How much should you give away for free?

Last week, I was on the phone with a client and we were mapping out her free gift and what will be included in it.

Then the question arose… “How much should I give away for free?”

It’s a great question and one I definitely have an opinion about.

When you’re creating free content, such as a free gift, videos, blog posts, or teleseminars I believe you should give your best stuff away.

When you give your best stuff away, you will build credibility and be viewed as an expert by your audience.

Think about the coaches and mentors you follow…

What made you want to continue to read their blog posts, listen to their teleseminars, and pay to work with them?

I am guessing that, through their free content, they demonstrated that they were in an expert in an area you wanted support. I’m also guessing that you found what they shared helpful and that when you implemented some of their suggestions you got great results.

Why would people spend money to work with you if they can get your best stuff for free?

I’ve spent a lot of time pondering this question, and here’s what I’ve discovered.

Even if you’re giving your best stuff away for free, you’re not going to give all of your best stuff away. People will want to pay to learn more from you.

You’re also not going to give it all away at the same time and in an organized fashion, like you would in a coaching program.

Also, it’s not just information that people are looking for. They also need and want accountability and personalized support before they will feel comfortable implementing your suggestions.

As you share your best stuff, remember that your audience will have questions about how to make this work for them in their life. Simply put, they need your coaching.

How in-depth should you go in your free content?

In most cases, you want to go in-depth with educating your audience on the “why.” This is where you educate your audience and they them on board with making changes. This is also where you get to demonstrate your knowledge.

For example, if you work with clients who struggle with sugar cravings, you might share the nitty gritty details of what causes cravings.

When it comes to sharing the “how,” there are two ways to look at this…

Option #1: If you are sharing a small piece of the puzzle, such as how water consumption affects sugar cravings, you should feel free to get into the nitty gritty details.  In this case, you could share the “why” and “how,” including guidelines on how much water they should aim to consume.

Option #2: If you are sharing a broader and more significant concept, such as removing refined sugar and switching to natural sweeteners, only share some of the “how.” In this case, you could share the “why” and give one example of how they can start to make a change.

Is it possible to give too much away?

Absolutely.

When you’re creating free content (or any content for that matter), make sure it’s easily digestible.

One of the common mistakes we all make as coaches is to overwhelm our audience and our clients with too much information at one time.  We do this with the best of intentions.  We pile on the information because we want to provide value and share what we know.

But here’s the thing…

If your potential clients feel overwhelmed after reading, watching, or listening to your free content, they won’t want to work with you.

People want to work with you to make their life easier, happier, and less stressful.  Let your free content be an example of how you are able to simplify and break things down for your clients.

Do you have a piece of free content that worked really well for you?
Share it below and tell us what worked for you.  And, as always, if you have questions about creating free content, post them below so I can support you.