with our Nerve Center.
This is all it says:
Monique Alvarez
Is Offering
Leadership Training For FREE!
Just Fill In The Form Below To Receive Access To The 21 Day Training.
I’m not saying that Nerve Centers don’t work to capture people’s info, but maybe the simple capture page works so well because there are no distractions and it’s clear what we are asking for.
I have been really happy with the brand awareness and opportunities that have come up with our Nerve Center and I learned how to do it with MLM Traffic Formula 2.
I just think that people shouldn’t overlook capture pages because of the fear of the “Google Slap.”
[Reply]
December 3rd, 2009 at 1:48 pm
@Derek
For sure! I think a lot of
people are being over-marketed these
days and sometimes keeping things simple
works best.
What I noticed is that opt-ins are heavily
influenced by how you promote yourself
outside of your site more often than what
you give away… I think again, this is because
people are feeling a little overwhelmed and
don’t want 300 page e-books anymore.
Still, every market is different. Very cool of you
to post your tips. I think people will love this. 
[Reply]
Crazy. I just “opted-in” to one
marketer’s list and he’s giving
36 audio recordings plus an e-book
away…
Just goes to show that sometimes…
more is better… Then again I had
who friend who was testing the less
is better approach…In his case,
that was working!
I guess, in the end, you just have
to test and measure your results.
Every market is different.
[Reply]