Where do you draw the line between free and paid services?

Somebody recently asked this question on LinkedIn (edited version here):

"I'm putting together some brand new packages and would love some advice from the group. I currently give away a 10-page e-zine (10 editions per year), a weekly motivational email and offer a free trial coaching session. I have developed a new online survey, which I would like to offer for free, with the analysed results and other goodies being available in a package for purchase.

Where do others draw the line between offering good-quality free services to entice new clients - and giving away too much?"

I suggest you work backwards. Rather than asking how much to give away free, start by looking at your paid services and figure out a marketing and sales strategy for them.

For example, you might decide that a free trial coaching session is the best way to get coaching clients. Fair enough, but it's not the only option. A really good testimonial from a happy client might also work. Or a direct referral from a happy client. Or an endorsement from your mentor to their network. Or an introductory seminar or webinar. Or a great book you've written. Or the diagnostic tool you're planning. Or a special report that's been passed around virally. Or a YouTube video.

Some of these might be free; others might be for a fee. But don't judge their effectiveness on the price alone.

For example, I run regular webinars. Members of my (paid) membership site get the webinars free; and I'll sometimes open them up to non-members as well, but usually for a fee. Some of those non-members are attending the webinar to get a taste of my expertise before becoming a member or buying consulting services. They are happy to pay the one-off webinar fee before making a bigger commitment.

Offer a rock-solid guarantee

Give a rock-solid, iron-clad, easy-to-invoke, no-questions-asked 100% money-back guarantee.

Most customers are honest people who'd just like some reassurance that they are making a good buying decision. So they appreciate the fact that you're reversing the risk, and that makes them more likely to buy in the first place.

Sure, you will get the occasional person who exploits your guarantee. But in most markets, they are the exception, not the norm. You'll get far more sales and greater profits from your guarantee than you'll lose by those who exploit it.

Don't Make It Difficult For Them To Buy

Imagine going to your local supermarket and watching the shoppers. They pick up a shopping cart, wander around the aisles collecting their groceries, and eventually take them to the checkout to pay.

But imagine if two out of three shoppers got to the checkout queue, then suddenly changed their mind and left the store, abandoning their shopping cart full of products.

In the real world, this would be bizarre. Sure, there are valid reasons for this behavior - the queues might be too long, they realized that they've overspent their budget, and so on. But these are the exception rather than the rule.

In most cases, shoppers will dutifully fill their shopping carts and complete the transaction at the checkout.

But it's the other way around in the on-line world. Studies have shown that most shoppers who start buying on a Web site abandon the process before completing it.

Why? The reasons vary, but in most cases it can be summarized as: The Web site makes it too difficult to buy.

Remember that the Internet is probably the least-trusted shopping medium in history. Lots of people are making lots of money from it, but many others lose potential sales because of a poorly-designed ordering system.

Here are some of the dumb things that Web site owners do to annoy, upset and even scare their users:

• Force them to "register" as members before they can buy anything
• Not using a secure server.
• Adding unnecessary steps to what should be a straightforward process.
• Not publishing a clear privacy policy on their Web site.
• Not providing a variety of payment options, especially for people who are worried about giving their credit card details on the Internet.
• Not publishing a telephone number that allows a wary customer to talk to a real person.
• Not publishing a full street address that reassures the customer that this is a legitimate business.
• Assuming that all customers are from the same country, and not providing a handy currency converter for international customers.
• Making it difficult to determine postage and handling costs, or not even publishing them at all.
• Including a whole block of incomprehensible fine print for Terms and Conditions, instead of writing them out in plain, easy-to-read language.
• Not publishing a refund policy, or making it so heavily weighted against the customer that it's a deterrent rather than an incentive.

You've probably seen some of these mistakes already on other Web sites. Make sure that you don't make the same mistakes.