Why Are You Giving Away Content for Free?
If you’re blogging, you’re most likely publishing content and making it freely available for public consumption. Everyone is able to access and read your articles as long as they have an internet connection.
Time to stop and think a little about this. Why are you giving away content for free? What are trying to achieve by doing so?
It is important to keep in mind the reasons why you are publishing blog post after blog post, all full of ideas and information and giving them away.
Do you know that you might generate more income by creating content and packaging it into the form of an affordable eBook, or perhaps a membership site? In terms of earning efficiency, premium/paid content might be a more lucrative venture than the act of simply giving away all your content away.
Chris Anderson recently suggested that ‘free’ is the future of business because the low cost of the digital web facilities the proliferation of free products, services or content. The web allows you to have greater flexibility in market definition: you can essentially give freebies to some, while selling to others.
Online publications are low-cost ventures. The biggest expense you’ll incur the time you’ll spend for content creation and site management since hosting fees/blogger salaries are scalable and relatively affordable.
On the other hand, cost may be more important in the eyes of your target audience:
From the consumer’s perspective, though, there is a huge difference between cheap and free. Give a product away and it can go viral. Charge a single cent for it and you’re in an entirely different business, one of clawing and scratching for every customer. The psychology of “free” is powerful indeed, as any marketer will tell you.
This difference between cheap and free is what venture capitalist Josh Kopelman calls the “penny gap.” People think demand is elastic and that volume falls in a straight line as price rises, but the truth is that zero is one market and any other price is another. In many cases, that’s the difference between a great market and none at all.
Why I Am Giving Away Content for Free
Image Credit: totoro walking 3
Many friends have urged me to build a subscription-based membership site or write a eBook for sale. They tell me it’s the next step, because I’ve already developed a sizable audience. Unless you’re running a high volume and popular ad-driven news site, I do agree that its more profitable to write for a paying audience.
But what makes them willing to pay in the first place? Trust. They need to know that they’ll be getting value, before they’ll fork out money from their pocket. In a way, this is why you overlook certain brands in the supermarket or shopping mall, in favor of other more established, familiar and popular brands.
Price alone is never enough to completely offset the lack of trust. You might hook a few early adopters with your free offering but to really generate income in the long term requires the constant improvement of perceived product and brand value.
Monetization can be based on two factors: pageviews or influence. The first involves creating content and using it as a means to get traffic, which converts into ad income. Influence involves creating content to develop your brand equity and then selling services or products which leverage one’s established market trust.
They are not mutually exclusive, although I think a more concentrated focus on either factor from the start will lead to better end results.
Book authors often give away free chapters of their book and/or run a blog which provides free content related to the book in order to generate interest. Apart from serving as lead generators and sales boosters, content has a branding value:
There is, presumably, a limited supply of reputation and attention in the world at any point in time. These are the new scarcities — and the world of free exists mostly to acquire these valuable assets for the sake of a business model to be identified later.
The truth is, if you want to sell more products or services, you need to develop a reputation which exceeds your slogan, sales letter or promised benefit. Free content is a tool which helps you to develop publicity. It will eventually generate demand for services, products and premium content.
I do have many websites and online projects in mind to execute this year. In the meanwhile, I’m using content to attract attention and build a following. I’m not interested in making Dosh Dosh a big money maker, which is why I’ve refrained from paid editorials, excessive advertising and voluminous posting.
I primarily use this blog as a brand building platform, one that may support the launch of relevant initiatives in the future. That’s my reason for giving away free content. I think its quite important to have a clear idea of the rationale behind ‘free’. Is it just the altruistic wish to share information? Maybe there’s more to it.
Why are you giving away content for free? I would love to hear your opinion.
I SO agree with this! The building of trust, the establishment of relationships, these things have to be earned somehow. Not just saying, but showing people that you are an expert is what this is all about. When I start my membership site, people will already know that it is worth what they pay for it.
Mainly because there isn’t and shouldn’t be a price on internet content.
I’m been watching the blogoshpere grow over the last year, since I started blogging and the new trend now is internet marketers selling ebook after ebook. Usually teaching you how to sell ebooks lol…
Me personally, the business model for starfeeder.com is going to center around the core thing that my audience loves. Competitive tournaments.
When you can create an income flow that actually grows and benefits your clients/customers/reader and fans is where one is most likely to succeed. IMHO
I’m going to ditto Chris here and add that I also value the importance free content that I have also offered. Not only has it been a learning experience for me as it is my first venture, but I also see the interest and trust that is laying a foundation for bigger and better ventures in the near future. It certainly does build a resume as a result.
