Quick question: Do you have an IFO?
Otherwise known as an opt-in offer, freebie, free download, etc, an IFO (which stands for irresistible free offer) is simply a piece of content you give away for free in exchange for someone’s email address.
Then, you can add their email address to your list and start marketing to them! Your IFO may take the shape of a free pdf guide or report, or even a free video series you’ve recorded.
Now I’ve come across a lot of IFOs from travel agents.
Some good, and some … not so good.
Well, I’m not going to sugarcoat it: There are IFOs out there that are so bad, they make the folks that download them feel like they’ve wasted their money … even though they got the IFO for free!
It’s not that these IFOs are poorly written, necessarily.
But it’s clear that every bad IFO suffers from the same thing: a lack of research.
Ask THIS Question Before You Create Your IFO
A lot of travel agents skip the research and dive right into just writing the thing. That’s what leads to an IFO that doesn’t garner buzz.
Or they do do research — but I’d say they’re researching the wrong thing.
They ask themselves: what do I want to write about?
Or, what do I know a lot about?
Then just start researching and writing that.
Wrong question.
The RIGHT research question is: What does my ideal prospect want to read about?
Your IFO is not about you. It’s not your chance to show off.
It’s about your prospects. So you need to find the overlap between what you know and what they want.
Needs Vs. Wants in Your IFO
And pay close attention to what they want, not what they need. Do not try to create an IFO that gives people what they need — because even though they really need it … they’re not going to opt in if they don’t really want it.
For example, travel insurance is a really important topic—your clients NEED to know about it. But I would not recommend you write a whole IFO on the topic. Because chances are, your prospects aren’t clamoring to learn more about travel insurance. The desire is just not there.
Give them what they want now in the IFO, and then give them what they need after they’ve been on your list for a bit.
That’s where the “irresistible” comes in—your IFO should be like candy or ice cream (both of which I find irresistible, mmmmm). And then your other communications with them, like your ezine or blog posts, should be healthy albeit still appetizing veggies.
So, following up with our example, a feature article about travel insurance would be a great fit for your e-newsletter. Your subscribers now trust you to share need-to-know travel advice with them, because you’ve been showing up in their inbox consistently with solid content.
But your IFO is usually your first real contact with a prospect. To get them to download it, it needs to be as enticing as [insert their favorite dessert here].
Save the broccoli for another day.
Get a Crazy High-Converting IFO … Without Writing a Word Yourself
Stuck on what to write for your IFO?
Let me, erm, unstick you—with the Complete Opt-in Offer Package. We’ll work together to brainstorm a gotta-have-it IFO idea, then I’ll write the IFO for you—plus the follow up email campaign that will nurture your new leads all the way to “real, live client” status.
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