Okay, here we go again. Another Giveaway event. I am pretty sure they will have some good stuff. There could be a lot you might not know about internet marketing, you feel you really need to get inside that Giveaway and start downloading as much as possible. Besides, everything in there is free!
That could be one way to think about it. Let’s look at another…
We have another Giveaway event. You can’t possibly have time for it and then you will be on all those marketers’ lists. Then you might spend the day downloading all of those products and you can’t get anything done. You get so overloaded with all that information that you feel your brain is going to explode. Then there is that guilt feeling because you know you can’t read everything and it could bug you to have loose ends. But, then again, it is free.
Most of the time we as marketers look at giveaways in a positive light, especially in the beginning, but then with something close to dread. I think there is a way to handle Giveaways that don’t lead you to feel like you have to check into a psychiatric ward from all the information overload and allow you to get extreme benefit from them.
What are you currently working on?
What are you missing from your current project- could it be knowledge of your subject, graphics, scripts, a backend product, a bonus or something else?
Start by writing down what you specifically need right now for that current project, tape it to your computer where you can see it. Then go ahead and join that Giveaway and then go on your search for only those things on your list. Come on now, you can do it! Just look over those titles and descriptions and don’t look at the squeeze pages unless you have decided that you can use it.
Try signing up for the Giveaway with an alias.
Maybe you could use the name of your current project. For instance, if you have an awesome project you are getting together about blogging, fill in your name on any opt-in form as blog. This will serve a couple of purposes; one it will help keep you honest and it will also remind you why you are at this Giveaway and two it will help you identify the source of the emails that are going to be hitting your inbox fairly soon after.
By being able to identify where the email is coming from, you don’t have to wonder who the heck this marketer is and why is he sending you stuff. You might actually be checking out the value of what is being sent instead of reaching for the spam or delete button.
Be sure to put the downloads somewhere you will remember them.
Be sure to create a new folder for your downloads on your computer. Maybe you can call it something like “blogging resources” or something you will remember what it actually is. Then you can put all of these downloads you collect from the Giveaway.
When you download the product, don’t feel you have to name it whatever the creator had named it. You might want to give it a new name that shows you the subject, source name and rights. You just want to make sure you will give it a name you will remember. For example, blogtipsTiffDowPLR lets me know, roughly, what’s in the file.
You can be sure that a Giveaway can actually be beneficial if you go about it the right way. Be sure to take a look at what you might need for that current project and then go on a hunting expedition throughout the Giveaway and download only what you really need. Remember, there will always be another Giveaway right around the corner that will have more items that you might be able to use if not now then for some future project you may have in mind.
December 12th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Picking and choosing just those gifts that you KNOW you’ll use in the near future is the biggest lesson regarding giveaways, Andre – another is to favour smaller, by-invite giveaways run by well-known marketers. In the big, wide open giveaways that anyone can join, the focus has switched from ‘what’s the best content we can give away’ to ‘how can I get more people to buy the One-TimeOffer?’
As a result, there’s seldom, if ever, one of these giveaways with 50+ partners where there has been any quality control on the gifts, though a few of them claim there is. Yet a quick stroll through their gift listings quickly shows duplicate gifts, products that are 4 or 5 years old and other such garbage.
So the first task is to decide if it’s a legitimate, top-drawer event, then the second task is being discriminating in what you download. Following those two tips will keep participation in giveaways a GREAT resource for marketers!
December 12th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Those are some excellent tips Doug which I had not thought of. Thanks for throwing those in.
December 12th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
I have a love hate relationship with Giveaways. The may be free, but it takes time to read the free ebooks, and they often can be very distracting as you say.
setting up a separate file is a good idea, but avoid the temptation to fill that file with a ton of stuff unless you really can use it.
Then I suggest you look for True resources, along the lines of references and when you find them keep them in a separate file. Such as HTML or Blogging set up, etc.
December 12th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Yes I have to agree with Doug find quality giveaways. Get what you can use and don’t get sidetracked.
December 12th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Good list of Do’s and Don’ts. Interesting idea about signing up with an alias and how to use it to identify the source of the emails that you will be getting.
You are right about creating a new folder for your downloads. One needs to have some sort of plan to organize. Otherwise things will get lost and you will have to spend valuable time trying to find that download that you know you have somewhere.
December 12th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
Giveaways are fantastic… but like you said, there are some things to remember. One of the biggest that I see for beginners is that you should only download gifts which you will use, so that you are not “stuck” on deciding what to read and do.
December 13th, 2009 at 12:35 am
Excellent plan Andre!
I have to agree that most Internet Marketing beginners will jump in with both feet and begin downloading everything that they can get their hands on.
Then before they know it they are getting hammered with 100’s of emails a day telling them to buy this and buy that. It’s no wonder that so many get overwhelmed before they even really get started.
If they would follow the process you have laid out here they would definitely be much better off.
December 16th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
I think you’re talking to me. All good ideas and I’m getting to that point where I’ll pick and choose the info I need. Another idea is to set up a separate gmail account for giveaways. That way your main business inbox will be easier to manage.