When somebody buys your front-end product, they have entered your Sales Funnel. This is the time to “upsell” your new customer with a one-time offer, or “OTO”.
What is an Upsell?
An “upsell” is the process of offering a more expensive product or service after your new buyer has entered your sales funnel.
A simple upsell works like this.
Somebody buys a product you are offering for, say $25.
When they buy it, they are redirected to a “thank-you page” which says just that. It thanks your new customer for their purchase, and at the same time, offers them a more expensive product, say for $75.
So, in this example, the customer buys in to your funnel for $25 and is immediately asked to make an even bigger commitment to you.
What is an OTO?
A one-time offer, or OTO, is a particular type of upsell.
Just as the name says, it is an offer that will be made just one time.
How does “Urgency” effect an OTO?
Marketers often make a distinction between a “true OTO” and a “false OTO”.
That’s because a “true OTO” product or service can only be offered one time. That one time is when the buyer of the front-end offer is immediately redirected to the “thank you page.”
If they don’t buy it right then and there, they lose the opportunity to buy it ever again.
But you can also call an offer an OTO even though, in fact, you intend to continue offering it in the future to the same buyer.
The reason marketers do that is because they want a buyer to get the feeling that if they don’t buy it right away, they’ll lose out on the opportunity forever.
This last technique is called false urgency.
It is intended to convince the buyer that it is urgent that he/she buys this OTO because (1) it has perceived value and (2) they’ll never get this opportunity to buy it again.
How does “Scarcity” effect an OTO?
Scarcity can also be true or faked.
If you only have a fixed number of products to sell, it has a true and defined scarcity.
For instance, “Buy this ebook now because I’ve only got 10 more copies to sell”… or “only 10 more at this price” etc.
This can also pertain to a service: “I’ll only allow 15 more attendees for this live webinar.”
An OTO can have a pretend scarcity, or it may truly be scarce. You may really only have 10 more ebooks that you want to sell at the stated price, for instance.
It can also be a false scarcity, as when you’re only saying you have a limited amount to get people to buy without hesitation. In fact, you’re willing to sell as many as you can.
True and False OTO Products
As I pointed out earlier the OTO offer itself can be true or false.
If I’m only offering the OTO this once (on the “thank you page”), then it is a true OTO.
But many marketers call an offer an OTO when, in fact, if the buyer declines to purchase it, they will be marketed to again for the same offer.
They may get the offer in an email, on a Facebook tab, at the end of a webinar, or any place else.
The point is, it’s not truly an OTO, but marketers say it is for one good reason.
When a buyer purchases your front-end offer, they have shown confidence in you as a vendor or affiliate. At exactly the same moment, they may be more likely to purchase other things you are selling than at any other time. This is especially true if you are not a very aggressive marketer.
The saying to “strike while the iron is hot” pretty much summarizes why marketers will position a product as an OTO immediately following the front-end purchase.
Some people think that “false” marketing is not only a bad idea, but dishonest, too.
It may well be a bad idea.
If you intend to build a deep relationship with your buyers, then it’s probably not a great idea to tel them one thing, then do another. It will certainly make you look less than honest and forthright, even if you can justify the practice on some grounds.
I do understand that if you will not be building a relationship with your buyers and this may be your best or only chance to get them to buy more products from you… then why not give it a shot.
I’m not sure about honesty. It’s a hotly contested issue in marketing.
I’d only say this about those who get all in a huff about it being dishonest. If those same people are selling their used car for $5,000 and a possible buyer asks them,
“What’s the lowest price you’ll take”… do you think they’ll give an “honest” response?
As for building a good, long-term business, though, I think that hands-down, being as forthright as possible is always the best policy.
In other words, if your offer is not a true OTO, then simply offer it as an upsell which your buyer can think about buying now, or knows he might possibly buy it later.
You could have your hands in both pies, of course.
Using the above example, you might offer your $75 upsell product, not as an OTO, but with a one time only 30% discount. So your buyer knows they can buy it later, but not for the discounted price.
Is Your OTO Necessary To The Front-End Purchaser?
Here’s a bit more controversy surrounding The OTO.
Some marketers will sell their front-end product, and then offer an OTO that is necessary if the buyers hopes to get any value out of the front-end product.
So, I might sell you a car (front-end) for $1,000, and after giving you the title, offer to have an engine put in it for an additional $5,000 (OTO).
Obviously, the car is of no use without the engine, so if I still want the car, I’d have no choice but to buy the engine, too, or start arguing with you about getting a refund for the car.
I feel safe in saying this is clearly unethical and dishonest, but many marketers have used the technique. If you plan to do something like that, the chances of you building a strong and lasting business are very slim.
So… don’t do it.
The OTO can complement the front-end offer, but not be necessary to its essential value.
Using the above example, I could offer you discounted parking rights at my garage for $5,000 for 5 years as an OTO. But you could clearly decline and still have a useable car.
My OTO Summary
An OTO product can be a great benefit to your internet marketing sales funnel.
Your new buyer is told, in essence, that as a welcoming gesture, and as a thank you for having shown confidence in you buy purchasing your front-end product, you would like to reward them with a special offer to purchase something that you will make availabe to them just this once, or for a special price just this once.
This is not only good business in the sense of getting a second sale immediately onthe heels of the first one, but when done right, it will show your buyer that you appreciate them, that you’re happy to have them on board, and you’re ready to help them reach their goals with yet another product.
Use your OTO offers to build deeper trust and a more lasting relationship with your buyer.
When you do, you may be surprised to see how fast your business can grow.
We’ll be going deeper into the “sales funnel” process in the next few articles in this series. I look forward to seeing you there.
Please let me know what you think of the OTO information I’ve shared here. I really look forward to receiving your comments and social shares.
Thanks so much.
Now, go build an online business!