I agree as well. But I think the dynamics of ‘free’ are continuing to change. Just as the exploitation of interruption marketing turned us all into Ritalin babies — who’s attention we can’t get or keep.
I think there’s a ‘free’ overload. The expectation is if i can’t get it free from you’ll find someone who does. And there’s always going to be a new kid on the block that offers it freer than the guy who’s just starting to make a reasonable living.
I’m NOT saying that’s a bad thing — that’s the market dynamic. I’m saying the best will learn to monetize their traffic, learn want interests them, and keep them engaged. Depending on your goals — once you build a reputation and a level of trust you should start looking to monetize that in different ways.
Ways that provide VALUE to the customer — real value. But which they’re willing to pay for in the end.
I think there is a little of both involved.
Originally, I wanted to share information because it was just too tricky to be explaining the same stuff to different people. It got to a point where I was copying information from one e-mail to another, and that just really mucked up my time.
So a blog seemed to be the best alternative for me – the ability to offer information to many at once, and (fingers crossed), encourage others to use the Web more – or better.
I have refrained from putting ads up because I don’t see it as beneficial for me, however, I think it may be time to offer services and start building my own brand.
I’d like to think that the blog will help with that, so that I can – on occasion – get paid for what I know.
As Chris Anderson says, people pay for your ‘free stuff’. They do it by giving you their time. When they do so, your online property becomes more valuable. Down the road you can reap the rewards, if you wish, by doing something that generates money with that rich asset you have created. At the very least you can sell it to someone else.
Why? Because my competitors don’t.
In some niche markets the opportunity exists to stand apart from the crowd by being the brand (even if an individual) that “gives for the sake of giving.”
When the rest are focused on for purchase eBooks, memberships, and subscriptions, you can throw down the hammer and shake up the space by “giving away” info, hosting, eBooks, downloads, images, or any number of other things.
If you do it right and provide channels for the community to give back, you can do very well.
PS: I loved that Wired article.
I agree with all of the above, but in addition to that…
As an info producer, you also make a judgement of the value of the information you provide.
Allocating a correct value to information, along with positioning and targeting the audience, is what makes it so difficult to price info products correctly.
Sometimes you just value that info too low and hence give it away.
Maki,
I love this post because it hits on so many things that are important. I’m right there with you that the process of establishing trust has to come first. In the business metaphor, blogging for free is your Personal PR, because it builds relationships with your readers. After that relationship and trust is in place, so many opportunities are there.
But it’s also important to give your content away for free because it helps other people spread your ideas. Just look at the ideavirus (the original free ebook and the phenomenon it defines) and that’s all you need to know. When it’s something that’s free and accessible and easily shared, your content (and your brand) can reach farther than you could have ever spread them alone. In fact, my thesis research is focusing on a model for professionals using the social capital idea to develop a practical framework for Personal PR that hits on these very concepts.
I’m so happy you asked this question, because on an even deeper level than this, we need to know why we’re engaged in a particular project at all: the main objective. On a blog, having a content strategy isn’t any different from having a free content strategy (at least I don’t think so–happy to hear others’ ideas on this). The nature of blogs hinges on free content. I have a guest post on Liz Strauss’ blog this Friday that will speak to this.
I’m glad I can say that I definitely know what my content strategy is, and that it’s working. All of my content is carefully designed to further the business objectives of my consultancy.
I think it’s beneficial because although I’ve been in my field for 4 years I never really had the chance or time to post anything I learned. Now I can, and I can use it to help develop my audience and share insight into my field while benefiting from their input. It doesn’t cost me anything to maintain a blog, and I have a chance to build my reputation and establish ties to people whose opinions I value.
“Mainly because there isn’t and shouldn’t be a price on internet content.”
I heartily disagree. Are you saying that if I invest my time and energy in presenting valuable information in an easy to absorb (and use) manner, that I don’t deserve to be compensated for it?
That’s insane. And by insane, I mean not really insane, just skewed. It’s called entitlement, the idea that people “should” be giving you something for nothing. Nobody owes anybody anything. Not you, not me.
I echo what Michael says above … a free content strategy is just that – a strategy (to further business objectives).
Am I saying content should never be free? Of course not. Giving content for free out of the kindness of your heart is a noble gesture, and it is exactly the kind of thing that makes the blogosphere so great. But it’s only one facet of the ’sphere.
Do I respect doctors who give their services for free to those in need? Absolutely. Do I respect doctors who charge for their services less because they do so? Of course not. His kids have to eat, just as mine do.
