I agree, catchy phrases can be compelling and appealing thus making them irresistible! These ones below will have same effect:
“Buy a toothpaste and get free gift inside!”
“Shop with our store card and get a free gift worth $100!”
“Apply for a free membership TODAY!And get free Insurance for life!”
“Would you like a year supply of free samples of our product?”
There’s a strong emotional connection of these ‘power words’ with behavior of consumers.
For example, offer of buy one product and get the same product or an accompanied product free of cost is strong.
These offers therefore come with a catchy phrase that consumers will find hard to refuse. The offers works on the principles of commitment and reciprocity.
The offer is a commitment by the giver to show you some kindness which makes you notice the product or service . So attractive that you are willing to take the freebies or buy even if you don’t immediately need the product.
To you,you are getting more for half the price, and end up buying
a lot more than you originally planned to. I will share my thoughts on the rule of reciprocity soon.
APPEALING NATURE
The product received for free is not paid for. It doesn’t cost a dime and the thought of receiving something for free is strong and compelling. In consumer behavioral patterns, receiving something free is a good feeling.
It sparks an emotion that is perceived as satisfactory.
Israeli-American Author Dan Ariely, in his experimental book titled ‘Predictably Irrational’, Professor Ariely posited that people change their behavioral patterns and are more willing to comply when something free comes along.
Free isn’t just an indicator of price. It’s a very powerful emotional trigger that is often irresistible. It compels people to lug home useless key-chains and buy pants too tight just so they can get an extra pair at no cost.
There are assumptions from academic viewpoints and in economics too.
Rational consumers wish to maximize their satisfaction or utility from consumption. They do this by correctly choosing how to spend their limited income.
For firms, they wish to maximize profits. They do this by producing at lowest cost the goods and services that are desired by consumers.
Free products comes with no expectations whatsoever by consumers. Free things are considered to have a higher value. Why? Because the risk of dissatisfaction and value for money is no longer present.
The principle of reciprocity
This principle follows all freebies. This is on the appealing nature where there are loyalty and rewards. The principle of reciprocity is one of the basic laws of social psychology.
It states that in many social situations, we pay back what we receive from others. In order words, loyalty is rewarded for equal compliance. Professor Ariely believes that reciprocity is an extremely strong instinct.
Consumers feel strongly in compliance to do something in return. Why? because the product is free and there is a good reason to return the kindness shown to them.
This is also similar when consumers are given free gifts for spending their income, they feel rewarded. The reward for spending more than the amount they originally wanted to spend is the value of the accompanied gift(s).
When you spend on an item or service, you have taken a risk. Often times, the value for money is not guaranteed. However with a free product comes with having a higher value because it is risk free.
IRRESISTIBLE REVERSE
There are concerns among consumers that has made the term “Free” fade from its obvious definition. It is losing its catchy power and is slowing descending from consumer base.
Skeptical concerns on the value and worth of what makes a product free at no cost are the major concerns. Advertised free products may change consumer’s attitude and the reaction.
Some become suspicious towards the free product or service. Such attitudes and reaction by a consumer focuses on the existence of the product as to why its free. Wondering if it was the price of the product added to the cost of the other whereby making it free?
Other reactions are in the validity of the product and related questions. The ‘irresistibility’ may diminish or reverse. This is where lie the skepticism of consumers towards the product – with a decreasing attitude to its catchy and appealing nature.
AVOIDING CATCHY FREEBIES SCAM
Freebies are things given for free without charge or cost. Most of us expect that Freebies should be free in every form of the word itself. It should not come with hidden cost lurking in the fine print.
If there is a condition attached to a freebie, then we become suspicious or conclude that it is no longer free. Free offers should come with conditions that should not reverse its irrestibility .
For example, it should not give a reason to give up your bank card information when you will not be charged for it!
Visit to a freebies website should not expose you to malicious programs and scripts that can harm the system with virus.
According to Renee Chronister, founder of Parameter Security, a site that seem harmless may have receptive points for causing harm. “Facebook has a lot of those freebie ads on the right-hand side,” Chronister says. “Some of those are ploys that have codes embedded in them. Don’t click.”
A sketchy site could steal your personal information.
PHISHING
Wondering how debit card details and personal sensitive information are stolen online? Look no further than this! Phishing is the act of circumventing online security with an alias.
It is the malicious act of keeping a false website or sending a false e-mail with the intent of disguise as a trustworthy entity to steal information. Such information are sensitive, such as usernames, passwords, and debit card details.
Oftentimes it will come in form of a catchy story that claims you have won a free offer or product. Watch out for websites with links starting “http://” instead of “https://” (the indicator of a secure site) .
Sometimes come as slight alterations to popular addresses by adding a letter or period, such as “www.block-chain.com”. Pay very close attention to the sender’s address, as an odd looking email can often be a tell-tale sign.
SMISHING
Similarity between ‘smishing’ and ‘phishing’ are activities done over SMS. Phishing is done over emails while smishing texts will usually claim to be from a bank or a well known brand.
It is possible that you may have used the service of the company its email is being ‘smished’ so remain vigilant. Smishing texts usually supply a link to click on to fill payment details being requested.
