Can You Really Build a Business Giving Away Free Stuff?

When it comes to the most commonly heard business advice, “The money is in the list” ranks right up there in the number one spot.

Whether you’re a coach, an information product seller, a top-notch service provider, or you’re selling a line of skin-care products, growing your mailing list must be a priority.

There’s plenty of strategies to help you add a steady stream of emails to you list, too. A downloadable resource guide prominently offered in your blog sidebar is a proven tactic, as is a training webinar that potential clients can attend live (or even pre-recorded). You’ve likely heard of—and tried—other strategies as well.

And while all of these ideas will produce a trickle of new opt-ins, or maybe more depending on your website’s traffic numbers, they won’t bring in a tidal wave of sign ups. But there is one technique that will.

The Beauty of Massive Giveaway Events

Imagine what would happen to your mailing list if you suddenly had 40 or 50 or even more super successful business owners—all with big lists of their own—promoting YOUR opt-in gift? You’d open your autoresponder account in the morning and see hundreds of new email addresses each and every day. You could easily double or even triple your list in no time at all.

And you know what all those emails mean—more eyes on your products and services, and more money in your pocket.

Giveaway events like this work because a group of business owners in similar niches all work together to drive massive amounts of traffic to a single page. It’s a simple technique that’s worked time and again in nearly every niche, and it can just as easily work for you.

Organization is Key

Here’s the thing, though. In order to make this (or really, any list-building strategy) work for you, you have to get organized and make the process as smooth as possible for all involved. You’ll need an infrastructure in place that includes:

• A great looking landing page to collect email addresses
• A website server that can handle lots of traffic
• A hidden page where the offers can be presented, and participants can click each link to claim the freebies that appeal to them
• A mailing list provider to follow up with both participants and your fellow business owners
• A group of friends and colleagues who will commit to giving away some top-notch prizes and who will follow-through on mailings

It may seem like a lot of work, but when you consider what it could mean for your business growth, the benefits of hosting a large-scale giveaway are clear.