Designing an Ungated Offer
Offers that require no risk on the part of prospective customers are the most powerful way to begin to cultivate strong relationships with customers . An ungated offer such as an informative article , video , or podcast gives value without asking for contact information or a purchase . That said , these are still offers . You are offering value to prospects in exchange for their time . And for many people , no other resource is more precious than time .
The value provided by the business is generally made available to prospects using content such as blog posts , social media updates , or videos . Successful digital marketers make free content available that provides one of the following values :
Entertainment : People pay a lot of money to be entertained , and content that makes a person laugh is content that is likely to be remembered . It ’ s why commercials try to make you laugh ( think the gecko from Geico or Flo from Progressive ); they have only 30 to 60 seconds to cut through all the noise and get you to remember their product or service . Poo-Pourri ’ s video advertisements on YouTube and Friskies ’ and Buzzfeed ’ s “ Dear Kitten ” campaigns are prime examples of marketers providing entertaining content that gets their message across .
Inspiration : People are highly moved by content that makes them feel something . The sports and fitness industry taps into this sentiment with taglines like “ Just do it ,” by Nike , or Fitbit campaigns showing everyday people ( as opposed to celebrities and professional athletes ) achieving their goals using Fitbit . Weight-loss businesses also use inspirational content by using successful customer testimonials and “ before ” and “ after ” images .
Education : Ever go to YouTube to watch a how-to video ? From DIY projects to how to rebuild a car engine , you can easily find educational content online . People want knowledge , and providing it helps build trust . Entire blogs , sites , YouTube channels , and businesses are built around educating people , to great success . That ’ s why Wikipedia gets roughly 16 billion page views a month .
The first two value propositions ( entertainment and inspiration ) can be difficult to execute . But the third is within the grasp of every company . In Chapters 4 and 5 , we go into more detail about the form and function of the various types of ungated content that can be produced .
The production of content by brands is at an all-time high . An absolute glut of content is produced on blogs , YouTube channels , and social media sites every day . That said , an insatiable demand still exists for great ungated content . Don ’ t make the