BTW, just in case you have not yet answered my short, easy, painless survey about a free teleseminar, go here right now to answer a few questions.
Remember that I’ll reward you handsomely for doing so with a $47 free gift that teaches you more about social media for small business.
Getting back to the topic at hand…this next strategy is killer for conversion.
Strategy #4: Use A Valuable Free Gift As A Bait Piece For Conversion
One of my mentors, Bob Bly, taught me the concept of using a Bait Piece as a conversion tool. Here’s how: come up with a valuable free report or other information product that your prospects will find very valuable. Then use that as a ‘bait piece’ to get people to respond to a call to action in a blog post. I’ve implemented this in my business and it’s worked quite well.
Here’s how it might sound for a Laser Eye Surgeon doctor blogging about LASIK surgery:
…. That’s all for today. If you’d like a free report worth $97 entitled The 6 Question You Absolutely Must Ask A Laser Eye Doctor Before Your Have Lasik, then go here immediately to get access.
The “go here immediately” would be a hyperlink to a landing page with a webform. You’d collect name and email in exchange for the report. That’s Bait Piece 101. I’ve found that the higher the ascribed value to the bait piece, the greater the conversion.
Another example of a nail salon owner blogging about nail styles:
….. If you’ve never visited my salon before, I’ll give you a $25 gift certificate for your first visit. Simply email me at sarah@sexynails.com and include your full name, address, and phone number.
In the first example, the call to action was clicking a link to a landing page, and filling out a webform. The second example was a little more simple. She used email as the direct response mechanism.
Before you complain about not having any time to creating a free research report or bait piece. Don’t worry. Outsource that work to a ghost writer on www.elance.com or www.guru.com for you for a nominal fee.
Next post I’ll cover several strategies that will make your readers take whatever action you want them to take.
P. S. If you’d like to apply to get me to be a guest writer on your blog or Facebook page, then send an email right now to jv@smallbusinessblackbelts.com and put “Guest Writer” in the subject line. You must tell me how big your house list is. I’ll entertain the first three requests that I get.
Mike Lorence is the founder of Small Business Blackbelts – he teaches entrepreneurs how to double their cashflow in 9 months or less. And he guarantees that. Click here immediately now to see if there are any free Business Owner Bailout Packages worth $597.39 left for you.
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About The Author: Mike has worked with famous national and internationally known entrepreneurs including Guinness Book of World Record Holder for Speed Reader Howard Berg, celebrity lawyer and entrepreneurial branding expert Nick Nanton, and Ghost Writer of Karen McCreadie. Mr. Lorence is an internationally recognized business scholar, consultant, speaker, author, host of an internationally distributed radio (to air on Voice America Radio winter 2010), serial entrepreneur, college professor, former U. S. Marine, husband, and father of three. He’s been named an America Society of Quality Freund Scholar, a Frank E. Genovese Entrepreneurial Fellow, and an inductee into the University of Virginia’s Graduate Business School Hall of Fame. He is the author of the smash hit Business Blackbelt Monthly Newsletter. And he is the author of eight other books including How to Get Others To Do Your Selling For Your: The Referral Marketing System For Every Entrepreneur; The Secrets To Getting More Leads Than You Can Possibly Ever Handle; and Turning Your Prospects Into Rabid, Feeding-Frenzy Buyers Who Cheerfully Pay Premium Prices. Mike appears as a regular guest expert on Our Small Business TV, and he is a contributing writer to large publications. Mr. Lorence is also a certified Comprehensive Six Sigma Blackbelt (CSSBB). He holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Darden Graduate School of Business at the University of Virginia. He can be found at http://www.smallbusinessblackbelts.com. 
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