Comments on: Why free consultations don’t work

By: bigduke

bigduke — Mon, 24 Oct 2005 07:56:41 +0000

No wonder those free business consultation emails go mostly in y junk box … I wonder if the same applies to a product …

By: barbra_jo6

barbra_jo6 — Fri, 21 Oct 2005 21:35:21 +0000

I would have thought that offering a free product trial is only available for big companies who can afford it, or smaller companies who are trying to look bigger than they are.

Most people would be aware of this, and would be too polite to let the smaller companies lose face by giving away too much for free.

I have been trying a sample giveaway site where you only pay for postage to receive a product worth $29. It turns out to be a learning experience, just to work out how to market it well.

Survey and product sample

By: Mark Hollander

Mark Hollander — Fri, 21 Oct 2005 16:50:37 +0000

I’m not sure I agree with this at all. A finite offering of professional services – in my case Executive Coaching – does work and does offer value and exposure. I have made “door prizes” to Apple, The NYC Art Directors Club for example, and have met with genuine appreciation. Some became paying clients, others did not, and all benefited from Good Will. I think it depends on how you frame the offering and manage expectations.

Mark Hollander
Career Coach
blog.markhollander.com

By: EOBeav

EOBeav — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 17:17:27 +0000

I’m not a full-time coder, so that may be why my view is somewhat different than a full-time professional. I don’t get a paid gig until I develop the relationship first, and build that important first level of trust. That’s what works for my medium-sized businesses and organizations in my small town. I don’t give away anything unless I’m reasonably sure it will turn into a good business relationship down the road.

By: Tom

Tom — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 12:53:14 +0000

As many have said, it purely depends on the company.

My lawyer offered free advice for the initial meeting. I doubt many would otherwise go along if they’re interested in what’s involved – I know I wouldn’t. They charge £185/h thereafter for any actual service.

By: mcreal

mcreal — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 01:53:16 +0000

So possibly the first few points of this previous post would be a good way to go about things:
http://www.sitepoint.com/blogs/2005/08/02/100-prospects-at-a-time/

By: biggazillakilla

biggazillakilla — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 23:57:49 +0000

I guess it depends on the type of consulting one would be offering. I like to meet with professionals I’m considering hiring, but mostly just to get a “feel” for what they’re like.

Do you have any suggestions for what to do instead?

By: dhecker

dhecker — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 18:11:26 +0000

I’ve had great luck with free consulting. I make sure that it’s something that is fairly well contained, to make sure that an hour or two of free consulting doesnt’ spin out of control. Also, I choose carefully who I offer it to.

I would say that 50% of my clients are the result of me doing some free work for them. I have [selectively] invested an hour or two working with quite a few people around Sitepoint, trying to build relationships. Many have turned into ongoing, paying work.

I’d say that if you are smart about it, free consulting can be a great way to demonstrate value to potential clients.

By: Lira

Lira — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 14:33:24 +0000

That’s why pricing is also a marketing technique, I reckon, and there’s wildscribe’s post to confirm. Usually, the cheaper, the worse people judge it to be so, if it’s free, they might not even care about it.

Go figure.

By: squire

squire — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 09:29:27 +0000

20-33% is still a good amount of people. If they sold to that amount Globally, they would be doing well. Maybe they were put off by someone staring at them and they thought they would look cheap if they took one :p