Growing a business is a massive task, no doubt about that. And one of the primary challenges faced by any company, irrespective of the industry they operate in, is finding new customers. This is where B2B and B2C companies rely heavily on lead generation campaigns.
Apart from running highly targeted ads, one of the most common ways of capturing qualified leads is to create interactive lead magnets.
What Is a Lead Magnet?
A lead magnet is a highly effective tool used to generate leads and acquire new or potential customers. Most of the leads that you capture using lead magnets are Hot Leads, who are most likely to convert based on your communication strategy. Every lead magnet offers an incentive or a useful resource to the users who share their contact information.
Why does your business need lead magnets?
Consider that a potential customer is reading your blog about health and fitness. You can directly request their contact information by asking them to subscribe to updates. However, such a direct request would make anyone feel hesitant.
A more creative way of asking for the same contact details is by offering the customer something valuable in exchange. This is where a lead magnet works like a charm.
If you offer your potential customers a downloadable diet chart or a workout schedule or a simple informational piece about staying healthy, they would be more willing to share their contact information to access the long-form resources.
What are the benefits of a Lead Magnet?
- Easy to create
- Easy to promote
- Downloadable/clickable
- Interesting resource/content
- Helps in nurturing & qualifying leads
- Helps in acquiring new leads!
What Makes a Lead Magnet Effective?
The effectiveness of a lead magnet directly depends on how you personalize it for each buyer segment and how attractive it is to potential customers. They will click on your CTA only if they see value in return. And that’s where the 4-step process of converting visitors to leads begins:
- Call to Action (CTA): This is the link or button that a customer uses to gain access to the resource that you are offering.
- Landing page: After clicking the CTA button or link, your customer will be directed to the landing page that captures their information. The form has to be filled with their name, email id, phone number, or other contact details that your brand may need.
- ‘Thank You’ Page: This is where your customer will be able to download your resource, thus officially making them a part of your mailing list.
- Kickback Email: Here’s where you begin your interaction with the customer. This follow-up message must be sent a short time after you receive the customer’s contact details. It helps you start a conversation and help keep the customer engaged with your business.
Here are a few things to bear in mind while creating a good lead magnet:
- Personalized and Valuable: The resource that you are offering should be something that your potential customers would really be looking for. And this value should be clearly conveyed through the title of the magnet itself. Just a cursory glance should be enough to draw attention. If the magnet is too generic, the user might just leave the page without giving you their contact information. The more personalized and valuable your content is, the higher the chances are for lead conversion.
- Easy to use and instantly accessible: The resource that you are offering should be delivered immediately and should be in a format that is easy to consume. If the user has to click through multiple pages or fill in too many sections, they may lose interest and give up. The simplest way is to provide an automatic download or redirect the user to a ‘thank you’ page where the content is available. Alternatively, you can email them the resource- it would be a great conversation starter for the ongoing correspondence that will follow.
- Should represent your expertise: It is important to remember that there is already a lot of information available on the internet. What a user is really looking for is reliable information from a trustworthy source. If the resource you are offering demonstrates your brand’s expertise in its field, then you have a higher chance of gaining trust. Accordingly, when they have future needs related to your industry, you will be their reliable first choice.
Now that you know what an effective lead magnet is and how it works, let’s have a look at some of the powerful ones that are high conversion drivers. With these magnets, you will be utilizing content marketing efficiently to connect with potential customers for your business.
Here are the 6 most effective lead magnets for any business:
1. Planners/Templates:
A planner or template would provide a basic outline with blanks left for the user to fill in. For example, offering a daily/weekly meal planner would be useful for a busy working professional to monitor their eating habits and have a healthier lifestyle. Mapped-out plans offer users a convenient way to track specific areas of their lives. This immediate and real benefit helps reassure a potential customer that your business will provide more benefits in the future.
2. Questionnaires and Quizzes:
Online quizzes and questionnaires are an effective way to create initial engagement with a potential customer. For example, a health website could offer a survey where users fill in information about themselves to understand their nutritional requirements and receive supplements accordingly. They would need to provide their email address to receive the promised results, thus helping you start a conversation and further your marketing campaign.
3. E-books:
While your blog, article, or website content may provide useful information, a user will always be looking for more. A downloadable e-book or guide with more details and tips is ideal for later reference. It allows them to conveniently access the information at any time without having to navigate back to the web page. For example, if your potential customer would be interested in growing their social media accounts, then you could offer them an e-book that helps increase their follower count quickly. An e-book magnet like “Get 5,000 subscribers” (by Derek Halpern) would be enough motivation for an interested user to click.
4. Worksheets/Workbooks:
A workbook is an extremely useful magnet for service businesses. It allows the user to apply the ideas and principles learned from your blog in the downloaded worksheets. For example, if your blog explains how to create a website that establishes and develops your brand image, then you could offer worksheets that will help the user design their own website according to your suggestions.
5. Case Studies:
This magnet is highly beneficial for B2B companies or for industries that rely on research and data. If your blog is about a real customer that has experienced success working with you, then you can create a write case study that will serve as a reference for potential new customers. The case study should give more information about the client’s requirements (with their consent) and how your business met the need.
6. Industry Report:
If you are offering a report, you need to be sure that the information is up-to-date and relevant to what the user is looking for while reading your blog. You may either conduct research and collect the data yourself or accumulate existing information and present it as one consolidated report. This magnet is effective for potential customers who are new to the industry or are looking to understand it better. If your report is accurate, it will help build trust and encourage them to respond to future communication.
After you have collected your customers’ contact details, it is important to start a conversation on the right note. Your first automated email must have a welcoming tone with a brief overview of what your business has to offer. Your customer should receive mails at regular intervals but should have enough time to understand and think about the benefits of your business.
There is a common saying – ‘there’s no harm in asking.’ But there is always a correct way to do it – especially when personal information is involved.
With lead magnets, you will be offering something valuable (your resources) to acquire something even more important (a new customer!). These are just 6 of many lead magnet ideas that you can use for your business to grow your email list, acquire new leads, and do a lot more. Based on the niche that you operate in, you can come up with interesting lead magnet ideas that can help you grow your business.
Get in touch with us to create an effective lead magnet for your business that will help you expedite your brand’s growth!
[…] details like name and email id. You can now use these emails that you collected with this fantastic lead magnet to encourage the readers to purchase the book if they liked the free […]