Just recently I refunded over $100 to someone who purchased one of my products. This person had not complained, and wasn’t expecting it. In fact, she’s a raving fan.
Why did I refund her money? More importantly, how can you do what she did, so you can get things that inspire you for free from other businesses?
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The Perks of Being a Reviewer
Years ago I was the managing editor for a non-profit magazine. Very frequently, in the inbox at my desk there were stacks of all kinds of items that people wanted reviewed. Books, videos, CDs, sometimes even clothing.
Free stuff sent by hopeful business people, with the intention that I would be impressed enough by whatever it was to write a positive review of it in the magazine, thus providing them with free publicity.
Anyone in the magazine or newspaper business knows about this. It’s standard practice, and expected. And, it’s also standard practice that the reviewer gets to keep whatever they reviewed.
Once I got used to this, I felt free to call (this was in the mid-90’s, before email was so prevalent) some publishers or businesses, and tell them I represented a magazine with about 10,000 readers, and ask for a review copy of this or that.
Of course, it didn’t take long before I ended up with closets-full of stuff. But, I was happy to pass some on to friends, or donate them to the Salvation Army.
Have You Been Eyeing a Product That Someone Offers?
By now you’ve guessed that the refund I gave was to someone who was going to review and actively promote one of my products. And, it was an honest promotion- she actually wanted to share it so much that she paid for a copy herself.
Of course, my heart couldn’t possibly let her pay for it when she was promoting it so whole-heartedly. So I voided out the transaction before the charge went through.
There are so many things we need to keep our businesses running smoothly. Information, training, software, etc, etc. I know I’m constantly buying things like that, and I’m guessing you are too, or wish you could be.
Seems as if you could use a few review copies here and there, to take some of the load off your education and training budget…
But, wait! You aren’t a magazine editor. How can you ask for a review copy without feeling like a liar or a huckster?
Keys to Living the High Life of a Reviewer
* Do you have a list for your business?
One of the things that every business needs is a list of potential and current customers. If you have one, and you see something you’d like to share with them, then you can be a reviewer.
* Do you belong to any organizations?
If you belong to an organization or association that puts out a newsletter to their membership, and they print, or are willing to print reviews, bingo, there’s another avenue.
As a side note, if you are using the organizational route because you aren’t maintaining a list for your own business- then start maintaining a list! This reviewer thing is just a side perk. Without a list of interested people, no business, no matter what the product or service offered, can easily sustain itself, or grow.
* Write the review.
Writing a review is a great learning strategy. It helps you to be conscious about what you learned from the product, how it worked, and in general deepens whatever benefit you receive from what you reviewed. In addition, it helps you to learn about how you might create your own product or offering, based on what you liked or didn’t like.
Plus, seeing the review actually published helps your business. If you publish to your own list, it shows a spirit of generosity and expertise. People are always wanting guidance before spending their hard-earned money.
And if you publish your review to an organization, you get a byline. And that byline will increase the exposure of your business as well.
It’s actually a five-way-win marketing strategy. You win because you receive a free review copy. The organization wins, because someone other than the over-busy editor writes content for the newsletter. The members win, because they get solid guidance. The business whose product was reviewed wins good press and third-party recommendations. And you win again, because your business gets exposure.
So, Ms. or Mr. Editor, what are you going to review for your list next?
