In a perfect world, everyone who stumbles across your content would immediately say, “HECK YES! This is what I need!” and throw their credit card at you.
Buuuut… that’s not usually how it goes, and that’s okay. Because that’s exactly where your lead magnet comes in.
Most of the time, people need a little more time to feel ready to invest in your offer. Maybe they follow your Instagram, like a few of your posts, and start watching your Stories.
They’re probably well on their way to warming up to you…they’re just not *quite* there yet.
Having a strong lead magnet is the best way for you to “capture” those leads and further nurture them until they’re ready to buy.
But there’s a big difference between a lead magnet that sits there gathering dust and one that has people racing to hand over their email and download.
That difference comes down to a few key things.
In this post, I talk about what a lead magnet even is, how to create one people want, and the mistakes that might be sabotaging yours.
So, without further ado, let’s break it all down.
What is a Lead Magnet?
A lead magnet (aka freebie or opt-in – they go by tons of different names) is a little something you give away to your audience for FREE to keep them interested and coming back for more. In exchange, you get them on your email list so you can nudge them even closer to falling madly in love with you until they’re ready to buy. 😍
Here’s what happens…
Someone finds you on social media or stumbles across your website. Then, they scroll through your content and decide they like what they see. They just aren’t ready to buy quite yet.
I mean, c’mon. You just met. Let’s not go too fast now. 😳
So, instead of asking for a HUGE commitment right out of the door, you offer them something smaller. You say, “Hey I know you might not be ready to work with me, but can I offer you this little hors d’oeuvre instead?”
That hors d’oeuvres is a free gift that gets them one step closer to what they actually want.
Plus, the more people who opt in to your lead magnet, the more you grow your email list which is SOOOO important because it’s the only list of leads that YOU actually own.
Do Lead Magnets Still Work?
Short answer: 1000% YES!!
You might have heard down the grapevine somewhere that lead magnets are dead. To that I say, the only people saying that are the ones who aren’t doing them right (which, of course, ISN’T you because you’re here reading this blog! 👋 ).
When lead magnets are done properly, they work INCREDIBLY well. In fact, my clients and I get hundreds of opt-ins every week because of these lead magnet strategies.
A big reason lead magnets are so valuable is because even if your followers aren’t ready to buy your high-ticket offer just yet, you still get them on your email list – so when they are ready, you’re the first person they think of.
Now, you can market to them in TWO places. They continue to see your content on Instagram, and you show up in their inbox too.
This creates an ecosystem of marketing.
More touchpoints inside the ecosystem mean more ways to keep you top of mind. You have more chances to connect with your leads, earn their trust, and keep them in your world until they take the next step to join you in your offer.
Examples of Lead Magnets
Okay, so now you know WHAT a lead magnet is and WHY it works. But what does one actually look like?
Well, good news! There’s no one “right” format.
A lead magnet can be anything from a PDF to a checklist to a quiz that you give away to your audience for free.
Here are some of the most popular examples of lead magnets your ideal client would stop scrolling for:
- Checklists or cheat sheets – a quick-reference tool that simplifies a task your audience is already trying to figure out.
- Templates – something they can plug their own info into and use right away.
- Mini trainings or video tutorials – a short lesson that teaches one specific thing that your audience wants.
- Quizzes – a fun, interactive way to help them self-identify a problem (or get a personalized recommendation).
- Guides or PDFs – your expertise, packaged into something short and easy to digest.
- Free resource libraries or toolkits – a curated collection of your favourite go-to tools, scripts, or resources.
This list is just a starting point. Your lead magnet can be anything as long as it’s something that appeals to your audience’s wants (more on that in a sec).
How to Create a Lead Magnet
If you ask any business coach how to create a lead magnet, they’ll probably tell you:
Create something so good that people would be willing to pay for it.
Not something that gives away your whole offer for free, of course. Just something so genuinely useful and valuable that it could have a $30 or $100 price tag on it if you wanted it to.
But there’s a catch. Just because you’re creating something of value doesn’t mean it has to be complicated.
Your goal when creating your lead magnet is to give LESS, more clearly.
Simplicity is KEY.
For example, I once started building a freebie about on-camera confidence, because I knew my audience struggled with it.
What started out as a simple PDF on Canva (really, the only lead magnet tool you need!), ended up being an entire dissertation, complete with confidence tips, phone and camera configurations, lighting setups, and tech requirements.
When it came time to promote it, I didn’t know how to talk about it anymore.
Was it a confidence-on-camera guide? Was it a tech setup guide? Who knows?!