This isn’t meant as a slam on Lipton, just an observation. But saying that ebooks are “Usually teaching you how to sell ebooks lol…” is a gross generalization and misses the point of many pieces of valuable content out there.
And don’t forget the most important part of paying for content (digital or otherwise) – the act of paying increases the personal value you place on the information and increases your likeliness to use it. Not for everyone, of course, but some people will never take action on information they read, free *or* paid.
I grabbed Christine O’Kelly’s $12 ebook on freelancing and even though I’d seen some of the info before, getting the eBook spurred me to finally take action on freelancing. I’ve had the book for a total of 30 days now and locked in over two thousand dollars worth of business … which I wouldn’t have done without the eBook.
Did I *need* the ebook to make it happen? No. But it was just one more tool to kick my butt into gear.
You don’t *have* to pay for information to use it, but sometimes it helps you make it a priority.
Thus ends my rant. I’m just a little tired of the “Egads! You don’t have the right to charge for information!!!!” attitude I see on the web.
Yes, blogging hinges on free content. But the idea that making money off of your own information is somehow “wrong” is … well, … wrong.
// no offense meant; take none
So-called free content is a bit like the LETS – Local Exchange Trading System – where I get some free content from you, you get free content from Jo, Jo gets free content from Jill and so on. There will always be some who only take, but on the whole, what goes round comes round, because those who may give more now, will reap benefits down the road, perhaps when they have that reputation as a maven, and can then sell their information.
There are various reasons why people give a way content – to build that trust as an authority, vanity, sharing, educating, influence or hoping that there will be some indirect remuneration from advertising or donations, and maybe all of them. I give away content for all of those reasons, depending on the type of content. With my low-impact living stuff I certainly want to make a difference, hoping that more people will take away at least some of it, and together make a sizable difference. That is the kind of content I would even pay to give away, and have done, when I first started out.
“Why are you giving away content for free?”…. because I don’t write well enough to sell it? Heh.
Cause it’s like a drug, the first “taste” is always free.
But I think primarily to gain readership and loyalty maybe?
Being that the Internet is a fair number of pages, most of the ideas are already out there.
You are right Maki, that, to build a reputation in the blog readers, you have to start with a free content blog.
I see a danger in starting a membership site even after setting my reputation. The danger is that, now a days, almost all the useful blogs (like yours!) are free of charge. Then who will go for a paid membership? If anyone get such members, they will be definitely very less in number as compared to free blog’s readers.
So, there are two options- (1) Build a free blog and get a large number of readers, ultimately converting into large income from Ads.
(2) Build a membership based blog, get a small audience (paid members), but high income from each of them.
So, both ways can bring almost same income, I think so…
And yes, a free blogger may have more honorable place in the visitors’ mind, than a fee charging blogger can have. Isn’t it?
I think the purpose is both. You eventually use your influence or trust to monetize by launching other paid products or using your trust to market other’s products.
I have to agree with Jeremy on this one.. most of what I write on my blogs are really common sense, which if given a choice I wouldn’t really pay for myself.. though certain plans are in progress which takes on topics that go beyond common sense..so the case might be different there..
moreover, I personally believe that any form of advertising I have on my website is a payment for the info..so maybe it’s not free after all..
anyway.. the point is I give content for free coz I haven’t yet put in effort to make it worth paid
I give away content for free because I am blogging for fun. While I am aware that it is possible to generate income from blogging, it is not a realistic goal considering the kind of blog I run.
My blog is a niche blog dealing with heavy metal and horror reviews. There are already established sites dealing with these topics. My reviews are meant to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Maki, I’ve always wondered why you’ve been giving away so much valuable knowledge for free but then I realized that’s what makes Dosh Dosh such a quality site.
Mike Dorausch has made the best point in the comments above, and I think your reasoning, Maki, also makes sense.
If SEO (and grade school, ironically) taught me anything, it’s that you want to go where the crowds aren’t. 2008 is the year of premium. SEOmoz was the leader, but now you see Boykin’s Ninjas, Jordan Kastaler’s videos, Donna Fontenot’s thing, Aaron Wall’s premium section and many other’s popping up.
The end result is that there’s even more impetus to share your best for free on a blog.
Besides that, I personally do it for the clients. It’s a lead generator, and the leads tend to be educated on the value of SEO. It’s a lot easier to sell to that type of person. Ironically, even easier than to someone who searches for SEO and such!
Good idea asking the question dude! I’m sure many people (and some in the comments above show it) haven’t figured out an answer yet.
