13 Freebie Ideas + Examples From Real Business Owners

I'm a website copywriter, obsessive novel reader, storyteller, cat mom, and one time I thought about drinking less coffee, and then decided never to think about that again.

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Let’s cut right to it: you need a freebie for your business.

And the reason you need a freebie is mainly to grow your email list.

Now, getting into all the reasons why you should have an email list and how you can use it, that’s a different blog post…

Plus, if you’re reading this, I’m assuming it’s because you already know those things! You are ready to get those subscribers and use them to grow your business.

You’re here for freebie ideas.

Well I’ve got you babes. Not only are we exploring some of the best freebie ideas out there for service-based businesses, I’m giving you actual freebie examples from real business owners.

So yes, you’ll be able to see how some of these freebie ideas work in real time for other businesses like yours. Let’s go.

What to consider when brainstorming freebie ideas for your business

Chances are you’re going to have a lot of freebie ideas for your business after reading this blog post. In my experience, the hardest part about creating a freebie (or lead magnet) for your business isn’t coming up with ideas – it’s narrowing down the best one for you.

Here are a couple things to keep in mind when you’re trying to decide what freebie to create for your business.

What is your area of expertise?

Maybe this is self-explanatory, but you should be creating a freebie that draws focus to your expertise as a business owner or the value your brand has to offer. As in, it might make sense for a wellness brand to create a morning routine freebie, but it wouldn’t make much sense for me (a copywriter) to create that same freebie (unless I went full-tilt into a personal brand here.)

Using your freebie to point back towards your expertise is what’s going to inspire trust in your leads. The goal is for them to be so impressed by the knowledge and skill you show in your freebie, that they are closer to becoming a paying client.

What do your clients and audience want to know from you?

Now, here’s where we get into some nuance of what kind of freebie will do well for your business. Sure, you might be super nerdy about feng shui as an interior designer, but it’s possible your audience just wants to learn about paint colors. Be sure you think through what they want to know from you, not just what you want to talk about.

What is a quick win you could offer your audience?

Never underestimate the power of a quick win! Oftentimes, when you’re a true expert in your work, it can be easy to create a freebie that gives away ALL THE THINGS someone could ever want to know.

However, sometimes a small, bite-sized win is the most magical thing you can do for your new subscriber. After all, information overload usually puts people into analysis paralysis. Keeping it simple makes it more likely they’re going to follow through.

What are typical freebies people in your niche create?

Controversial, but I think it could be a great idea to go against the grain for your freebies.

For example, if you’re a personal trainer who sees most other personal trainers are creating recipe guides or workout freebies, maybe you can try a freebie around mindset hacks or on finding community for your fitness journey. It pays to be original.

Ok, by now you should be clear on the goal of your freebie. If you need more help on how to actually create your freebie, read this blog here.

13 Freebie ideas for your business + real life examples

For service providers, here are some of the best freebie ideas for your small business!

1. PDF Guide

One of the easiest and fastest ways to create a freebie for your business is to fire up Canva and use one of their freebie templates to create a quick guide that will solve a problem for your audience.

You could essentially use the same format you use when writing blog posts, plug it into a pretty PDF template, and voilà! A fresh freebie guide showcasing a slice of your expertise.

Here are some great PDF Guides you can take a look at:

2. Checklist

Who loves a checklist? Everybody. The answer is everybody.

Mapping out the exact steps to reaching a goal, prepping for a launch, or setting yourself up for success is always popular. Creating a checklist for your audience is a great way to tap into everyone’s love of a quick win:

3. Mini-course

Oooh, this is one of my favorites. With something like a mini course, you can create a valuable resource in bite sized increments that get people results, without the hassle of going through a whole curriculum.

For a mini-course, you could do a quick video series, a self-paced course, or an email course. I opted for an email mini-course for one of my freebies, and I made the whole thing right in Flodesk! Easy-peasy.

Here are some mini-course ideas for you:

5-Day Email Course: Write A Homepage That Converts (oh hey, this is mine!)
Mastering Consistent Content Creation in Just 5 Days
Supercharge Your Squarespace SEO | Maypop Creative Studio

4. Quiz

Ok, not only are quizzes super fun and satisfying to take, but did you know they actually tend to perform better than most other types of freebies?

It makes sense. Everyone is willing to give up 2 minutes of their time to figure out which pastry or Kardashian they are. And when you create a quiz that helps provide value to your audience, entertain the troops as they fall right into your emails list, and show off your expertise as you give them actionable direction based on their results? Bingo.

