How many times should a newsletter ad say it's free?

I once got an email from a new subscriber: this sounds great, but did I just sign up for a subscription? Is this costing me money?

I hadn't asked for a credit card. It didn't matter. People don't think deeply about things. They aren't stupid; they just don't like to stop and analyze.

How many times is enough?

"You could tell someone something's free twice, and they're gonna come to you later and be like, I don't know if I wanna buy this. I freaking said it's free twice. You gotta say it like five times."

A normal smart person might say, TJ, it already says absolutely free in the image. So what? Tell them it's free ten times so they're sure.

Where should "free" go?

1. The first sentence of the ad copy, capitalized: FREE. Not buried later in the body. That's a standing rule on my team.
2. Fixed text on the video. "Subscribe for free" or "free weekly newsletter" sitting right above the captions, so it's there before anyone watches.
3. The spoken script, if someone's talking: "It's free... if you're local, just sign up, it's free."
4. The landing page headline or description.
5. The button. Change wherever you can to "subscribe for free."

Should the ad image say it too?

Yes, in very big letters. Reviewing the first ad image for a new local newsletter, my note was to strip out the extra stuff, make the phone mockup bigger, and put "free forever" at the bottom in very big letters. It really is a free-forever product, so free is the selling point.

Remember the image isn't the call to action. Facebook's button sits below it. An ad consultant on that call said text on the image that looks like a button, like "Sign up for free," tends to perform better even with the real button below. I agreed to add it.

"Free" or "absolutely free"?

"Absolutely free" is better if it fits, but free is good too. When a freelancer made a set of ads for me, my note on every one was to throw it in their face that it's free somewhere on the ad.

We're targeting normal people, and normal people don't want to spend any money. When they see it's free and it's very clear, it jumps out at them.

Why does this matter so much?

Because the downside of doubt is a lost signup. If people don't know whether it costs money, they just won't risk it. Clarity is a conversion lever, and "free" is the cheapest clarity you can buy.

What about "click the link below"?

Skip it. On one news ad we preferred copy like "free in your inbox" over "click the link below." Tell them what they get, not what to press. More copy rules are in how to write Meta ad copy for a local newsletter.