I was going through my email the other day. As usual I was wading through tons of offers in my email. Every once in awhile an email will get my attention enough to actually click through. And that’s what happened this time. I came across something that peaked my interest and went to check it out (good work).
So I go to this website and start reading through the copy. It’s very well done. I’m actually reading a good portion of it. Nodding here and there. I’m scanning a little bit but it’s holding my interest (good work again!).
By the time I get towards the end and find out the price I’m pretty darn interested and just about have my wallet in hand. I move on to the bonus section. This particular product had a main bonus and, well, sort of a bonus for the bonus. But I was very interested in the first bonus section. I was practically at the counter, money in hand.
This is about the point where I put my wallet away. After the first bonus (which I thought was great) there was more. And more. And more. It kept going on and on. When it was all said and done, this bonus included about 30 ebooks and a couple pieces of software, if I remember right. All that besides the other bonus (which was some audio and transcripts, another ebook and something else, I forget).
That’s way too much.
Granted it makes the offer very appealing. Look at all the stuff you get for the price of one product. But have they heard of information overload? Some of these ebooks seemed like they would be full of useful information. But it was just too much. It was overwhelming.
I get enough ebooks and reports as it is, let alone 40 more at one time. It really brought value down for me.
Unfortunately I put my wallet away and went on my merry way. It may work to a degree, but I believe for a lot of people it may have been too much. There needs to be a balance in having enough free bonuses and having too many.
Yes it’s free, and yes you would get a lot of information. But when will you get to all that? Will most of it get buried? Are you going to spend the time to go through it all first and then take action? Would you set it off to the side? Would you forget about it?
It’s been said that if you feel like your giving away too much (bonuses or free content) your on the right track. I agree, free is good. So are a lot of paid products. And I think buying one ebook set that comes with 40 more free products is a bit much.
~Chris
Have you run into an offer like this? Was it too much for you or did it make your decision to buy it? Did having all those bonuses help?
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My first thought when seeing a large list of bonuses is…how bad is the product that it needs this many bonuses to try and make me buy it?
A good product should be able to stand on it’s own and not need to have bonuses to be sold.
By adding one…or possibly two…they stand out as bonuses. Anything more, to me, is saying this product is crap STAY AWAY!!
Cheers,
Rod
Rod Macbeth´s last blog ..A Different Christmas Poem
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Christopher D. Anderson Reply:
December 30th, 2009 at 10:52 am
Yup! Like I said, I was about to buy the product (it sounded like a decent buy) until they tacked on all that. Sure made me think twice about it.
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Bonuses are a great way to add value to a product to increase sales, but it’s silly having 40. Information overload is a terrible thing, makes you wonder if there is a “bonus repository” somewhere where people delve in & get 2 or 3 things to add to their product. It’s bad when two products have the same bonuses!
Rhys´s last blog ..The Gospel Round Up 2009
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Christopher D. Anderson Reply:
December 30th, 2009 at 10:53 am
Agreed. I think the bonuses should definitely be something unique and pertain to the product. Either that or something that is sold by itself somewhere else.
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Great article, and timely too. I’m getting ready to release my first product soon, and initially I was going to offer 3 bonuses, and now I’m planning to offer zero, but perhaps offering just 1 is a good middle ground.
I have experienced the info overload by too much stuff, and it turns me off just as it did for you. They lose me completely!
Dave´s last blog ..Up In The Air: The Ultimate Travel Movie?
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Christopher D. Anderson Reply:
January 1st, 2010 at 10:33 am
I think a good product doesn’t need bonuses to sell it. They should compliment the product. You should feel like your getting you moneys worth just for the product and bonuses are, well, an added bonus to an already good product.
Oh and yes information overload is rough and easy to do nowadays.
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I agree, too many bonuses really can confuse and lower the perception of quality of the main product.
But I imagine the technique increases conversions among less savvy buyers.
Paul Cunningham´s last blog ..12 Books I Read in 2009, and 5 I Wish I Had
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Christopher D. Anderson Reply:
January 4th, 2010 at 7:52 am
You make a good point. I’m sure it works to a degree, but I wonder if there is any buyers regret…
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