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.

How well did your communications strategy serve you in the last year?  First, look at your business plan.  What were your major business goals?  Did you reach them?  Did you fall short?  Think about the outcomes achieved over the last year.  What would you like to get more of in next year?  What would you like to avoid?  On what product or services or in what customer segment did you realize the highest profit margins? 

Who is your target audience?  Are there untapped customer niches you have not yet exposed to your product or services?  Do you need to up-sell or cross-sell your existing customers so that they do more frequent and profitable business with your firm?  Are there people with similar characteristics to your existing customers whom you have not yet reached?  What about business-to-business customers—are they hearing a message tailored just for them?  Could your vendors be referral sources if they only knew what kind of potential customers to refer? 

Understanding your target audience is essential to creating effective marketing messages.  Once you understand your audience, you can tailor your marketing to helping them solve their problem.  Solving a problem is the heart of making a sale or providing a service. 

Try this tip in your marketing, and see how it affects your results.

If you’re feeling mystified about marketing, join me on my next free teleseminar or monthly conference call http://www.dreamspinnercommunications.com/page/page/4496195.htm on Jan. 16.  I’ll demystify marketing for you and help you save money, get results and create marketing programs you feel good about.

For more great ideas, get my free e-book, “154 Power-Packed PR and Marketing Tips” at

http://www.dreamspinnercommunications.com/page/page/5319972.htm