SDH 427: Create Your 1st Freebie in 5 Steps with Amanda Boleyn

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Hello friends and welcome back to another episode of the podcast. I am so excited to be here with you today and continue the journey about list building.

Today's episode is part two of a three-part series. In the first episode, I dive into high-level strategy on the importance of list building. I also share with you my journey of list building and what it's been like. Because when you start to build your email list and you start working with the tech, it can be overwhelming. Part of list building is making sure that you are creating something of value in exchange for an email and that's what we're going to get into today's episode.

I have seen time and time again that so many people stall out from building their email list because they can't get past the actual building of the opt-in. Not knowing what type of opt-in to create, not knowing what the content part of the opt-in is, let alone even just physically, or digitally, in this case, building the opt-in.

So in today's episode, I'm going to walk through brainstorming how to decide what type of freebie you should create and how to outline the content for your freebie. We will also go over how to build your freebie in Canva, or if you should consider buying a template.

In the next episode, I'm going to share with you some things that you'll want to make sure you do after you have your freebie when it comes to your email automation along with places where you can share your opt-in to drive what is called traffic so that you can nurture them through email and grow your list.

Let's dive in!

This is the brainstorming part. We talked about the strategy in last week's episode or in the last episode and it's really important to create an opt-in or freebie that is in relation and correlated to a product or service that you either currently have or one that you plan to offer. This is really key because it's very intentional, and it saves you time and energy. When you're brainstorming, consider what content you want to have inside of your freebie. Think of your previous clients; consider what are some of the things that you have helped them with or helping current clients with. What can you teach someone in a bite-size way that allows them to download a guide, to get immediate results, or take immediate action? Avoid creating an opt-in that is overwhelming and difficult for them to complete. It's human nature and psychology that we really want to work through content and complete quickly because the sooner that your audience can download something that you've created, and integrate themselves into the experience of your opt-in, that creates traction. By doing that they're getting value from your opt-in and they’re more likely to trust you with future offers.

So this is really key, we want to make sure that we create something that is of value, that isn't overwhelming, and that isn't going to take too long for them to complete. You want them to be engaged. There are different types of opt-in’s that might look like a book list or a podcast list. You can create that as well, but I recommend for your first opt-in or your first freebie to really think about some sort of fill-in-the-blank guide. Consider how you can get them to take action, whether it's simply just putting pen to paper, get them integrated with your opt-in, or getting them familiar with how you teach and with how you think. When you brainstorm, consider what it is that you've previously or currently are helping your audience with that they're constantly asking you the same question over and over.

As a reminder, when you get started. It's not this ‘I'm going to create one freebie and I'm going to get 1,000 subscribers right away’, type of occurrence. That could happen. But it's important to go into this experience with an open mind and almost expecting that you are going to create multiple freebies over time. We're always creating multiple freebies and we do this because we always want to generate new leads. It's part of the online business and online marketing strategy. Have fun with it. Don't get overwhelmed or bogged down by it. Always stay in the mindset of ‘oh my gosh, I'm so excited because this guide is going to help so many women, men people!’ Get excited about building your freebie.

The next piece is deciding on the type of freebie you want to create. I shared in the last episode that especially as you start out your first freebie, make sure it super simple for you to create. Whether it is a guide or maybe you're sharing templates...whatever that looks like, keep it simple, and keep it easy for you to create, as well as easy for those that are downloading it to be able to plug themselves into it as well. One of the most successful opt-in’s that we've ever had is our Ultimate Leap Starter Kit and Tool Guide. That downloadable guide got over 3,000 downloads in a span of only six months. This guide has less than 10 pages. So don't think that it needs to be super lengthy in order to create an impact. The content that you put into your freebie is more important than the length. I recommend starting with a guide, a toolkit, or something that is asking questions and getting them engaged.