For me, I believe the concept of..
“the more we give to others people, the more we will get back”.
But, we have to give something honestly.
I am making close to $700 per month at present by giving away free photos / wallpapers.
Free is definitely where it is at, as pointed out in the following article also:-
http://www.webpronews.com/insiderreports/2007/10/09/long-live-free-how-free-makes-money
I blog to build a brand too. In providing frequent & free business insights I’m building trust with owners of SMEs to enable consulting work – business growth and business rescue – in the near future.
Producing free content without a reason is irrational. Nothing is truly actually free. Free, should always have a purpose. Otherwise, you are just waisting your time. And, contrary to popular belief, time is not free.
Simple – I’m building a brand. I’ve had my cartoon alter-ego now for years, and have decided it’s time to take advantage of that. It gives me the opportunity to create a whole new persona while retaining what attracted customers to my offerings since the beginning (I’ve been an online entpreneur now since 1998).
Enjoy,
Barbara
I am not really giving away content for free.
Ok, noone pays money for it, and it costs me time.
But I see it as a long and short term investment.
I think out loud, that gives me a huge return in the short term too, looking back after a few years gives a different insight.
Plus, if I write good things, then I got some small “fame”, or such.
Although, I have to admit I mainly write for my own fun, and to think out loud about stuff.
And as I see it, it gives me a return. Not paid by my readers, but nonetheless, I got something back.
Question: Can something be defined as “onesided free”? You perceive it as free (no payments required) but I perceive it as something with a return (giving short/mid/long term benefits).
” Plus, if I write good things, then I got some small “fame”, or such. ”
Sorry, just had to drop in the “fame” and “king of your niche” part.
)
Deep down, I think that’s certainly a desire for everyone out there. We ARE exhibitionists.
Hello,
I’m one of your recent readers and i love coming here.
I’m a french photographer. In 2003 i build a website where i published images people can use for free only to display on a website.
This site became a nice source of income by selling RM images
Sales Diva Believes In Giving Away Info For Free…
Why?
Because it:
-builds a community of people who love you – your fan club!
-allows potential customers to try you out – risk free.
-gains exposure – through the beauty of viral marketing
-and it takes your community to the next level – where they want MORE from you!
Remember – there is NO SHAME in selling products/services etc.
If you’re in business – you’re building a community, helping people, but there will be people who want to BUY MORE from you. (and P.S. A business can HELP people AND make money at the same time!)
They want even MORE than what the blog/website/e-zine is delivering.
If you don’t eventually produce something MORE…you are doing a disservice to your customer.
So there.
Hugs from Canada!
Kim Duke
The Sales Divas
I am one of those authors that gives away the first chapter of my book and uses a blog.
I know it has worked very well and allowed me to build a following.
When I do sell classes or seminars, it seems my blog audience is even more responsive than my newsletter.
Mike
Perfect. I see it as preventing early burn out and will not go the paid review route to make a quick buck. My blog is also a platform, one I am not yet sure what to launch from yet. I used to horde the ideas I now write about.
I have the advantage of having other sources of income while building my name. I don’t need the income this blog can provide, so I am taking a longer route which will hopefully provide more at the end.
Plus, I never want to send someone in the wrong direction. So selling something when I buy hardly anything myself is a little bit precarious.
Greetings from Amsterdam.
Yes, obvious reason! to create trust and confidence. To be regarded as the expert and build a brandname.
regards
Jos
You could probably earn a lot of money with this blog. But since you don’t monetize it a lot, people will stick around. For example, John Chow, I stopped reading it, because of the immense amount of advertising.
Free is the new way to establish yourself as an “expert” in the world where only the “experts” get ahead. If it wasn’t for Scott Sigler giving his novel away “free” in the form of podcast novels – he wouldn’t have a book deal right now. http://scottsigler.com/
I have a simple answer to your question Maki.
I’m giving away my content for free because I’m paying it forward. My blog is about personal finance. I’ve learned so much about it through the years and I’ve realized that it’s now time to pass on the knowledge to others.
Great post Maki!
I would add that you are building your reputation through the connections you’ve made by giving away your content as well.
As for me, it is about reputation – but also about growth. I believe that each of our blogs is a journey of personal development – and (although my blog is in it’s infancy and very small), I hope that the community that grows around my blog will provide a mirror and counterpoint to my ideas – which enrich my life as well as those who share my blog.
In this digital age, the blogging community may be the new context of “neighborhood” – a way to connect to others in a personal and emotional way that we’ve lost behind the closed doors of our homes and our gated communities.