Banks and other company brands will never ask you for personal details via email, they won’t request them by text either. Do not respond to such requests asking for sensitive information from you.
Instead, peruse through the official website of the firm or brand and contact them directly. This way you can clarify the situation with them, and if it is a scam, they can hopefully look into taking it down.
GIVE AND TAKE
If it is free, it shouldn’t require payment. It means the site does not need your banking information. Be careful of catchy freebie scams that ask you to pay a small amount for “processing fee” or “shipping and handling.”
These may be scams to take money from you without offering the freebie. A freebie with bigger value of cash is likely to be infused with terms and conditions. No matter how it is advertised, it should be resisted.
Most freebies need you to give information. It includes your full name, mailing address etc.
They claim that the information is required because they need it to mail the freebie to you.
While you may be need to provide several information to get a freebie,give only information you feel comfortable to share. Extra information required is likely going to be used for marketing purposes.
This leads to more spam and junk mail flooding your email. Even when you sign up for legitimate offers, you are still releasing your email address into the wild . So it is better that you keep your freebie correspondence in a separate email. Creating a unique email address that you use only for such offers.
TERRACOTTA APPS.
I am aware that Google has been removing these terracota apps from Google play store but I will love you to note that such apps actually exists even in app stores.
They are essentially malware designed to cheat advertisers and of course compromise the security of the device of users.
According to a technical report released and titled ‘TERRACOTTA Android Malware: A Technical Study‘,
“The TERRACOTTA malware offered Android users free goods in exchange for downloading the app—including shoes, coupons, and concert tickets—which users never received.
Once the app was installed and the malware activated, the malware used the device to generate non-human advertising impressions purporting to be ads shown in legitimate
Android apps. This technical report goes into detail on the TERRACOTTA malware, covering the initial application code, subsequent payload activation via its Command and Control (C2) server, and the mechanism through which the advertising fraud was executed.”
FREE TRIALS
Oftentimes, freebie scams requires you to sign up for a “free trial offer” of one or several offers to get freebie. This type of offers may request you to fill your bank details with an option to cancel before the free trial end. This can be a scam!
Your information could be stolen and you may never be able to cancel your subscription. Everyone loves a bargain, especially when it is a freebie! Be careful to sign up for free trials offer, as often there will be commitment to pay at a later date that you can’t get out of.
Legitimate sites like LinkedIn offer free trial,scam free trials do too! If you give the scam websites your payment details to access their free trial, they can debit you before or as soon as the trial is up, without reminders!
So always read the fine prints before signing up for such offers. Even legitimate sites may be a bit sneaky with the way their free trials work just to raise revenue. They do it by not sending you as much as they should to remind consumers that their free trial is about to expire.
That is why I suggest that you should add a reminder on your mobile device, online or on scheduling apps. The reminder can be set for 5 days before the expiration date and set on daily repeats. The repeated buzz from your device and its display serves as effective reminders.
GIVEAWAYS
Giveaways are also very catchy. It attracts with promise of freebies for subscription and consumer compliance, with rewards.
The subscription itself is a proven strategy. They use it to attract potential customers and consumers and engage with them to grow sales.
This technique is often implemented through influencers. These influencers use their online influence to widen the audience for the giveaways.
COMPETITION SCAMS
There are fake competition online. Fake Twitter, Facebook Telegram competitions are extremely popular these days!
They are so much that sometimes it is difficult to distinguish a genuine deal. it seems pretty legit.
It seems pretty settled that competitions on the official social media handles of brands is legit but watch it! That ‘official’ account may be fake!
Some features or signs of a fake account include:
a full stop at the end of the page name,
lack of information on the about section of the page,
missing terms and conditions involved with the competition,
and the ‘official’ website redirecting to a different Twitter handle and Facebook page.
Sadly, prize free scams don’t only happen online – they take place over the phone and by post. You may be told that you have won a prize, and all you need to do is to pay a small fragment to receive the gift you won.
If you do not recall entering a competition, you probably didn’t, which means you couldn’t have won the gift. Hardly, will any competition need you to make a payment to receive the gift you have won.
FAKE OFFERS
It is scary yet common online. Some websites advertise products that are completely different from the products they offer. In some cases, the products don’t exist, and they are being advertised to steal your details.
It can be difficult to tell the difference from the real deal though, however, it is better to err on the side of caution. Search and go through online reviews of the website requesting your details.
CONCLUSION
Being realistic with free offers is key to avoiding scams. If an offer is too good to be true, then it probably isn’t. A free sim card is plausible but a free phone with sim that comes with unlimited calls for life isn’t. No matter how catchy it seems, do not fall into it.
If and when you are in doubt, kindly move on.
Go through every URL and confirm there is nothing ‘phishy’ before clicking.
Herb Cohen’s advice on negotiations is relative to being realistic with catchy free offers. If it costs you money and time with little worth, then its not a good offer.
If you must follow through, then do so at your discretion. It is better to avoid it than living with the consequences of your actions.
Install softwares that can alert you when a site is unsafe or if there is an access to your hard drive. I particularly advice you to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when you use a public Wi-Fi. These steps are not entirely foolproof, but better having layers of security and awareness to avoid catchy freebies scam.
