In posts on this blog, I’ve often talked about PLR launches, launch prices and OTOs. Given that I keep bringing those issues up, I thought it would be helpful to describe how PLR launches work.
The first thing to note is that, no matter what I write in this post, not all launches work like this. That’s one of the real benefits of being your own boss and managing your own online business as you choose.
How PLR Launches Work
Still, there is a pattern that a lot of launches follow. First, the launch is limited to a short period of time. It’s usually not longer than a week. Sometimes it’s only about four days.
During the launch period, the price is substantially lower than it will be afterward. It’s not unusual for the launch price of a front end product to be as low as $7.
Sometimes the seller puts the launch product on a dime sale. That’s a sale in which the price goes up by a predetermined amount each time a predetermined number of sales is made. So the price can go up by five cents after every three sales, for example. The purpose of a dime sale is to create a sense of urgency on the part of a prospective buyer. The seller doesn’t want the buyer to think too long and never get around to buying. If the price goes up after every few sales, the buyer has an incentive to act decisively and fast.
The post-launch price can be three or even more times higher than the launch price.
The Sales Funnel
A launch usually has a funnel. The funnel starts with a front end, low cost product. If you buy it, you see an offer for a more expensive offer. These are usually called OTOs or one-time offers.
The sales page of the OTO sometimes starts with a vaguely threatening statement that you’ll never see the earth-shattering offer again and if you pass it up you’ll be a failure the rest of your life. Again, the seller is trying to create a sense of urgency, pushing you into an impulse buy. But in fact, you may see the OTO again. The seller may send you a follow-up e-mail offering the OTO. In addition, the seller may put the OTO on her online PLR store. And if you ever regret your decision to turn down an OTO, you might contact the seller and see if she sends you a link.
To put it in perspective, it’s helpful to note that the seller will give a commission on the front end of 75% or more, sometimes even 100%. It seems a little disadvantageous to the seller but that’s how PLR launches work.
There are a couple of reasons for that. First, if a product only costs $7, and you get a lower commission on it, affiliates will not be enthusiastic about promoting it. So the sellers raise the commission to attract affiliates. Second, even if the seller doesn’t make any money, she gets a buyer on her list. That, in fact, is worth a lot.
But if the price is low and the commissions are high on the front end, the price goes up and the commissions go down on the OTO. There’s a pretty broad range in price on the OTO but a common price is $27. Generally, the commission will be 50%. So, the commission structure motivates the seller to maximize sales on the OTO. That’s her chance to make money on the launch.
If the sales funnel is well constructed, the OTO will complement the front end in some way. It may be that the OTO contains a video slide version of the e-book from the front end. Or the OTO contains types of content that the front end doesn’t contain. For example, the front end may contain an e-book while the OTO contains articles and a short report.
Further Down the Funnel
If a buyer turns down the OTO, there is sometimes a downsell, which often consists of a smaller package than the OTO at a lower price. If the buyer buys the OTO, there is sometimes a second OTO.
There’s no standard approach to a second OTO. Although it’s not unusual for the second OTO to contain new content on the same topic, some established sellers will add existing PLR from their stores. Some tech-savvy sellers will offer to install the product on the buyer’s domain. And many sellers will just leave it out altogether.
And Some People Don’t Do It That Way
That’s how a PLR launch works in many cases. Not everyone does it that way, though. Some PLR sellers simply add new content to their PLR stores without a launch. There is no launch price and no funnel. After all, when you are the creator of a product, you get to create it as you wish.
Sometimes you’ll see a launch with only the front end and no OTOs.
The advantage to the buyer of having a funnel is that you can buy the front end at a low price without buying more content than you need. The disadvantage is that it can be irritating to buyers to keep being hit with more things to buy.
For that reason, when I recommend launches to you, I describe the OTOs as well as the front end. I hope that reading my description in advance of reading the sales page helps you frame your needs and expectations of the funnel.
And I hope that you continue your interest in purchasing and using PLR.