Just a thought…
Bruce
You need to look at your content from a business objective perspective. Our objective with the My Creative Team blog content is to build awareness among Fortune 1000 marketers that our company is a go-to creative and marketing resource. So, in essence I’m “loaning” my content to prospects in exchange for a business engagement later.
As always great post Maki! I don’t have a blog yet, but with my website I do offer free information because, in your own words, I’m using it as a tool which helps me to develop publicity that I hope will eventually generate demand for services and products. I want to build trust and loyalty with my visitors. I’m new to all of this, but I know when I visit your blog and several others that the information I’m getting for free is a gift. Just my two cents…
I totally agree with you! If you want to make a name for yourself in the social media sites you must remember to help your fellow internet marketers first so you’ll gain their respect.
I’m giving away free content for traffic and because I’ve written a book and plan to write more, as well as teaching modules, to market to my readers.
“…the low cost of the digital web facilities the proliferation of free products…”
Did you mean “facilitates”?
I think web readers like free stuff, and refuse to pay. The free versus subscription thing got decided in the 90’s when webusers altruistically decided to go free and now people expect it as a matter of course. It’s too late to reverse that now.
Even such very strong brands like the New York Times tried to start a subscription service to read their opinion columns and found that hardly anyone signed up and what happened instead was they were losing influence (because no one was reading the opinions). So they abandoned it, and they are all free to view again.
Yups I agree with u Dosh
: “brand building platform”. And the other reasons wyh I am giving away free content are to learn and share.
I started out blogging about music marketing for fun and in the beginning I didn’t even consider about the financial aspects. After I got a lot of great feedback I realized that my blog’s information actually can help musicians and then I started thinking if there was a way to get money from my blogging.
I realized that once you give it for free, and without any ads on your blog, it is very hard to monetize your blog. This kind of cycle happens a lot, and although at some stage your information could turn out to be so valuable that people would be willing to pay for it, it is very difficult to come up with functional ways to make it work.
This is true, it seems like there are so many established publishers of blogs out there today, that the thought of starting a new venture and being found from scratch is impossible.
Then again the content is king, also if you have the possibility such as your self to market a e-book from this established site your already one step ahead.
I do not usually read every line of long posts like this. However, posts from blogs like this has a magnetic appeal to me that I cannot help but comment.
The reason why I am giving away my contents for free is because I feel I have no right to sell them. I think it is not right that I am sharing tips on how to be a good parent, a fine spouse and a human blogger but with something in exchange.
If I have to earn money other than ads, I will re-write my articles and convert them into another looks but with the same idea. This is simply because I think it would be unfair for those who will pay to write for them using my articles from my blogs where in fact some of them had been passed in some social bookmarketing sites for free.
Another reason would be because new bloggers like has to earn trust which I think is harder to earn than money. I feel that the moment many people will trust me, it is easier to earn money.
I hope my answers made sense.
dnt you guys think we will be penalised by google if we use ths content…duplicate content
regards jeqq.com
I don’t think anybody gives content for free on his or her blog or website; there is always an agenda. One is “giving away” content because one wants people to come to one’s blog without any hassle of having to pay.
People suddenly realise the true worth of the content they are accessing the moment they have to pay for it; immediately it becomes “not worth it”. So what do you do if people are not ready to pay for the content? Sell them something indirectly through advertisements and other promotions. If someone becomes a highly successful blog he or she can sell books and promote some affiliate programs as many successful bloggers are already doing it.
Even if you don’t plan to sell anything you are spreading your ideas and solidifying your brand value. Otherwise you would blog anonymously. Even if you blog anonymously you are expressing the feelings to an eager audience and this is the payment for you. Actually payment cannot always be gauged by money.
Free on the Internet is a very shrewd marketing tactic.
It’s all about the relationships.
The worry about making content is that you have to be the BEST otherwise people will search for the free alternative.
Your advice and brand is salable and if I had enough cash at the time I probably would consier buying your content.
Me, however, I am in the low area of building my brand and paid content is a while off. However I am learning so much so quickly.
I write three blogs, all on Blogger. I’m making a little money from Adsense and Amazon. I’ve thought about trying something else, maybe an ebook, but who has the time? My blogs all have over 100 posts, and getting larger every day. Any suggestions?
I’d always worked on a free basis with my software “for the good of the world”. A little while back I discovered something called TrialPay that still let give things away for free to the end user but get paid. Even so I’m sure I wouldn’t make the money I made now if I hadn’t been giving things away free for years.
“Why are you giving away content for free?”
