Free, free, free... Everything seems to be free on the Net. Try looking for "Free" on any search engine like google, yahoo, etc. and literally millions of websites appear. All kinds of businesses, in all types of areas give out free stuff to their visitors.

Why? You may ask...

Well, if you have ever been to Granada, home to the famous poet Federico García Lorca, you'll probably find this easier to understand. I'll explain why:

In Granada, especially in the old town, you have many bars that offer free "tapas"; with every drink you get a handsome share of one of their "tapas", also with the second, the third and so on. A different one with each drink, but always the same "tapas" in the same order.

Ok, you're maybe thinking that they'll probably go broke in a few months, but I assure you that most of these bars have been around for a good long while. So, what's the secret?

Each bar lures their potential customers by offering good, tasty "tapas" with their drinks, if the customer is satisfied he'll repeat the experience and become a regular visitor of the bar and as the bar obviously has a large range of products, which the customer must pay, it's just a matter of time that the customer wants to try even better, tastier dishes and asks for something different. It's a question of building up relationships on trust and familiarity.

How does this apply to Internet?

One of the great drawbacks to Internet and this is one of the reasons that online purchases are not as high as they should be considering the advantages, is the fact that Internet is a very cold means of communication, at least on the first visit. You never really know who's behind that technical barrier and no-one likes the unknown, especially if you're talking dosh.

So, what can be done about this?

Give out "tapas" or should I say "e-tapas"; electronic freebies - information, courses, software, trialware or whatever the creative mind devises. In this way, the customer becomes familiar with the business and their trust grows, overcoming that initial barrier and contributing to a successful online business.

Next week I'll continue this article explaining the features that an "e-tapa" should have.