The next thing you're going to do is to try to create your freebie inside of the software from scratch, and this is where people get really hung up. So what they'll do is they'll open up Canva, pull up a blank page, and think, ‘Oh my gosh, what the heck do I need to do?’. And the challenge with that is because you're trying to format and design your freebie at the same time you're trying to come up with your content. I always recommend to grab a pen and paper or open up a Google doc and outline your freebie first, because the step after the outline is going to be transferring it to Canva.

When you outline your freebie, get as granular as possible. Use the exact words that you want to say, in your freebie. So for example, your outline may look like having a cover page, and on the cover page, you want a title and you want an option for a subtitle, then you're going to list out the additional pages. Then the last one might be a contact page. When you go to expand on the outline, I want you to actually type out again what is on every page so that when you go to build your freebie, everything is already there, and the only thing you need to do is transfer the copy, update the photos, format the fonts and move things around.

So as an example, when I created The Top 10 Software Tools, All Online Business Owners Must Have, everything was written out exactly where it was on my outline. I had the top software tools all online business owners must have, I made a note that I needed a photo for the background, and then I had an area for subtitle (where I put ‘not needed’, yours might have a subtitle which is totally fine) and then I listed in the outline for the pages. It was page one, which was a quick intro about me my business and freebie. I made a note I need to expand the copy and I needed a photo of me. On page two, the first three software tools, then I need a graphic for each tool, a description, and a hyperlink. On page three, page four, page five, so on and so forth, and I had a contact page at the end. So I wrote up the outline, went back in, and expanded the content and copy. There are sub-tasks below the outline where I knew to then go back in and expand on.

The goal is to build the outline totally fleshed out so that you can copy and paste and bring it over into Canva, making it super simple and easy for you because this is going to help you avoid the overwhelm when you create your freebie. This will get you out of the perfection mentality.

I don’t want you to ever feel like your opt-in isn't perfect enough. I will tell you the first freebie that I ever created, I look back now and I think ‘Whoa’. Everyone has a crappy first draft, it happens. But the only way that we get really good at what we do and about what we produce is by moving through those crappy first drafts. So don't be afraid. Don't worry, don't over-analyze. Don't wonder If your opt-in is perfect or good enough. Just produce it.

After you outline and you've gone through it, you've expanded, and you’ve proofread it, you're now ready to transfer it into Canva. There are other software tools that you can use, such as Adobe, etc. Canva offers a free version, or they have a paid version, which I highly recommend. One of the key differences between the paid version versus free is that you get folders with paid. The other thing about the paid version is that you can actually create your own brand kits. You can save your fonts and color palettes, whereas, in the free version, you have to constantly update and re-enter them. For $12 or $13, it's totally worth it to pay that because it's going to save you time and energy.

When you are ready to go to Canva, you can do a couple of different things. One, you can build your design from scratch. If you're like me, you're not a designer. But you know other people who are you would rather pay someone to help design your freebie. If this is you, go ahead and peruse the Canva ones that are free. But what I have found to be most helpful are a couple of different places. One is Creative Market, they have stock photos, they have presentation templates, they also have guides and so many different things that you can use. You can search in Creative Market for Canva opt-ins, so it’s super easy (directions are included!). They typically cost between $15 to $30, and you can upload it right to Canva. The other option, if you don't want to use Creative Market is called The Creative Template Shop, which is owned by Emylee and Abigail at Boss Project. At She Did It Her Way we actually subscribe to the creative Template Shop. One of the things that I love about the shop is that it's a monthly membership and you get new designs and new templates every single month. It's pretty great because if you don't have the ability to pay someone like a marketing team, the shop is going to have everything that you need in order to stay current and create consistent branding and marketing.

We use the Creative Template Shop every single month for a lot of the things that we work on at SDIHW and they make it super simple and easy. I think the other challenge is when you've got this beautiful outline of your opt-in and you're super excited, it then approaches the next step of ‘Okay, how do I make it look pretty?’. Like I said before, I am not a designer. So that's something that I need to outsource. So you can use resources like Creative Market if you want to do a one time purchase. Or you can use something like Creative Template Shop if you want more consistent access to templates, and also other things that you need in your business; it's pretty robust and amazing.