To make people laugh.
Altruistic reasons: Creating something of value (content) for public consumption with no expectation of getting anything in return is extremely rewarding in itself.
Personal reasons: which include making a public record of my commitments and ultimately follow through, learning about myself and others, and to connect with like-minded people in the blogosphere.
Thank you Maki, for providing such high octane, quality (did I mention free?) material
- Will
It amazes me to find people like you who still believe and practice “the more you give the more you get”.Keep up the good work .
FREE is what has built the internet to what it is today.
Free is relative. Seldom is anything free. You can always get something in return for giving something away for free. A child is able to figure that out.
Use your site to help people, and they will come back.
I give away free content in the hope of making it on the make money online niche
I just started blogging last Fall and I currently have a steady average of 25 unique visits per day. The benefits I get from freely publishing my content far outweighs the income generated by the blog: my writing has improved, I get to network with other people whom I’ve never actually met, I’m receiving free books from various publishers to review at my will, etc. Love it!
– Brian (http://blog.briandicroce.com)
Providing information to folks is similar to teaching.. the reward from teaching outweighs the monitory value one receives from it.
Lets see…what else is there to do when you are home alone? I love to write and it would be great to know that people actually were reading what I was saying! What if what I wrote actually benefited someone..wow..that would be awesome. Maybe next year I will charge for it.
)
Giving free things helps to Build reputation in the blog readers.It helps a lot in future Business.
Great post, Maki. I love the prevalent cultural value among meta-bloggers which holds that selflessness trumps selfishness every time. It’s all in the “why.”
Providing free content also encourages free content. By each blogger enlightening the world on their own area of expertise, we can all benefit.
It is great idea that I have never thought of before. I totally agree with you that blogging is always FREE to some extent as if it is not FREE, no one would like to read it, you get paid for blogging and readers pay you by reading posts for FREE, we are equal
To be honest, giving free content is like sort of like paying it forward. Giving back what has been received by me. So I support the action of sharing, and bringing others up to the same level as me. Only then, will we be able to walk and experience life together.
Like many beginning bloggers, I follow the post-for-free, attract traffic, monetize your site using AdSense approach.
But, what do people think about people who create content sites that simply take your feeds and re-publish them on their own sites. You can use the FeedWordPress plugin to take other people’s content and post them on your own site. That way, you don’t have to come up with content – you just have to monetize your site, and drive traffic to you.
It’s a free RSS feed, so I know it’s not stealing – but it does seem a little shady.
Fine point, and yes you should start a membership site, but also keep this one here so we can continue to drain your brain for free info.
Who is going to buy it??
A fantastic and insightful post and a wonderfully lively debate. At SubHub we are always telling our clients that by giving away their best content for free they can build real trust and a long term relationship with readers. Trust means the readers will feel better about handing over their credit card secure in the knowledge that you are going to keep delivering quality content to them.
We developed a methodology called “The Funnel of Trust”
Freemium Content
Eyeballs
Relationship
Commercialise
F.E.R.C it!
I think this is an insightful and well written post. Trust is the most important relationship glue between us andd the user. They must feel a genuine sense of appreciation for your efforts.
Great post!
I have been on both ends of this spectrum giving info away for free and charging for it. What I have found is that I actually make more money by giving all of the information to people at no cost. When you do that, like you said, it has the potential of becoming viral, which brings traffic and makes money through advertising. Now this may not be the case for someone as popular as you are, because of your large following, you may very well make more selling your knowledge, but at the same time I think you would risk losing a number of your loyal readers in the process. Free is the best way to go, you just have to master the art of turning free into profits.
If you have no authority and no one knows who you are, then giving your content away for free, at least for a while, builds up your rep as an authority in your field. After that you can start to consider selling premium content. At least that’s the way I see it.
I don’t really offer anything special that you can’t get other places… that’s why I on all my sites I focus on user-friendliness. Gotta beat the competition one way or another.
Ah, I completely agree. I actually wrote a bit about the topic this morning.
Nice article.
I agree we have a site where we gave over 2000 garage conversion guide away free. But the branding inside the guide gave us real traffic that converted. We looked at adsense and making money from the traffic but felt customers wanted information not adverts.
Giving free on the internet is just the way it works to capture peoples email.
Why do I give content away for free?
Because it is a well established business model that was introduced by newspapers (which are essentially free) back in the 1600s and by radio in the 1920s, television in the 1940s and to some extent even magazines are free to the consumer.
