.png)
Generate Rocket Fuel for Your Business's Sales Engine with a Lead Generator
Lead magnets are the cornerstone of any successful marketing strategy. They are also one of the simplest and most effective ways to generate leads and increase conversions on your website. This is worth more than gold for a company's sales strategy because it keeps your sales funnel full and creates organic traffic to your website, which means maximum opportunities for sustained growth.
Â
What Are Lead Generators? And Why Are They Important?
A lead generator, also known as a lead magnet, is a free offer for a digital product that a business offers to attract customers.
Have you ever signed up for an e-book, template, or webinar? Those are great examples of what a lead magnet is. In return for the lead magnet, prospects give you their contact information and permission to contact them via email in the future.
Â
How Lead Generators Fire Up Your Growth
Using a lead generator is THE best way to promote your business to potential customers. They are a type of content specifically designed to attract and convert visitors into leads. Lead magnets are used in various ways, but they all have one thing in common: they provide a unique value to the customer in exchange for permission to market to them.
Lead magnets are the foundation of your inbound marketing strategy. They can be an e-book, video, checklist, or any other type of content you have created for your business. The goal is for them to be interesting enough for people to willingly provide their contact information so you can market to them in the future.
Â
Finding the Powerhouse Lead Generator that Works Best for Your Goals
It can be hard to figure out what type of lead magnet will convert best for your company. Think about offers you've signed up for in the past. What made you want to sign up? It almost certainly had a great call-to-action (CTA). An effective lead magnet includes a strong CTA– it's the secret sauce in the whole recipe of B2B marketing campaigns. Make sure yours is a flavorful one!
You may ask, "What can I use as a lead magnet???." I'll give you some examples:
A wellness coach who offers a training course could offer a mini-webinar that gives an overview of the program or an introduction to the entire class. Thanks to their lead magnet, she knows that everyone who signs up is actively interested in their class.
An SEO specialist could offer a "Secrets to SEO Optimization" short e-book. When a prospect takes advantage of the lead magnet, you know that they care about their SEO and want to improve it. Welcome to Warm Lead City.
A copywriter, such as myself, could (and does) offer a guide to Customer Journey Mapping (check it out here!). When someone signs up for it, I know that they care about content strategy and providing their users with the best possible experience. That tells me they'll have content needs that I may be able to provide for them in the future.
Â
What are Some Common Types of Lead Generators?
Your creativity is your only limitation when choosing a lead magnet for your marketing campaign. In the examples above, you'll notice that they serve two purposes. They're helpful for the prospect and can help you tighten up your lead management process.
Your lead magnet doesn't have to be big or extra fancy to work. Heck, I signed up for a lead magnet that was just a list of 250 Power Words to use in copywriting. My point is, don't overthink it. As long as it's helpful to your target audience, go for it.
Common lead magnets include:
Cheat Sheets
Just like the 250 Power Words List, cheat sheets are a quick and easy way to gain leads. Creating an infographic or a flyer with crucial points doesn't need to be elaborate. It just needs to be helpful.
E-books and White Papers
Offering industry-related white papers or reports is a great way to establish your authority as an expert in your field. Present your knowledge in a way that allows your customers to connect the information with the reason they need to work with you.
Toolkits and Templates
Social media or other kinds of templates are successful lead magnets. I often see social media managers offering free Canva templates or Social Media Calendar templates to use. However, something as simple as putting together a list of resources with links as an Ultimate Resource Guide can be valuable for prospects.
Webinars
Take advantage of the trend toward video content by creating a webinar. Webinars can be introductions to a course or offer. Or it can explain the problems associated with the solution you offer, leading them to conclude that your solution will solve their problem. Sneaky!
Free Trials
If you offer a high-ticket item, free trials are an excellent way to gather leads. You're putting the customer at ease and allowing them to explore what you offer without worrying about making a big expensive commitment. And those who sign up are the hottest leads you can encounter.
Discounts
We love to sign up for deals, right? 10% off is like catnip. Why not follow suit by offering a small discount in exchange for the prospect's contact information?
Surveys and Quizzes
Not only do they help you prequalify your leads, but they're also irresistible. Buzzfeed knows this all too well. They have an entire section devoted to quizzes– because humans can't resist them. So go ahead. It's great for engagement and the client's user experience.
Tests and Assessments
Skills and knowledge tests appeal to our inner competitiveness. They establish your authority, educate the customer, and keep them engaged. Tie your questions to the end result you want them to take, and you're headed to Conversion Heaven.
A Word of Caution
Don't give away too much! Keep the juicy stuff for paying customers. You want to create something that has enough razzle-dazzle on its own but also leads the prospect towards your ultimate goal- converting leads into sales.
Â
What are Some Resources to Help Create My Lead Generator?
Now that you're excited about creating your own lead magnet, let's talk briefly about the HOW. One excellent resource to make your lead magnet is Canva. It's a priceless tool for those without professional graphic design training. It'll be your new best friend. They have templates for everything, including videos! The free version offers plenty, but the Pro version gives you extra fonts and elements. Many people, including myself, find it worth the monthly $12.99/month fee.
Pixabay, Pexels, and Unsplash are great for curating stock photos. And don't forget to use Grammarly's browser extension to keep an eye out for typos and other errors.
Â
Get Your Lead Generator Started Today
As you can see, lead magnets can benefit your company in several different ways. They pre-screen your leads and fill your sales funnel. They also build your email list– possibly your greatest asset in your marketing strategy. Just remember the Golden Rule– your lead magnet must be useful.
Â
What To Do After Your Lead Magnet Is Finished
Once you've completed your lead magnet, you'll need a landing page where prospects sign up for your offer. You'll also need to set up an automated email to instantly deliver the download link. Utilize these two pages by sharing what your company is about and the benefits of working with you. And finally, you'll need to write a series of emails that go out on a fixed schedule once they've subscribed to your mailing list.
This may seem like a lot of work, but your lead magnet is crucial to the success of your overall marketing strategy. Besides, I cover it all in this article!
Â
Feeling Overwhelmed? Dunlavey Solutions Can Do It For You!
I've created a fully customized lead magnet launch package that includes everything you need to get your lead magnet up and running. Thanks to my years of experience in the corporate and copywriting worlds, I have the processes and creativity to deliver you a dynamite package. with explosive results.