A lead magnet is a free piece of content that you give to your website visitors, social media followers, and online audience that brings value and helps them solve a problem.
Depending on the nature of your business and the preferences of your target demographic, you can create many types of lead magnets. However, the key is to keep creating and offering various lead magnets to your audiences across platforms to generate leads consistently and establish communication.
You can then use that momentum to solve specific problems for your customers and inspire them to purchase a product or subscribe to a service. Offering value upfront is a great way to gain their trust and incentivize them to buy, but you need to know how to craft lead magnets that have the power to convert.
Let’s talk about lead magnets and valuable downloads, and what you can do to take your lead generation to the next level this year.
Create eBooks and Educational Content
Good lead magnets can deliver value in bite-sized formats such as short educational videos or carousels (more on those in a bit), or they can deliver a lot of value in long form.
Over the last two decades, long-form content has dominated the inbound marketing world. From in-depth articles to eBooks and educational content in general, you have an opportunity here to give your audience professional insight, valuable data, and guidance on important topics and issues.
The possibilities for quality content are endless, and encompassing value in a stylized, long-form PDF is one of the best ways to do it. You can create an eBook or any other type of value-driven PDF that people can download directly from your website.
You can then use PDF editors to quickly edit your content when you want to add new information. This is also a great opportunity to add footnotes and input from industry professionals and notable figures in your field over time.
With all that in mind, however, always remember that long-form lead magnets still need to have a purpose and solve specific problems.
Capitalize on Useful Videos
Video content has been booming in recent years on all platforms, and there’s no denying that it is the most engaging type of content in the world.
What’s great about publishing video content on a regular basis is that it allows you to get very granular with the topics and problems you tackle and create entire series your audiences can follow. Best of all, you can create video content in the form of lead magnets.
Lead magnet videos work best as branded videos and should talk about very specific topics related to your products and services. This is a great opportunity to create product videos that highlight their benefits and use cases and educate customers on industry-specific topics while showing your products in use.
For example, selling culinary equipment is an opportunity to share amazing recipes along with instructions on how best to use products to ensure their longevity and durability. The key is to find a way to promote your products, whatever they may be, through education and professional advice.
Deliver More Value with Mini-Courses
If you’ve ever considered creating a course, now is the time to do so. Courses excel at capturing leads and inspiring people to take action. They’re also great at building brand authority and reputation through a professional lens.
However, courses don’t need to be long or tedious, especially nowadays when people have shorter attention spans and like to consume educational material quickly. This is why you should create a mini-course instead, which is a short and highly specialized course that addresses a specific area or problem that your potential customers might have.
This is a great way to get newcomers interested in your brand and what you have to say because you’re not forcing them to make a long-term commitment. A mini-course delivers value in short bursts, and students can complete it quickly, unlike long-form courses that can deter people who are not familiar with your brand.
Use this content type to quickly establish a relationship with new potential customers. After this, they’ll be more likely to sign up for more.
Use a Marketplace for Generating Leads
When it comes to local businesses that serve specific communities and operate nationally in general, a great way to generate leads is through online marketplaces. Lead generation marketplaces are a great way to distribute your lead magnets and generate interested calls directly, which you can then turn into paying customers or nurture further toward conversion.
In this case, you can supply your lead generation team with the lead magnets, which they can then use for distribution through social media ads, SEO content, mobile apps, etc. Even direct mail is a viable option if you have lead magnets that you can print out and send directly to potential customers.
Use Carousels for Quick Picks and Inspiration
Last but not least, consider the carousel format as a way to bridge the gap between visual and written content while creating a more engaging and interactive content format. Take LinkedIn carousels as an example. They are great tools for advertising purposes, but people can also download and save them for later.
A carousel will have several pictures they can scroll through that are tied by a unique goal and narrative, telling a short but compelling story or highlighting the important features of a brand, product, or service. You can use this format to give people short yet valuable insights into your company and your offering, along with an easy way to get in touch with you and sign up.
However, before they download your carousels, be sure to get their email address.
Use Carousels for Quick Picks and Inspiration
Last but not least, consider the carousel format as a way to bridge the gap between visual and written content while creating a more engaging and interactive content format. Take LinkedIn carousels as an example. They are great tools for advertising purposes, but people can also download and save them for later.
A carousel will have several pictures they can scroll through that are tied by a unique goal and narrative, telling a short but compelling story or highlighting the important features of a brand, product, or service. You can use this format to give people short yet valuable insights into your company and your offering, along with an easy way to get in touch with you and sign up.
However, before they download your carousels, be sure to get their email address.
Over to You
A good lead magnet can go a long way in establishing a trusting relationship between a brand and a follower or a website visitor. Simply by offering something of true value to your potential customers upfront, without asking anything in return but their email address, you’re opening up a world of possibilities for your business.
Whether it’s an eBook, a product tutorial, an educational video, or an infographic, all lead magnets can instill trust and inspire people to act. Even if your lead magnets don’t encourage action, they will still capture a person’s contact information, allowing you to reach out with personalized messaging and offers.
