Free advice may seem like a give-away

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Your free advice will win you more customers than it's worth in the long term. Most businesses don't even know what they could give away for free, let alone do it!

• You have something of value you can give as free advice to your customers and prospective customers. If it's of value to them, they will love you and respect you for it. Love and respect will never pay the bills, but believe me, some of it will rub off as extra business.
• You can become known as an "expert" in your field. Repeat your free advice often enough and people will soon associate you with your particular field of expertise.
• Most of the stuff that comes through your door, either in the post or hand-delivered, gives you very little value. Yes, it tells you about someone's products or services, where they are, how good they are. But how often do you feel someone's given you something worthwhile? Wouldn't they stand out from the rest if they offered you some free advice, however small?

A Low-cost Action Plan for Giving Free Advice

1. Identify what you know that could be of value to your marketplace, and that you could give away for nothing. Don't “give away the ranch”. In other words, don't tell them everything you know, otherwise they may never need you! Give them tidbits, tasters, advice that adds to, rather than detracts from, your normal business activities. Some examples:

• You're a plumber. Give them a nice, attractive, printed list of your ten top free advice tips (preventing bursts, etc.). Put your name and number prominently at the bottom. Ask them to pin it up in the kitchen. Who do you think they'll call when they need a plumber (or who will they recommend when the neighbours, in-laws or boss's wife sound desperate)?
• You sell computer software to a specialist business market. Send them your views on how the Internet and electronic commerce could benefit their business. Make it clear you're not trying to sell them anything, just giving free advice. If they need more information, ask them to give you a call. Be a mentor to them. Who are they likely to come to when they need some of what you do?
• You're a freelance clothing designer. Your potential customers are clothing manufacturers. Why not produce a short guide to employing freelance designers? Where to find skills that are in short supply. How to negotiate rates effectively. The key points of employment law. What's hot and what's not in fashion right now. Make it a reference document with your own details prominent. Maybe they'll call for more free advice. Maybe they need a designer just like you.

2. Choose the best way to convey your free advice to your customers and prospects. With customers, undoubtedly a personal letter is the best. For prospects, it depends on your type of business, but you could use any of the following:

• Personal letter
• By mail, without a letter
• Door-to-door drop
• Pick up from retail outlets (your own or someone else's)
• Newsletter by any of the above methods

3. Draw up your advice or information into a leaflet, report or newsletter as appropriate.

4. Decide how many copies you need for your target market. Print them yourself if the numbers are small and you have a computer and printer. Otherwise, get a local printer to run them off for you. You can have 5,000 single color leaflets printed for under $50.

5. Send them. Don't necessarily expect an avalanche of response straight away. That's not the aim with this type of approach. Long-term business is what you're after. And the more you give them, the more they will feel inclined to come to you when they're ready.

6. Do it regularly. Offer free advice in different but related fields. Make them think of you as the person to speak to when they need to know about something in your field of expertise.