(BTW, I recommend using Interact for building quizzes, which I’ve done for clients before.)

Here are some examples for you to peruse:

What’s Your Brand Voice Type? | What Sara Said
Find The Perfect Gold Jewelry For You | Goldmania (my client! I wrote this one)
What’s Your Photography Brand Superpower? | Inkpot Creative

5. Content Planner

You know what’s never going to happen? People stop posting content.

And there will always, always be people who need help with their content, wondering what to post, how often to post, etc…

So if you can create as helpful content planner for them, you’ll never go out of style.

Here are some example content planners for you:

6. Workbook

Have an audience of Type A, former teacher’s pet kinda kids? They’re going to be all over a workbook that they can do at their own pace, and takes them through a problem they need solved (or an opportunity they’d love to take advantage of.)

Need some guidance on putting together a workbook? Here are some freebie examples you can stalk:

7. Templates

Templates are a super fun freebie because people love that most of the work is already done for them. Depending on the kind of business you have, throwing some of your expertise into templates can give people a great taste of how good you are at what you do, without having to spend more of your time.

Here are some fun templates you can download:

8. Ebook

Ah yes, ye olde eBook. One of the best go-to freebies out there.

To be honest, an eBook could just be a lengthy PDF guide or course all within one convenient download. Or, if you can’t decide between a workbook, templates, guide, or mini-course, you could include all of them within one eBook.

Building a Feel Good Business | Good Egg Digital

9. Challenge

Oooh I love a challenge! And creating a short one for your audience can get them to start taking massive action towards their goals, while getting exposure to your expertise.

I love a challenge because people will have a natural drive to finish them. Be sure you keep them short, manageable, and really focused on quick-wins that point them towards your services.

10. Business Tool or Tracker

A business tool, tracker, or spreadsheet that helps people keep track of their progress, business growth, or other goal can be an awesome freebie because most of us want to be more organized and productive!

You could make one on Google sheets, Airtable, or Notion. Here’s an example:

Notion Content Hub | Elle.Notion

11. Facebook Group or Community

Hosting a free community or Facebook group may seem like a lot of work, but if you feel cut out for it, it could definitely be a lucrative freebie for you too.

Groups or communities can be a great freebie idea because, TBH, we all want more community.

And if you’re discouraged with starting small, don’t be. Having a smaller group can mean more engagement, personalization, and interactions between your community members – not just them seeing your content and then ghosting.

12. Notion Template

One thing about the Internet these days: Notion is *that girl*

With Notion enthusiasts, a Notion template freebie will never go out of style.

Ok, I know this is technically a “way of creating your freebie” vs a “type of freebie” but I included it because 1) you have tons of options on Notion and 2) if this is your preferred platform, these examples should open up more creativity for you!

13. Private Podcast

For my podcast queens, a private podcast could be just the freebie to get your audience to fall in love with you and get obsessed with hearing your voice, all while keeping the allure of something *exclusive.*

If this sounds like it’s up your alley, a private podcast could be just the thing for you:

Turn 1 Post into 10 – Private Podcast | Felly Day

What if you can’t decide which freebie idea to create?

By now you have lots and lots of ideas on what kind of freebie you can create for your business. If you’re anything like me, you may be realizing that you have too many ideas.

First, no need to create a bunch of freebies at once. It’s best to try one, see how it performs with you audience, and then adjust from there and create a new one.

Second, if you end up creating a bunch of different kinds of freebies, just create a freebie library! Kind of like the freebie libraries from House of Bettencourt or Small Biz Sidekick.

Now that you have a freebie, and you’re bringing people to your email list, what do you do?

Ah yes, now you need to actually send emails to the subscribers who’ve opted in to get your freebie.

I get the analysis paralysis you can have when trying to figure out what the heck to send to your email list (to engage your audience and grow your business!)

So read these blog posts next to get your email game ready:

These freebie examples are great, but what if you need someone to help you get this project off the ground?

I get it. Even creating a single freebie (and welcome sequence, which is a whole other blog post!) can be a huge task. And sometimes, as high as an ROI it can be, you need some help getting a task like this off the ground and actually moving the needle in your business.

Luckily, creating a freebie or setting up your email funnel is exactly the kind of task we can accomplish together during a Copywriting VIP Day.

Not sure what you need? No problem. Each Copywriting VIP Day is totally customizable based on your brand and your goals. Check out this page to learn more, or inquire here to talk about a VIP Day that will seriously move the needle in your business.

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