So, I scrapped it completely and simplified – a lot. And when I promoted this new lead magnet, it had almost a 75% conversion rate on the opt-in page, and over 700 people opted into it. 🙌🏻
Remember, #1 rule for how to create a lead magnet: Less is more.
Common Lead Magnet Mistakes You’ll Definitely Want to Avoid
Now, whether you’re creating your very first lead magnet or you’ve already got one (or a few!) out in the world, this part is for you.
Because I don’t want you to create just any ol’ lead magnet. I want to help you create one that speaks to your audience’s needs and gets them excited for all that AHHHmazing work that you do!
So, here are some common lead magnet mistakes I see people make.
Mistake #1: Giving People What YOU Think They Need. Not What They WANT.
Remember when I mentioned that your lead magnet needs to appeal to your audience’s wants? This is why…
Your audience won’t download your lead magnet if it’s not something they’re excited about or something they need.
As the expert, it’s easy for YOU to see the big-picture problem and create a lead magnet you think is interesting or important.
But (and I’m going to hold your hand here as I say this 🫴🏻) this is one instance where what you think isn’t super important.
Think of it this way. Have you ever unwrapped a birthday gift from a friend and immediately thought, “This is something you like – not at all something that I like.”
Or maybe you pulled back the wrapper and realized, “Oh, this is something you think I need. You think this is what’s good for me, but it’s not what I want on my birthday.”
It’s a misalignment that a lot of service providers fall into with their lead magnets.
They choose a topic that they think is valuable, not what their ideal client thinks is valuable.
To create a good lead magnet that your audience will absolutely eat up, you need to make sure you’re listening to your ideal clients and the way that they talk about their problems and desires.
Use the language they are using and create something they are telling you they want.
Mistake #2: Using Your Lead Magnet to Overwhelm People into a Sale
Here’s another lead magnet mistake that I see all too often:
Sometimes, business owners will pack a TON of information into their lead magnet. The problem is, they do it not with the intention to educate, but to infodump so hard that their audience gets completely overwhelmed.
Now, instead of learning something truly valuable that their audience can apply to their business, they think, “This is all way too much work. I’ll just pay her to do it for me.”
Maybe that works for some people. But it gives me the ick. 🤮
After all, do you really want someone to feel so overwhelmed and desperate that they feel pushed into working with you?
(I hope your answer was a real quick “NO”.)
The sales strategies I teach inside Magic Marketing Machine are all about empowering someone into a purchase – not pressuring them into one.
There’s a big difference between someone choosing to work with you because they trust you versus someone hiring you because you made them feel like they couldn’t possibly do it themselves.
Your lead magnet should leave people feeling excited and capable. They should feel like they just got a quick win and can’t wait to see what else you’ve got.
THAT’S what keeps them on your list and warms them up into buyers who actually want to invest in you.
➡️ Want to know what exactly is standing between you and getting clients through Instagram? Watch this free interactive training to get a personalized answer!
Mistake #3: Secretly Selling Instead of Delivering Value
Your lead magnet’s job is to provide value, not to secretly pitch. (Sneaking a pitch in there is a quick way to get unsubscribes.)
If someone opens your lead magnet and they find one page of value and four pages of reasons why they should work with you, they’re going to feel deceived.
They didn’t sign up just to be sold to.
They traded in their email because they had a problem that needed solving, and they thought your lead magnet could help with that.
But if your lead magnet just sells to them and doesn’t uphold its end of the bargain, don’t be surprised when those unsubscribe notifications come rolling in, and nothing converts.
Mistake #4: Don’t Put All Your Hopes into ONE Lead Magnet
Back in 2020, I spent WEEKS creating my first lead magnet – and it was beautiful. I used that same lead magnet for years.
But that’s not how it works anymore.
So, how many lead magnets should you have? As many as you feel is necessary. Here’s why:
You can’t just have one lead magnet to give away on repeat for years. Different people want different things. They’ll hear you talk about one lead magnet and say no, but talk about another one and say, “YES! Now, you’re speaking my language!”
The goal is to keep surprising and delighting your audience, and a fresh lead magnet is one of the best ways to do that!
What Makes a Good Lead Magnet?
Not sure if your lead magnet is ready to release to the world? Ask yourself these three questions to self-audit your lead magnet before you start promoting it!
- Can you state the result someone gets from it in three seconds or less?
Your audience should be able to get one clear result from your lead magnet. Think elevator pitch, not full sales pitch. If you can’t name that result in seconds, that’s a sign to simplify.
- Is the format quick to consume?
Your lead magnet should be quick to consume – a 45-minute webinar is NOT it. Most people aren’t going to give you more than a couple of minutes to get to the result they’re looking for.
