Tips to Improve Your Lead Magnet Strategy | ProductiveandFree

At this point, you’ve probably already created a lead magnet and shared it via email, your website, or social media.

You’re most likely proud that you’ve researched your target customer and created something you know would benefit them greatly.

But after all your hard work and excitement, you might be left wondering why they did not immediately come running to sign up for your freebie.

So if you’re asking what went wrong and what else you can do to see higher conversions, you’ve come to the right place.

Here are 18 tips to improve your lead magnet strategy.

1. Make your CTA stand out

The truth is, many visitors on your site don’t read every single word you publish or stop and admire every photo you share.

In fact, most people only scan your website so it’s up to you to highlight your lead magnet and make it prominent enough to grab your visitors’ attention.

You can do this by making your call-to-action or CTA stand out.

Use buttons or graphics to link to it. Use a color that’s different from the rest of your text. Use copy that will resonate with your target audience.

+ Related post: 18 Places to Promote Your Lead Magnet

2. Lessen the steps to sign up

Don’t make your visitors jump through hoops just to join your email list.

Evaluate your current process and count how many steps it takes for them to opt in.

Will they need to click on a button to visit your landing page?

Will they need to provide a lot of information about themselves?

Will they need to join your community, share your landing page, and comment on a post all before they get your lead magnet?

Try to keep it less than 30 seconds to submit their information and up to five minutes to receive your freebie via email.

3. Use a landing page

As the website owner, it’s your job to focus the attention of your visitor.

You have to take control of what they see (and don’t see) so if you include multiple buttons, colors, photos, and fonts, they’ll easily be distracted and might even end up doing nothing.

Instead, consider using a landing page with one clear message and one suggested action.

You could use a pop-up light box or a stand-alone webpage as your landing page.

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4. Use clear and engaging copy

It’s important to use clear and engaging copy on your landing page if you want a visitor to take one specific action.

If you include vague promises, multiple messages, or an entire novel on the page, your visitor might get overwhelmed and simply x-out.

Make sure to highlight the benefits and not just the features of your lead magnet.

Try not to use generic copy for your CTA button such as “Subscribe” or “Join my mailing list.”

+ Related post: 9 Tips to Design a Lead Magnet that Converts

5. Check your landing page on different devices

This tip is often overlooked but since a big portion of website visitors nowadays use their mobile or tablet to browse the web, make sure your landing page is optimized and no images or text are cut from the screen.

6. Have your target client or customer in mind

Since your lead magnet’s purpose is to attract your target client or customer, make sure that you have them in mind when creating and designing your opt-in freebie.

Are you trying to attract coaching clients? Corporate executives? Stay-at-home moms? Freelancers? Beginner entrepreneurs?

Here are a few questions to ask:

What’s in it for them and why should they bother in the first place?
How is this relevant to them now?
How exactly will they benefit if they take action on your free checklist, masterclass, or swipe file?
What transformation stands to take place if they opt in and implement the lessons you’ve shared?

+ Related post: 10 Irresistible Lead Magnet Ideas for Coaches

7. Have your business in mind

This one might seem obvious but you’d be surprised how many people offer opt-in freebies that have no relation to their business whatsoever.

This happens when they’re more focused on the quantity instead of the quality of their subscribers.

For example, I can guarantee that if you offer free high-quality stock photos, a lot of people will sign up for your email list.

But this won’t help you much if your business has nothing to do with photos or imagery, like if you’re a nutritionist or a life coach.

Instead, think of your paid offer as the last step in your ideal customer’s journey and treat your lead magnet as the first.

+ Related post: What makes a great lead magnet?

8. Create a title

Chances are that if you create a unique and catchy title for your lead magnet, it’ll help grab your visitors’ attention.

This will make you stand out from other business owners and bloggers offering the same kind of resource and increase the likelihood that they’ll remember your opt-in freebie when someone they know asks for a recommendation.

9. Add a quick message

Almost anyone can design and deliver an opt-in freebie nowadays but what can help you stand out is a personal message.

Consider including a quick introduction or welcome message to add a personal touch to your lead magnet and connect with your subscriber.

10. Clarify the next step

Now that your subscriber has received your lead magnet and implemented the lessons you’ve shared in it, what should they do next?

Consider adding a call-to-action or CTA page at the end of your opt-in freebie with an invitation:

Should they share your lead magnet with others?
Email you about their insights?
Join your community?
Enroll in your program?
Book your services?
Buy your products?
Register for your webinar?

Encourage them to take action by actually telling them what to do next!

11. Follow up via email

Not everyone does this but it can help you stand out from your competition if you follow up with your subscriber via email.

You can ask them for feedback or inquire about their insights from implementing your lead magnet.

If they’re able to state how your opt-in freebie has helped them, this can bring the learning process full circle.

It can position you as an expert in your industry and truly cement the value you provide.

12. Brand it

Even if your opt-in freebie is a simple checklist, I still suggest treating it as an opportunity to create a streamlined customer or client experience.

Instead of simply including your URL at the bottom of the page, make sure you use images, fonts, colors, and layouts that resonate with your target audience and match your brand.

This will make you look more professional as well as increase the perceived value of your lead magnet and by extension, the value of your business.

13. Name it properly

This is another aspect of your lead magnet strategy that you can treat as a branding opportunity.

Consider the kind of impression you’re giving your subscriber if you send them a free checklist named: final-checklist.PDF or checklist_5.PDF

Why not name it better like ProductiveandFree_SEOTipsChecklist.pdf

14. Create a thank you page

Consider the entire process a website visitor goes through to sign up for your email list.

What happens after they opt in? Do you confirm receiving their email address? Do you thank them? Do you tell them what comes next?

Remember, no one wants to be left hanging especially if they went through the trouble of giving you their personal (and very sacred!) email address.

The least you could do is thank them or tell them when they can expect the freebie they just signed up for.

15. Monitor your data

Offering lead magnets is an effective marketing strategy because of how much data and insights you can get from the process.

This includes the conversion rates for your landing page, opt-in freebie format, copy, design, and so much more so it’s best to keep track of all this data to determine which strategies are working best and why.

16. Test and improve

Based on the data you acquire, you could test different variations of your landing page design, opt-in form, copy, design, etc.

You could even do A/B testing or split tests to see which option works better. You could later double down on the highest converting one.

17. Continue to drive traffic to it

No matter how valuable, informative, or life-changing your lead magnet is, it won’t make a difference if no one knows about it.

For this reason, you should continue to drive traffic to your opt-in freebie through the different channels and platforms you’re prioritizing — email, social media, blogging, advertising, etc. — long after you’ve first created or shared your opt-in freebie.

18. Ask people to share it

The goal of your lead magnet should be to help your target client or customer.

It should be so helpful that they’d be willing to share it with other people they think can benefit from it too.

If that is the case, it wouldn’t hurt to ask them to share it with their friends or colleagues.

Remember, if you aren’t able to provide much value for FREE through your lead magnet, then you’d be hard pressed to convince people to be interested in your PAID products or services.

Over to You

Offering a lead magnet is one of the best ways to market your business. It could help you attract your target customers, offer incredible value to them, and encourage them to join your email list. But if you find that your process isn’t converting as well as you’d hope, consider these 18 tips to improve your lead magnet strategy.