Do Freebies Work?

[wearsthedesigns]

Hello Everyone, 

So I have a freebie on my store that I am offering where I create free print on demand businesses for individuals. I am getting views, but I was wondering if any of you all offered a freebie. Did it work? How did you promote it? 

[Kitana]

Hi @wearsthedesigns, thanks for reaching out to the Shopify Community.

I have run a couple giveaways and freebies for my websites in the past, and have a giveaway coming up soon. I've found that freebies can be a great incentive for customers to place orders in your store, or even to build a customer list. The type of product you're offering is very important because even if it's free, your audience still has to care about the product and want it. I would try to tailor the product to a specific niche and use different marketing strategies to bring the customers that are interested in that niche. 

The most success I've had from freebies is when I planned it around my store launch. Having a specific day builds more interest over a period of time with potential customers. I had a store launch and offered a free product to the first 10 customers to place an order. You can decide to add the free gift as a bonus item in the order, or just offer the first X amount of people the free gift with no strings attached. I've always worked backwards when it comes to creating a brand. I usually build a brand Instagram account, build my followers by posting content that fits the niche I'm working in, and then launch my store. I've found it to be really great to bring in customers this way. 

Another benefit to offering the free item is having more customer reviews and customer photos that you can take and then use in your marketing. 

Is the free item you're offering the free business you're creating? Or is it a different product?