I’ve always been very curious about the different ways of acquiring customers online.
As a business owner, marketer and consultant to several businesses… I’ve been exposed to different types of methods to get customers.
Free trials, webinar, lead magnet funnel, low ticket model , paid trials, direct sale…
In case you’re wondering which is better for your business…
I can tell you one thing:
No one method is better than the other.
The question you should be asking is:
Which model works the best for your industry?
Today let’s explore some of the customer acquisition models I’ve consulted on before.
I’ll break it down and explain:
1) How it works
2) Which industries are suitable for it
3) Pros and cons of the model
4) What are the skills needed to make it work
Free trial model
Suitable for:
Service-based businesses like enrichment centres, tuition centres, any sort of freelance service.
How it works:
As the name suggests, you offer a free trial to people for them to experience your service.
If it’s a service, like vocal lessons for example, you offer a free session. After the session, you then convert the prospect to a paying customer.
Free trials are often used by software companies as well. You get to use their software for 7 days, 30 days, before paying for a monthly subscription.
Pros:
It’s easy to attract prospects, since they don’t need to pay anything.
Cons:
You might attract people who don’t really have a high intent to buy in the first place.
They could be freebie seekers who just wanna “try for fun”.
Skills needed:
After the free trial, you need to have someone there to follow up closely and close the prospect.
Some sort of “sales skills” are needed.
I wrote a script for 2 of my coaching clients who are offering free trials and it briefly goes like this:
Recap of what was covered
Share why you created this service
Explain how you are different
Show your curriculum/package
Show usual price, and offer a special one-time offer.
Low ticket model
Suitable for:
Coaches, service-based businesses, info product business, high ticket programs.
How it works:
You sell something at a low price and then ascend the customer up to a higher priced product. It could be a high ticket program, a subscription program.
Pros:
You attract customers with a higher level of intent versus someone who signs up for a free trial.
Why? Because they have already opened up their wallets to pay you. That means they are pretty serious about solving their problems or achieving a certain goal.
Cons:
This requires more skill set to ascend a customer up to buy your high priced products.
Skills needed:
Since you’re selling something online now (as compared to just getting leads for free trials)…
You need the technicals skills to:
Write a landing page
Set up a payment platform to collect payment
A method to ascend the customers up (depending on niche) and this usually also requires sales skills, otherwise, strong email skills to follow up.
So it’s a combination of sales, copywriting, and digital skills (building websites, collecting payments).
I love the low ticket model, but having done it before, I must say it’s challenging.
My eBook Profitable Ads Secrets is a low ticket model.
In fact, I lose money selling each ebook when I run ads.
I’m selling the eBook for $11.90, but it costs me $80-$100 to sell one.
That means I lose money for every eBook sold.
But I’m still able to ascend some of the buyers and make the campaign profitable.
I will write a separate letter about the low ticket model and dive deeper into it.
The low ticket model can also be done in a simpler manner:
For example, a spa can sell a different variation of a product, perhaps a simpler type of treatment, at a lower price. Thus “low ticket”.
This helps to attract customers who might just want to “try it out”.
Lead Magnet Model
Suitable for:
Education businesses, coach/consultant, real estate, financial advisors
How it works:
Instead of selling something directly, you first offer value by giving out a lead magnet.
A lead magnet is something that provides value to your prospects.
It could be a PDF, a video training, a tool that furnishes valuable information about a topic.
Once you get the lead, you then follow up with the lead to find out more about what they’re looking for.
Your lead also goes into your email list where you can continue to nurture them through your email content. (Exactly how you’re reading my newsletter now)
Pros:
You get cheaper cost per lead using this method.
This allows you to get in more leads using the same budget (if you’re running ads).
Which means you can follow up with more prospects and get them to know more about the services you offer.
Cons:
The “quality” or rather the level of intent of these leads may differ depending on the type of lead magnet you create.
For example, if you’re a financial advisor focusing on selling retirement/investment plans…
You create lead magnet A, which is a tool to help people calculate how much money they need to retire…
Versus creating lead magnet B, which is a video that shows a method on how one can retire with $500k at age 40 by just contributing $1k/month…
The second lead magnet will have higher probability of attracting higher “quality” prospects with funds to invest.
Reason is because your lead magnet already qualifies the type of leads you attract.
Skills needed:
To have the consistency to nurture your leads through your content. Mainly through sending emails.
It also helps to have a sharp sense of knowing what type of lead magnet to create so you can attract the type of leads you want.
Webinars
Suitable for:
Training companies, trainers/coaches, experts
How it works:
You host a free webinar or training teaching your prospect how to achieve a certain desired outcome using your method.
At the end of the webinar, you sell them to a higher ticket item (training/course).
Pros:
The whole process doesn’t require a lot of manual work, since most webinars are pre-recorded.
That means this method is scalable.
Cons:
Whether your webinar can convert the viewers into paying customers depends a lot on your offer and how you sell it.
Skills needed:
You need to be very comfortable in front of a camera and have a decent level of sales skills to sell them through your webinar.
Certain digital skills are needed as well to automate your webinar, your payment platforms etc.
The “Conversation” Model
Suitable for:
High-ticket products businesses with physical presence. This can also work for service businesses like massage, spa, beauty centres.
How it works:
Instead of optimising your campaigns for leads or purchases, you optimise your ad to get people to “Send Message”.
Then you chat with them and try to fix a physical appointment to showcase your product/service.
Pros:
You get to start more conversations with potential customers using this method as there is less friction for people to send a message.
This means you can have more people to chat with and bring to the next part of your sales process.
Cons:
You need to be constantly on standby to respond to people on Messenger fast.
Ideally, you have a staff or team to solely take charge of reply to the messages, and fixing appointments with them.
Skills needed:
Strong texting and follow-up skills.
Must be very responsive to incoming messages.
That’s it – these are 5 customer acquisition models I’ve regularly been exposed to.
Free trial, low- ticket, lead magnet, webinars and conversation model.
There are definitely other customer acquisition models out there. (eCommerce, book-a-call model etc…)
But you’ll realise it’s about finding one that suits you and your industry the best.
One thing remains constant across all the models explained above – you need to respond to your lead/customer fast in order to increase your overall conversion rates.
