Over the past days and months, I keep mentioning an old talk given by IM guru Jeff Walker. At one point in the talk, Jeff says something that sounds perverse:
“Teach a man to fish… and he will ask you for a fish sandwich.”
This only sounds perverse until you realize Jeff is speaking from experience.
Specifically, he’s talking about all the business owners who bought his Product Launch Formula, realized it would take too much work to implement, but also realized the value it would bring to their businesses. These many business owners came back to Jeff and said, “Can’t you just do this for me, Jeff? I’ll pay you.”
Also over the past days and months, I’ve seen a lot of discussion in my inbox about the problem of moving the free line. Giving away your best stuff for free, instead of charging for it.
And I can imagine there really is a problem. That is, if you just sit there, wishin’ and hopin’ for people to pay you for more of what you just gave them for free.
After all, who wants to pay for the same thing that they just got for free?
On the other hand, like Jeff says, people might be ready to pay for something very much like what you just gave them, only stuck in between two slices of white bread.
That’s what Jeff did, and he did it the smart way.
First, he sold his audience a fishing guide, called The Product Launch Formula. And then he sold it to them again, repositioned as a fish-sandwich-making franchise, which he called Product Launch Manager.
I also did it. But I did it in an unsmart way. I only sold my thing once, instead of three times.
Specifically, I showed people how to fish, in different ponds, rivers, and seas, and I did this for free.
Then I made a video presentation about the best fishing strategy I have personally found. I gave that away for free as well.
Then I made a framed collection of the most impressive lunkers I’ve personally caught using that strategy, and I put that up for sale.
In case my fish metaphor is running away with me, let me bring this back into the marketing plane:
I’m talking about my Most Valuable Email presentation, which I gave last Wednesday. That free presentation was based on a bunch of emails I have sent to my list over the past few years.
At the end of that presentation, I sold a swipe file of some of my best emails, which I had written using my Most Valuable Email strategy.
A surprising number of people took me up on this offer.
That’s because I turned those emails into something new and (additionally) valuable, by doing the work of collecting all those emails… by bundling them together… and by adding in relevant explanations, some red and yellow highlighting to point out the MVE strategy in action, as well as any fun or interesting context.
So there you go:
Beware moving the free line.
Or don’t. And simply make an attractive new offer.
Speaking of which:
If you registered to watch my Most Valuable Email presentation, then I sent you a recording. You have until end of day today, Pacific time, to watch it and take me up on the offer at the end.
I will be taking both down both the presentation and the offer at 12 midnight PST tonight.
Based on the positive responses I’ve gotten to the presentation, and the surprising number of people who took me up on the Most Valuable Email Swipes offer, I’ve decided to bundle this up as an attractive new offer and sell it down the line.
And if you didn’t register for the MVE presentation, then you will have to wait for that attractive new rerelease. Nobody gets into this particular aquarium after the doors close.
And of course, I still have to end this email today with an offer.
If you want to catch more fish, I mean, make more sales, in the ponds and streams of your email list, then I might be able to help. You can start the process by filling out the form below. Just don’t ask me for a fish sandwich. Here’s the link: