Help Clients Understand Free Doesn't Mean "No Cost"

Don't feel bad about gently informing clients they're wrong about marketing assumptions.

It's so easy to fall into the trap of going with the free option. What's the risk? It's free after all.

I wrote about this general line of thinking when it comes to publishers a few months ago and today I wanted to help publishers address it when they hear it from local businesses.

I was recently playing a round of golf with a local surgeon who asked what I do, I explained we help businesses improve their marketing including their web presence etc. as many small businesses have no website or a poor website. He replied by saying, "that sounds like our site, it's not any good but, hey, it's free."

Unfortunately, this sort of thinking in life and in business couldn't be further from the truth.

In life the costs of 'free' aren't always financial. If you break your arm and you chose not to go to the doctor to save money and heal on your own (i.e. the free choice) then the cost would be unnecessary pain and potentially lifelong issues related to a poorly healed bone. Of course it could be worse that than, a bad break could leave you without the user of your arm.

As a parent of 3 with another on the way I regularly hear people say, "kids are expensive." While I'm happy to argue that point the bigger issue at hand is that the financial cost of raising a child doesn't even come close to the joy they bring. So free would be far more costly.

In business free has different implications. How many new patients is that surgeon missing as a result of his poor web presence and how many new patients would he need to attract to pay for even the most expensive of websites or related services? Probably less than 1 per year if not per decade. Even if his business is based on referrals, who would a doctor rather refer their patient to, someone who's website looks professional, has useful information and contract information, and a generally welcoming presentation or a website for a doctor who is too cheap or incapable of creating a decent presence? Might that also suggest they'd cut corners or not invest enough time in the patient?

What about businesses that directly attract customers? It's just as critical to show that you're active in social media and posting updates (my preferred euphemism to the word Blog which sounds scary), that you collect positive customer reviews and that you care about my experience enough to show me.

Perhaps the challenge you face is that clients are looking for 'free advertising.' Sounds great - Except. Social media is relatively free though it takes time and that time could be used somewhere else - plus business owners are increasingly reaching fewer people.

You are the alternative to the fallacy of free, you deliver real value, you should charge more than you do yet businesses think you're expensive because they simply don't understand.

It's time for that to change.

Looking for a little help executing your digital strategy? Talk with us about Membership and Consulting Services.