We sometimes think that the Internet is a totally different model, but in reality there has always been free content. The content makes the other messages that a publisher is trying to deliver go down easier. And the other messages for the most part are advertisements. I am sure you are making a tidy sum from Google alone with this blog. You could no doubt make more by using other forms of advertising but the Google ads and your other sponsors make you money now. So in truth, this content is not really free.
Thanks for an interesting and thought provoking post.
Open English is right, if you’re a beginner, giving your content for free it’s a great way to promote yoursef.
Of course, in time this wil change…
Very informative.
Bookmarked and Stumbled!
nhick
http://www.itrush.com
I am always using your Prosense red theme, when will you be coming out with great new adsense ready themes, that also have all ads on and get good to great CTR. I have enjoyed 11% CTR using your “Prosense Red” and really love it, although I don’t use the others much as it is mostly for medical blogs.
Anyways, doshdosh I am sure passing this website tons of links, please make some new themes, much love,
FutureROI
Giving a free way stuff has its inherent dangers.
Primarily that you’re training your readers never to buy from you because of the quality that is expected from the freely given information.
It’s great to give away free stuff, but when you try to sell one paid-for item every once in a while to the list that was trained and “raised” on free stuff, then all that training will have to be undone in order to make those sales.
You CAN be the vicitim of your own largesse, but
there are also plenty of ways to move the free line
along as well.
Thanks,
Dan
http://marketersrelief.com
We sometimes give free downloads away but only to help the candidate understand they need to go to the next level for their problem. 12steprehab.co.uk
Free is the next generation, they get lots of free stuff and people appreciate that.. so when it comes to selling day… who are people more likely to buy from? Yep… the people who look after them… everybody happy! =0>
Lewis
Onlywired! I love this Dosh Dosh thing!
You have a point here.. But free seems to be the easiest way to get sizable market. then after one is satisfied, and has build trust with good content then introduction of some affordable penny would do for an Ebook. I love your ideas.
I’ve often thought about this issue.
I have several blogs running. One of them is getting pretty good traffic now. Sometimes I wonder why the hell I’m doing it because I’ve made very little money from it.
But I think it’s still worth doing for two reasons.
One: I keep amassing material that I can re-jig for a book (if I ever find the time, that is!).
Two: More and more people know about what I do. And the blog is an instant sample of my work and style.
wow very good post and i totally agree with what your saying….
from my point of view..
right now its just getting my ideas out there..
of course it wont hurt if i generate some kind of income from it in the future
I agree. You need to earn your trust with your reader. This is more important than anything else.
I have been thinking about making an ebook. Any thoughts and ideas into how to go about this would be helpful.
Well, the primary reason for me is because I think my writing is not good enough to sell to anyone (at least for now). Perhaps if my writing skills can be as good as you, Maki, I’ll be able to provide a valuable content to people aren’t hesitant to pay for it.
The post is good in getting us to focus, the comments further that. I agree with the variety of ideas and thoughts shared. I think you are exchanging your “free” content for your audiences time, their interest in commenting and conitnuing the discussion… To be successful in business is to be in it for the long haul, your passion in what you are doing and having a clear strategy will expand your audience and your success.
This is very true , and as the post sais it is not applicable just online, in real day life this strategy works great. Many people are giving away freesbies hopping to build up a good reputation. Isn`t this what some politicians do? Offer free services to gain people`s confidence? But there is a problem , giving away free content online , and here I reffer especially in the blogging niche, is not allways successful , because there are many poeple out there that will just steal the content and use it for their own benefits, and this is a high procentage. I would really like to read an article on this blog about this subject, see what a very experienced blogger has to say. Good job Miki , surely dosh dosh is the best blog on the money making niche I will ever read !
I’m giving away free content because I believe that the knowledge I have *needs* to be free to create a better world.
I believe in “free” as to charge is just robbery of the stupid, if you wrote a song and the music and made a video and popped it all on a nice DVD and then dropped by for a cup of tea, whilst sipping your tea you mention your video and say “give me £2 and you can see it” my reply would be “no, why would I want to pay for something you need me to watch, as if no one watches it there would be no point in you doing it”. I never asked any one to make any media for me, people make films or do music or what ever they do because they love to do what they do, because they like people to see what they do. Why asume we the people are going to want to pay for something none of us asked you to do, I dont care if they dont make any more music, or the film industry disappears or photographers stop taking pictures, the point is we can all do anything for ourselves and the world wont end because people dont pay greedy people for things they dont need or did not ask for, if you make a film that no one ever watches you have done nothing at all, if you write songs that are never sung you have done nothing at all, if you paint a work of art and show no one you have done nothing at all, if you make media you need the end user far more than the end user needs you, its like trying to sell your smiles, they are worth sweet f.a. until you give them to some one for free, a free smile might just get you a cup of tea, try selling a smile and you might just get a smack in the mouth, is anyone seeing a pattern here…
That’s right, people will pay to get content since they hope will get the benefit from the content. but, the fact is, when many site provide you with free content, they will find the cheapest one. simply I can say, if we can get for free, why we should spend our money to get the content, unless there’s no other site that offer free content, with the same quality. internet is the place where people can distribute any information and get all information people want. so many alternative place to get information. in the end, I’m not really sure, paid content will be the best alternative.
