Most new marketers and sometimes so not-so-new marketers love free trials. For the taker, it's a way to become acquainted with your product, which is great for them. Some folks on a fence will take your trial, decide they like it and buy. Those are legitimate customers that you can count on. Even the people who take your free trial and decide not to buy for whatever reason are legitimate and even if they hated the product you offered because it wasn't what they were looking for, could turn into customers in the future. They took an honest trial, which is cool. That's how it should be in that situation.

And then, there are folks who have absolutely NO intention of buying your product and are (let's be harsh here) thieves. Now, you can get pissed at me, and frankly, if you're one of those folks, I don't care. Do you know how many times I've heard, "Oh, your product is great, but I'm not working right now, so I can't possibly afford it" or "I'm on a fixed income, and I can't afford it." So, then… Why did you take an offer you can't PAY for? That's not fair at all.

These people take what they can get from anyone who will offer, knowing full well that they will NEVER buy any products. They'll cancel the product just as quickly and they hit the sign-up button and run away with NO remorse whatsoever. That just sucks!

But people do it every day, and it can be very disappointing and frustrating for marketers. You put effort and energy into your product, pay for hosting, an autoresponder, perhaps storage (if there are videos involved), and so on. People who take your free offer don't think about those things. Time is money, too, don't forget and you've undoubtedly put time into your product if it's any good at all. I DON'T WANT those people on my list.

So, what's a marketer to do?

#1: Don't offer free trials. It's OK to give something away on a squeeze page, of course, and it's fair to give something away to get folks' information. We're talking products. Don't give your products away. You're just asking for a list of unresponsive thieves that either can't or won't pay for their education. They expect everything to be handed to them, and god help you if it doesn't work fast. These are the same people that expect to make a million dollars overnight. Puh-lease.

#2: Charge something. Even if you charge $5 or so, you're creating a more solid bond. People who take this trial will have to give you their credit card information to get it, and people who don't have a credit card or can't afford the purchase price of the product will be less likely to follow through. That's not to say that you won't still get cancellations or have people paying the $5, knowing they'll cancel, but at least, you've gotten something from them.  It's more quid pro quo, and a bit more fair.

The free line in Internet marketing has gotten pretty ridiculous. You have to give people your business just to draw them in the door, and they continue to expect more and more.  I say it's time to rethink things, and re-educate the market.

Providing good content that is free is one way to build that ever-so-important trust. When people think that you care about them and their progress in whatever niche you're tackling, that makes a HUGE difference. People then see you as having their best interests at heart. Then, when you offer something (and it had better be right for your crowd, a quality product, whether yours or someone else's) they're much more likely to respond.

So, what d'you think? Am I being too harsh or maybe, just maybe, I have a point. Let's stop the insanity, and think of us for a change. No one deserves to be ripped off like that. Let's communicate with our audiences, give them the best of ourselves, and make them love us.

Speaking of which I've been doing a webinar twice a month for the past 2+ years with my people in site about blogging, Blogging4Boomers.com. They're not just my customers; they're my friends, and I care deeply about each and every one of them. I've been giving them my best… for free. And what's that take? A couple of hours a month. Big whoop. I'd rather spend two hours a month bonding with people that matter than getting all the lookie-loos in the universe to rip me off.

What say you?

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