Over the years, I have experimented with countless different lead magnets, many of which did not generate the results we wanted. In the process, I have also learned how dynamic the market is. A lead magnet that may be effective 3 years ago, can be considered low value today. eBooks, for example, which were a fantastic lead magnet in the past, are now often seen as a lower-value asset because they require a lot of time to consume.
A point I’d like to make is that we simply need to constantly revisit our lead magnets and make sure they are still effective – meaning that they drive healthy conversion rates (2% or more, generally speaking). Basically, the testing should be an endless exercise.
In this article, I would like to share five lead magnet ideas that have worked for me. Perhaps you can try them. In the recent past, these magnets have contributed to driving the majority of leads for me and my team (80-20 rule!) – and good quality leads at that! I am quite convinced that any B2B company can profit from them.
(The full list of effective lead magnets that I have experimented with can be found in my book.)
What is a lead magnet, anyway?
Simply put, a lead magnet is a high-value asset that pulls in potential leads. It typically takes the form of a free valuable downloadable resource offered to the market in exchange for essential customer information, most commonly an email address. No matter what anyone says, pulling in leads is essential for a business. It helps you build your email list and remarketing list to nurture and eventually convert to customers.
The true effectiveness of a lead magnet lies in its relevance to your audience. I would like to divide this into 4 perceived benefits or rewards that lead magnets could provide.
I learned that an effective lead magnet MUST provide at least one of these benefits:
- Relevant information that the market cannot get elsewhere
- Some sort of personalized information, tailored to the user
- Some form of time or energy savings
- Professional help or advancement
Because relevance and value are in the eye of the beholder, I always made sure that the magnet addresses the specific interests, pain points, and needs of the target audience.
Additionally, before investing time and effort in developing a magnet that I think would work, I would either run the idea with a customer directly or run it by a sales or presales person. The sales and presales team are mostly attuned to customers and are able to see if this would be of interest to them. If they are excited and enthusiastic about the idea – that is a fantastic sign.
Now, let us look into the five lead magnets that are my current favorites, not just because of how powerful they are but because they are often under-utilized.
Lead Magnet #1: Free Courses
The Benefit this Magnet Provides: Professional Help/Advancement
Learning appeals to the market in a way that few other things do. There’s an inherent sense of “productive use of time” with learning.
A course should capture a slice of what your product can offer. I like this magnet because of the unrivaled high-value leads it can attract. A course shows greater intent because of the investment in time it requires. More likely than not, the leads are interested in you and the problems you are solving.
Additionally, a course positions your brand as an expert and educator and you win the authority in the given field.
A great example of capitalizing on free courses comes from HubSpot through its HubSpot Academy and similarly, LinkedIn with its LinkedIn Academy.
Existing webinars or seminars and even eBooks can be transformed into free courses, and a concise 30-minute online course can be an excellent entry point to test this lead magnet out. Add certificates or badges of completion, and even a quiz at the end of the course. Where it makes sense, you can add the cost value of such a course that you are giving out for free.
Lead Magnet #2: (editable) Checklists and Templates
The Benefit: Time and Energy Savings
The downside of eBooks as highlighted earlier is the time someone needs to invest to consume them. That is why templates and checklists are very effective because it condenses all the information in long-form content into a simple, easily digested format. People know that checklists and templates boost motivation and task completion.
Lead Magnet #3: Your Own “Mini” Industry Report
Benefit: Relevant Information that the market cannot get elsewhere
Nothing packs a punch quite like cold, hard data or data-driven evidence. Research reports, brimming with compelling statistics and insights, are a powerful tool to benchmark your customers’ standing against the competition. The popularity of these reports stems from their ability to provide a comprehensive overview of a topic, backed by data-driven evidence.
I built an industry study by running a survey. It does not have to be a lengthy high-effort exercise or involve costly external analysts. You can start with 5 -10 questions addressing a key pain point in a specific industry, buyer persona, geography, or combination.
But why would your audience invest time in answering your survey? Promise to share the detailed report and insights based on the research findings with respondents. Buyers crave knowledge about their peers’ practices, challenges, and priorities.
The best part, you will have limitless opportunities to repurpose your survey findings into not just an industry report, but also social media graphs, blogs, or a webinar topic.
Pro Tip: From my experience, I would normally expect a 10% Survey Completion rate. This means, for me to get 50 survey respondents, I would need to build a list of 500. I got the most responses after the 3rd email and with the follow-up help from SDRs and Sales teams.
Lead Magnet #4: Personalized Online Assessments, Quizzes or Calculators
Benefit: Personalized Information
This lead magnet is fantastic if your potential customers value a diagnosis or calculations.
I would recommend keeping it simple. I once ran an extensive assessment with 12 open-ended questions to measure where a company stands compared to its industry peers in their digital transformation maturity. Despite sending it to thousands of leads, only a handful completed the forms. It was really not worth the effort at all.
Meanwhile, simple calculations/assessment or quizzes nearly always generates great results.
Examples of assessments, quizzes, or calculators would be:
- What is holding you back to become the greatest XXX in Industry X?
- How much can potentially you save by using us?
- Are you a leader in (field)?
- Are you a leader in your space in (geography)?
Tip: Identify your target audience’s biggest pain point, and craft a thought-provoking quiz around it.
Lead Magnet #5: Repository of Webinars
Benefit: Relevant Information that the market cannot get elsewhere
Establishing a repository of on-demand webinars on your website presents a compelling lead magnet strategy that not only engages your audience but also amplifies your brand’s credibility. We know that running webinars is a high effort, but they can be a lead magnet that lasts for years. A collection of past free webinars, categorized by topics for easy navigation, establishes a hub of knowledge that potential customers can explore at their convenience.
What do you think of these lead magnets? Have you had awesome lead magnets that really worked for you? Do share in the comments!