- Can your lead gain something from it within an hour of receiving it?
Save the six-month action plan for your paid offer. A great lead magnet creates a quick win – something that makes your new subscriber’s life a little different or a little better within an hour of downloading it. That’s the kind of first impression that keeps leads warm and on your list.
Did you answer “yes” to all three? If so, you’ve got yourself one heck of a solid lead magnet that’s ready to go to press! 🥳
Now That You Have Your Lead Magnet, Tell People About It!!
Creating your lead magnet is only half the battle. Don’t just let it rot in the link in your bio, never to be seen or heard from again.
It’s time to announce it to the world!! 📢 📢 📢
Just like you would with any offer, your lead magnet needs to be talked about over and over again (…and again and again and again).
You have followers that are coming and going every single day and every day, you have people getting closer and closer to being ready to work with you. By adding your lead magnet into your rotation of promotional posts in your Instagram strategy, it gets shown to more and more people.
Someone who scrolled past your lead magnet post last week might be in a completely different headspace today. Someone who wasn’t ready to opt in yesterday might have had some time to think and is now all in.
Here’s how I like to approach promoting a lead magnet:
When you first launch your lead magnet, go BIG. Talk about it every day that week. Hype it up in your feed, your Stories, your Reels, your captions so it gets the full launch treatment.
After that, ease off a little. Mention it here and there, share a testimonial from someone who opted-in, or give a little teaser. Keep your audience warmed to your lead magnet without going overboard.
Then, once some time has passed, hype it up again!
A solid lead magnet with a strong title that rustles up a lot of interest can be promoted for YEARS – but only if people know it exists.
Lead Magnet FAQs
Is my lead magnet only for new subscribers? Can I send it to existing subscribers too?
Yes! This is honestly one of my favourite lead magnet tricks! If you have subscribers on your email list who don’t typically open your emails or are not highly engaged, use your new lead magnet launch to wake those people up! With your new lead magnet, you can slide into their inbox with a “Hey, I have a free present for you that will give you a quick win within the hour. No strings attached.” This is such a powerful way to reinvigorate the people who already showed interest in you before but fell off the bandwagon a bit.
How do I deliver my lead magnet to subscribers?
The most common way to deliver your lead magnet is to create a landing page for it. It doesn’t have to be anything too too in-depth. Just a simple sign-up page where someone can leave their name and email so your lead magnet can get delivered straight to their inbox. You can set up landing pages directly through your email marketing platform or through something like LeadPages.
If you want to get a little fancy with it, another way to deliver your lead magnet is directly through Instagram through ManyChat.
ManyChat is an automation tool that connects directly to your Instagram account. With it, all you have to do is set up an automation around a target keyword, then create a post asking people to comment with that word. When they do, ManyChat will automatically prompt them to drop their email (so their info gets added to your email marketing platform like Kit) and then will DM them a direct link to download your lead magnet.
You get more comments (aka engagement) on your post AND a new subscriber and your followers get a valuable freebie. Everyone wins!
(And the Instagram algorithm goes crazyyy for these posts because of all the comments, which means your posts get shown to even more people, which means even MORE downloads of your freebie. It’s the best kind of snowball effect.) 🌀
To learn more about ManyChat, check out my free ManyChat guide.
Can I promote my lead magnet outside of Instagram or social media?
While Instagram is my personal favourite way to promote a lead magnet, it’s definitely not the only way! If you’re speaking at an event or guest teaching a class, bring a sign-up sheet and collect emails right there in the room. Collaborating with another business owner who shares your ideal client is another great option. Think Instagram lives, guest posts, or Stories takeovers that introduce your lead magnet to a whole new audience.
I go through all of these options in more depth in this blog. 👇🏼
READ MORE: How to Grow Your Email List: The No-Fluff Guide for Service Providers
A lead magnet doesn’t have to be complicated, teach 17 different things, or take weeks to build.
All it has to do is speak directly to what your audience wants and deliver on it with one clear promise.
Get those pieces right and you’ve got something that can work hard for you long after you’ve created it.
Ready to promote your lead magnet? Once you’ve got it designed and ready to go, the next step is to get it in front of as many people as possible. That’s where my Magic Marketing Machine program steps in to help.
Inside Magic Marketing Machine, I help service-based business owners get clients from Instagram.
Because of that, I see a lot of lead magnets.
Part of the program includes a template that I call “Sell Your Freebie” (aka your lead magnet). This template has helped my clients get hundreds of new subscribers on their email list and to their lead magnet just from one single Instagram post.
If you’re ready to put your lead magnet to work through Instagram, come join me inside Magic Marketing Machine.
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