When does it make sense to use a premium in your offer?

Question:
When does it make sense to use a premium in your offer?

Answer:
Almost always, if done wisely. You'll make a bargain harder to say "no" to when you include something tangible - and FREE - in return.

Your premium may be a free report, certificate, coupon, voucher, check, or piece of merchandise. Regardless, it needs to have strong perceived value to your prospect if it is to have an impact. Not to say that it needs to have an immediate connection to the product or service you are selling, but it often makes best sense to do so. For example, if you happened to be offering a high-priced investment newsletter service, you can expect a boost in response if you are willing to throw in a free editorial premium called "Wall Street's 25 Worst Calls" or "Today's Most Undervalued Stocks."

You can assign almost any retail value to such a newly created premium. This helps when you want to highlight the overall savings involved for the buyer. Plus, culling such material from existing editorial material is a virtually zero-cost proposition - all you pay for is the nominal printing and fulfillment costs in producing the premiums. In today's world, partner-sponsored promotions make more and more sense for obvious reasons. Wouldn't you be more inclined to buy a book from Amazon.com if they are willing to include a $15 coupon for your next purchase from J. Crew? Your partner may even be willing to throw in its support for free (or close to it) just to get your customers in the door. Think about how such win-win scenarios can work for you and your customers next time you build a promotional campaign.
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