Everybody loves free content. If you provide valuable free content, people come to you in flocks.
With blogging platform, it is not as difficult to publish content as it used to be before.
There is a lot of free stuff available on the internet. To be effective, one needs to differentiate.
The internet is about gathering information. If surfers couldn’t find content free they would never go there. Also when they do come in the market then they look for a product. if you have given something free first you satnd a chance they trust your site already. I think your sites great keep up the good work.
I give it away freely (only a few ads, from the beginning, so no one will be upset from a switchover) to see if there is a market for my stuff (cat advice.)
I’ve been rather pleased with the growth of my stats. Also, I get ideas and information from my readers and from my efforts to promote the blog, and that leads to more posts.
At some point I will move into an e-book (pleeease do a post on it!) because I’ve found that while I helpfully provide a link cloud, explain how to use it, and link from within my posts, people still don’t seem to explore it during researching, so I feel they aren’t necessarily getting the information they might want. Through no fault of my own, but it seems that my readers are telling me something in this way.
I’m thinking moderately priced e-books are the way to go once I reach a readership goal. Then I can offer the advice I give on the blog, but in a form that people can read for specific needs, give to someone as gifts, and offer a coherent whole that is not something one can do so easily with blog posts, which by their nature skip around.
So I would have to say I do it to build a brand.
I give away content because it’s the best way to establish a platform from which profitable ventures can materialize and expand. I started my newsletter in 2000. People told me to charge for it and since I was broke and just getting started at the time, I was tempted. But I knew that I needed to attract an audience and put a platform in place first. Today, with 1,000’s of subscribers, I’ve added a blog, a radio show, a magazine and many other profitable and fulfilling ventures simply because I didn’t put the cart before the horse. And a foundation for this success is — you guessed it — giving content away. Great advice! Keep it coming!
We offer some free content in the form of elearning. By offering some free courses we build a stronger user community for our software products and our custom elearning services. If people know how to use our software, they become stronger user, their productivity in the day is increased, and in the long run they are more vocal advocates for our products and services. We also guide people in with the free elearning courses and offer others for a fee, which they would not have seen or had the instant availability to purchase. Free content ends up a win-win for both my customer and for my revenues.
I started my blog to share my passion with others and help people to navigate the world of wine,food and enjoying a pleasurable life.
Now I realize that it is an online resume. I hope that it will lead me to opportunities to use my writing skills, be able to travel for work and pleasure and have a larger presence via new and old media.
Double Glazing website are now giving free downloads to consumers how to buy double glazing. Internet is there for people wanting to research any topic before they jump in so we think its a good idea.
I am deeply passionate about sharing my knowledge with the world for free, especially scientific knowledge. So, my comment might not be related very well to this article about how to brand your business, but I still want to share my two cents.
People write books and are paid. There is nothing wrong with that – when you write a book, you have the right to charge money for it. I have nothing against book writers who do this. However, I have a hard time imagining myself ever selling a book (rather than giving it away for free). Why would I do this? Because I love to see other people learn. The education other people receive is FAR more important to me than any amount of money I could ever earn.
In the future, although it is quite far down the road, I plan to create a website which basically makes complete school courses available for free PDF download. I will start it by writing courses from my areas of expertise (which mainly include biology and math), but eventually I envision getting to know people who share my passion and are willing to add to the collection. In effect, this website will make it so that no one will ever have to pay a penny for the education sufficient for college or for their dream careers. All they need to pay is for their own computers and internet connections, and then they can learn all school subjects they will ever want to learn, completely for FREE. For them to have this opportunity gives me the satisfaction that could never be achieved by all the billions of dollars I could earn in the commercial world.
THAT is why I am giving away content for free.
It is your own content. I have a dutch website about loans and every day i write financial news. I based my news on what i read on other websites and give my own opinion. If you copy text from other websites serch engines will punish you for the duplicate content….