How to use your free content to market your paid offerings
You’ve created an absolutely genius product or service that totally nails the needs of the exact person you are hoping to work with.
But so far sales have been, well… 💩.
So what gives?
Well, without knowing what specifically you’re trying to sell, I’m going to go out on a limb and say the problem is probably not with your offer.
It’s that nobody knows about it.
Why nobody seems to know or care about what you sell
So get this…
There’s this company out there that literally all they sell is button covers for your jeans.
Sorry, what?
Yep. Button covers.
You know those tiny little holes that mysteriously appear on the front of your (favorite) t-shirts?
Apparently those are caused by rubbing against the button on your pants.
And button covers are the answer.
But if I didn’t know what caused those tiny little holes in the first place, I probably wouldn’t even know that denim button covers was a thing…
So then how likely is it I’m ever going to Google ‘where to find button covers for my jeans?’
Not very likely, right?
The only way to get your business in front of your ideal people is to get busy answering the questions they ARE actually already typing into search engines, like:
“Why do I my t-shirts keep getting tiny holes in them?”
And then you answer those questions with your free content!
So how do you use your free content to market the revenue-generating activities of your business?
We’re getting there, I promise, but a little context is needed to show you why what I’m about to share works…
Content marketing:
How I make sales on autopilot (without actually selling)
Let me show you an example of content marketing out there ‘doing it’s thang’ in my own business…
This is a quote from an actual student of my Square Secrets™️ course when asked how she found out about my online courses for web designers:
“I have been following Paige's life-saving blog posts for a while now trying to get every bit of knowledge she has put out (freely) and when I heard she was teaching an 'ins-and-outs' Squarespace 'secrets' course I knew I had to jump on it!
I wasn't even concerned about the price because I knew that whatever information Paige would teach would be worth every penny!”
- Christian
If every time someone Googles a question about Squarespace, my blog pops up in their search results, and the post contains actual useful information, they are going to start seeing me as the go-to expert on that topic, right?
Pretty soon, they will skip the Google search (which can sometimes be a bit hit-or-miss) and head straight for my blog where they can be certain answers are waiting!
So, what does this mean for you?
If you can be genuinely helpful to your audience before you’ve seen a single dime from that person, then when the time does come to take the leap, who do you think they will trust with their investment?
You! (In case that wasn’t clear).
And all without sounding salesy.
Even my paid ads don’t lead to my paid offerings…
Fun fact: I actually only started to play around with paid ads in the last year or so.
Before that, 100% of my site traffic was organic (read: free). People were finding me purely because my content was always answering the questions they were asking.
But even now that I do run ads, most of them don’t even lead to an actual sales page.
Instead, they lead to more free content! Why?
Because free content builds the trust you need in order for that person to hand their money over to a complete stranger on the internet.
And by having them opt-in to some sort of exclusive free content (like a free training or helpful guide) I now have that person’s email address…
And a way to actually reach them in the future if they don’t end up buying from me the first time they visit my site.
(Which, again, is unlikely…because stranger danger.) 🚨
Whether we’re talking paid ads or free traffic, without content you have:
no way of keeping people engaged and sticking around your site while they make a buying decision
zero compelling reasons to hand over their super-secret email deets so that you can actually contact them again in the future
And once that person has hit that ‘back’ button to return to their search or scroll, the chances of them returning on their own is slim.
3 steps to using free content to market your business
Step #1
Be generous with your expertise
As tempting as it is, you don’t just want to run out and create a bit of content on ‘x reasons you should buy my thing.’
(That’s a sales page, not a blog post).
Instead, you want to create content that:
Provides real answers to specific FAQ people tend to have about your industry or niche
Makes use of the words, questions, and phrases your target audience is most likely to be typing into a search engine (A.K.A keywords)
Sets your ideal client up for a quick win based on where they are at right now (not just where they want to be)
You want them to be left thinking…
‘Man! If her free content is this good, then her paid product/service must be amazing!!!’
