OK, so everyone in the online industry knows - you need a Freebie Optin.
But... I swear, if I see one more "fill in the blanks template" I'm going to fucking SCREAM!
Seriously! Anyone can pop over to Canva and knock up a PDF which looks pretty... and the colours are pretty... and the fonts are pretty - but HOW THE FUCK does the question:
"Map out your perfect day"
Move you ANY closer to your business or life goals?
How is that STRATEGY?
People are ASKING the question because they want help figuring out the ANSWER - because they don't KNOW the damned answer!
Therein lies the rub. You are in this "game" because you are talented and you know your subject - but if you're not actually delivering VALUE and SUBSTANCE - what exactly IS it you're doing?
Now I know myself, lots of people have got the copy absolutely licked and when you read the optin page you'll be thinking "OMG, THIS IS IT! HERE FINALLY ARE THE ANSWERS"... and it's not.
It's just another 8 fucking pages of shit like "what could you sell?" or "what could you outsource?" or "where could you get customers?"...
And let's face it... if the person in question KNEW how to get the customers, or LOSE the 100lbs or GET THE DAMNED BABY TO SLEEP - they wouldn't be filling in the fucking blanks themselves - because they'd ALREADY BE DOING IT!
It sounds so damned obvious doesn't it? That to actually inspire TRUST with your audience, you need to show that you are a woman of SUBSTANCE and you know what you're talking about.
Think of a novel you've loved - a story which transported you to another life - fired your imagination, made you love/hate the characters - and a tale so meaningful you STILL remember 30 years later.
Remember the font on the pages? Remember the exact shade of paper on which the words were printed? Remember the cover?
No, it's the actual STORY you remember, not the peripherals - you might not even remember the author's name - although more than likely, having discovered their work and having it make SUCH an impact on you - you probably DID go out and buy another book from them.
And that's what I need you to understand.
Your JOB is to help people - and maybe your freebie is SO FUCKING GOOD that they don't need to buy the "next thing" from you, because you helped them solve the problem.
And we are HERE to SERVE people - to help our audience overcome their problems - and you might not always get paid - and that is FINE - because we do this because we are DRAWN to HELPING people live their lives a little better.
If you're holding back on the freebie - serving up nutrition-less shite, dust and word salad - don't be surprised if your quality of customer is LOW... and you're not getting the traction you want. Nobody is going to stick around to see if you improve the menu...
A pretty optin is a long, LONG way from actually delivering content to your potential customers that is genuinely going to HELP them and move them further to their goal.
Like I say... makes me want to SCREAM.
When I was struggling, I'd stumble across an optin which promised me the key to a $20k month, or a 6-figure launch blah blah - but there was never any information within. Always crap like "give your customers what they want".
With the DOUBLE-IRONY being... the damned optin didn't GIVE THE CUSTOMERS WHAT THEY WANT!
Your audience is LOOKING for you because you have the answers - or at least they think you do - and I hope to G-d you do!
They've reached a point where everything is just so damned confusing they can't figure out what to do next. Chances are they've tried 100 things and they've got 1000 thoughts swirling through their minds - and at this point just need someone to hold their hand and guide them the rest of the way...
So when you serve up a blank fucking workbook - don't you think that if they KNEW what the damned answers were, they wouldn't have come looking?
It's the equivalent of telling someone to drive to Italy without a fucking map - and when they ask how - you say "just drive to Italy!". Nup, they wanted DIRECTIONS!
