When Online Marketing Products Are Worth Paying For

One of the benefits of our interconnected world is the availability of great information and products that cost nothing. Never before has so much been available at no cost. This is also true for products people use to get started marketing online. We are big fans of free (to an extent) and encourage others to leverage free when getting started. However, there is a big problem with free that can easily be overlooked, and some products are just worth paying for. This post will cover the pitfalls of free, the perks of paid, products worth paying for, and how to know if you can’t afford it.

When Online Marketing Products Are Worth Paying For

Everyone likes free, but there are great costs to free. Some products are worth paying for, if you and your business are at the right place to invest (the Final Words section at the bottom).

The Pitfalls of Free

We are all limited by our most valuable asset…time. The problem with “free” for many aspiring online marketers is the effect it has on the value we place on our time. Not how we value our time, but the value we place on it. Just because a product is free, does not mean it is worth your time. It may or may not add value and help you move your business forward.

It goes back to your most dangerous enemy.

Free has the ability to remove you from where you should be spending your time.

The Perks of Paid

Free products = no accountability. Paid products=mutual accountability.

Of course there are exceptions to every rule, but I’ve found this formula above to be true in most cases. When you get access to something free, you don’t place value on it for your business as you do paid products. In this way there is also no accountability for your business to carry it out and make it a profitable tool as soon as possible.

On the flip side, when paying for products, there is mutual accountability. The product provider is accountable to delivering on their promises (or they get refunds) with a solid product and good customer support, and you as the customer has a greater level of accountability as a result of the value you placed on it when surrendering money to become their customer. You are “on the hook” and more likely to make it work in your business than with a free product.

Worth Paying For

This brings us to the point of products worth paying for. This is not a comprehensive list, rather ones subscribers have informed me as having most value, and well, I agree.

Easy Website Building. For those wanting an easy way to create webpages, optin forms, and more, have a look at this Xsite Pro Review. The product has been on the market for years, and is the most celebrated tool for do-it-yourselfers who are high on enthusiasm but struggle when it comes to conquering the technology.

Twitter Management. If you believe in the value of Twitter for building relationships, influence, and following, but know it can act as a subtle vortex bleeding you of time with repetitious actions, see if twitter automation software is for you with this Tweet Adder Review. It has the ability to manage multiple twitter accounts, post from RSS feeds, follow, unfollow, and more. *There’s also a coupon available for MarketingProfessor readers.

Expert Training on LinkedIn. With LinkedIn having gone public recently, it is a viable force in the area of social networking for business. One of the top experts on the subject is featured in this interview and discussion of LinkedIn over on this Linked Influence Review.

WordPress Design Theme. If you use WordPress or are considering WordPress as your platform for publishing content to the web, you’ll need to decide on a theme. An interview with the head Dad at Headway provides insight as to how the product came to be in partnership with his son in this Headway Theme Review. Not only does the software make it easy for the tech challenged (like me) to design a website, it is also optimized for SEO.

SEO Tracking and Research. If you are going to leverage the search engines to get traffic there are few options that give you a comprehensive view of both keyword research, competition analysis, and the training to understand them as Traffic Travis (no relation). It also monitors your sites search engine placement across multiple keywords over time.  Our Traffic Travis Review covers the four main areas of the application and contains a few screenshots.

Video Marketing. Making videos is one thing, but having the ability to market with videos is another.  You need a robust video player, one that gives the option to integrate with Amazon cloud services, has the ability to host webform or buy button overlays at specific times and more. Our Easy Video Player Review also contains a video (surprise) that has some of the features in use.

Final Words on Paid Marketing Products

If you find any of the products above a fit for you, you don’t have to purchase them all at once, prioritize them. Pick the ones you believe you can make the most of the fastest.

It’s worth mentioning, you need to be smart about buying products, and treat them as investments. Will they move your business forward? How quickly? How much of a learning curve is there? Is there training along with the software purchase?

As always, if buying products means you spend food or rent money to get them, I’ve got news for you: you cannot afford it, use the free stuff in a very disciplined way to get to the point where you can invest in paid. You’ll be glad you did.

Image Credit: turtlemom4bacon, somegeekintn