Step #2
Build awareness of the problem your product or service solves
Sometimes people just don’t know what they don’t know.
Like, a total beginner in your industry may not even realize they need help with something until you show them why it’s important.
For example, in my business, new web designers all want to know one thing: how to become successful.
So I wrote a post about it.
But rather than just write a list of tips and tricks, I use my post to talk about a one specific super important skill a lot of designers are missing because they are trying skip ahead to the sexier stuff like landing clients and making money.
And that super important skill is nailing the foundations of design, which I just so happen to teach in my Square Secrets™️ course.
So while you are being super generous with your knowledge, sharing insider secrets that your audience is dying to know and would probably have to pay for somewhere else…
Consider how best to get your audience thinking about the specific problems your business solves, and get them dreaming about what it could be like to experience transformation in that area.
Step #3
Pitch your paid product or service as a logical next step
When someone reads a blog post or watches a YouTube video, all they’ve done is expressed a very general interest in that thing.
So in most cases, now would not be the time to go waving that “buy now” button around.
This is why offering another piece of free content (one that lives behind a wall and they need to sign up for to receive) can be helpful.
You’re basically seeing who’s actually committed enough to take action, and who is just here for kicks.
So what should your next-level freebie look like?
Valuable enough that they are actually willing to trade their contact deets for it
Something that will help them experience real transformation (and make them more motivated to keep going on their journey)
Is highly relevant to what you plan to sell
Suggested reading:
The top 3 lead magnets I used to quickly grow my email list for free
8 tips for designing and marketing your subscriber-winning opt-in gift
Free content is all about attracting the right people and then preparing them to be ready to benefit from your paid offering.
But what’s the point of doing all this free work if you don’t have a way to actually convert that traffic into paying clients and customers?
The real magic of content marketing comes from what you do after someone lands on your blog post, video, or podcast episode.
For example:
Someone Google’s “how to find my first web design client”
They read my post: How to find your 1st client as a new web designer
They see my call-to-action to sign up for my super relevant, and much more in-depth free training: Finding clients as a new designer (7 costly mistakes to avoid!)
They watch my 60 minute free training which is pretty much a crash course in running a profitable web design, and their minds are blown by what they just didn’t know. 🤯
I offer my Square Secrets Business™️ as the next logical step for learning everything they need to know to build a fully-booked out design business.
At the same time I’m delivering their freebie, I’ll start sending them a sequence of emails with links to more helpful content to keep them engaged with my business over the next 5-7 days while they make their buying decision, as well as a few reminders to take advantage of the free training they signed up for (which happens to mention my paid product at the end of it).
content marketing allows you to scale your business faster
I get it that creating content feels like a whole lot of work for something that you will be giving away for free. 🤔
Especially when not everyone who benefits from your free content is actually going to end up buying your thing.
But the beauty of content is that once it’s created, it can continue to serve your business until pretty much the end of time.
Posts I wrote yearssss ago and legit haven’t even looked at since are still bringing in new traffic, and therefore new sales.
As opposed to me personally having to go out and find each new client or customer every time I need to make a new sale. Or dumping a whole bunch of money into ads to find that person for me!
The return on time invested for those activities just can’t compare to something that continues to work even when I’m not working.
And while it may feel slow going at first, the snowball affect that happens when you consistently create content is no joke.
Rather than hurriedly answering the same question in your inbox 50 times a week on repeat in an effort to make a sale, you now have a super well thought out resource to point your audience to, that literally endless people can benefit from.
And the more people you can genuinely help, the more people you’ll have lined up and ready to work with you.
(So say ‘goodbye’ to one-in-a-blue-moon inquiries, and ‘hello’ to sale notifications on the daily).
Plus, content is free to create. 💁♀️
A huge win for new business owners trying to grow their business on a baby budget!
NEW! CONTENT CREATION COURSE COMING SOON...
Sell out your services & get ready to scale your business through a proven algorithm-proof content creation & list building strategy!