I always think that it's important that as you're growing your business and building it, to identify the areas and things that are not in your zone of genius or is not something that you don't particularly love doing or aren’t necessarily great at. Outsource those. Identify those opportunities and see where you can outsource efficiently and effectively to move that off your plate. Once you decide on your template, download it, and put it into Canva the next step is to format it. Now you want to bring over what you typed up in your outline and bring it into Canva to begin formatting. When it comes to formatting, at this point, you'll want to figure out (if you haven't already) the font and color scheme that you will want to use in your business. If you don't have your branding picked yet picked out yet, that’s okay, don't let that stop you. There are so many things that can get in the way of taking action while building a business. Don't let it be that you don't have what you consider ‘perfect font’ or ‘perfect branding colors’. Don't let that stop you and know that you can always change it later, but the most important thing is to take messy and perfect action that is aligned with the results that you want to create.

So that is what I have for you when it comes to creating your first freebie. Again, remember to brainstorm and really think about how you can help your audience what are some of the questions that you receive currently, from your current clients and from your past clients, and really brainstorm and outline how can I put this into a downloadable guide that allows people to take quick action and get good not just results, but value from your opt-in as well. It's all about building that ‘know, like and trust’ factor.

If they can download a free guide and get value from it, they're more likely to invest with you later on. Then the next piece, decide if you want it to be a guide, a kit, or a template, but keep it super simple, especially in the beginning. Next, start outlining your freebie, get as granular as every word that you're going to use. Start outlining in terms of what you want on each page and then go in and expand the copy that you want on each page (including areas for writing and notes, etc.), then make a decision on what template you want to use.

A little note for when you go to decide what template to use for your opt-in is to think ahead of time about first what vibe you want your opt-in to give. That will help you get a better understanding of the colors and the flow of it because if you just go to websites, such as Creative Market or Creative Template Shop, it can be really overwhelming. If you're like me, it can be a little indulgent because you see all these pretty things. and then next thing you know, you look up it's an hour later and you haven't picked a template. I recommend limit yourself to no more than 25-minutes of deciding on a template. You’ve got to put that constraint in there; trust me. I know those of you listening, you love, love, love looking at all the pretty things. But when it comes to making a decision, you're paralyzed, so you have 25-minutes.

This goes for outlining your freebie as well. I've talked in previous episodes about calendaring and the importance of working in 25-minute increments. So really think about ‘Okay, outlining my freebie, it's going to take 90 minutes. So I get 25 minutes to draft the first draft 25 minutes to do the second draft and 25 minutes to do the third draft’. After you decide on your template, you can upload it to Canva, format it, and download it to your computer.

In the next episode, I'm going to walk you through what happens after you create the freebie in terms of your email sequence, and I’ll also give into places where you can share your downloadable guide and be able to start having people sign-up for your first opt-in.

I'm so grateful that you’ve tuned in, and I would love for you to jump on Instagram and come say hello! Screenshot this episode and tag us. It's myself that's on Instagram along with my assistant Jennifer and we have so much fun, so come say hi over on She Did It Her Way. Until next time, keep doing it your way, my friend!

Insights:

“We want to make sure that we create something that is of value, that isn't overwhelming, and that isn't going to take too long for them to complete.”
“I always think that it's important that as you're growing your business and building it, to identify the areas and things that are not in your zone of genius or is not something that you don't particularly love doing or aren’t necessarily great at.”
“The most important thing is to take messy and perfect action that is aligned with the results that you want to create.”
“Think about how you can help your audience what are some of the questions that you receive currently, from your current clients and from your past clients, and really brainstorm and outline how can I put this into a downloadable guide that allows people to take quick action and get good not just results, but value from your opt-in as well.”