Think about what it costs you to go to an average trade show, and then reconsider the question. Companies will routinely spend tens of thousands of dollars to stuff trade show goodie bags with all kinds of useless stuff, much of which is given to the attendees’ children or dumped on a breakroom table for office “vultures” who will never be purchasers or decision-makers.
Now think about who is likely to download a white paper or a limited-use trial subscription. These are not casual freebie collectors. These are likely to be people who are seriously shopping for a current need.
Much of what is given away on the internet is really re-purposed content. That is, it was created for another use and has fulfilled its initial purpose. Now the choice is to have it lie around collecting virtual dust, or be out helping to sell your company.
So are you giving away the store? Only if you are giving away something you could actually sell. If you created audio recordings of a five-part teleseminar series that is still fresh and relevant, maybe you give the first session for free and offer the other four recordings for a nominal fee. If it’s more than a year old and you are routinely creating new content, give the whole thing for free but use it to plug this year’s new content. Or, give away one level of information (white papers, articles, short web/audio) and then offer a paid level of access to get more in-depth information (teleseminars, webinars, trial products or beta downloads).
Remember that customers need to trust you before they buy from you. The more intangible your product, the more difficult it is for them to “test-drive” before the commit. That’s why case studies, articles, etc. are so important for knowledge providers, and why limited-use downloads and limited-access trial periods are essential for product/service providers.
