Why Have a Lead Magnet

In this video we discuss the common question of "what exactly is a lead magnet, and do I need one?"

Your marketing is meant to ultimately result in leads, and by creating the right type of lead magnet you can attract new prospects AND convert them to qualified leads or customers!

Pro Tip

 A lead magnet is used to create the very first micro-commitment between you and your prospects. The first time they say yes to what you have to offer.

(Read the Full Transcript Here)

So what is a lead magnet? And why do you even need one? It's one of the top questions that we get asked from business owners every single week. So today, I just wanna look at the importance of a lead magnet, what it does for your business, and some good examples towards the end of the video, as well as kind of, what you're already offering, and if it's gonna be effective or not.

Hi, I'm Melissa with RodgerandMelissa.com, and we've helped many entrepreneurs, passionpreneurs, authors, thought leaders, and experts understand and be able to create high-converting lead magnets. So now, let's jump right in.

So what is a lead magnet?  We've heard it called a gateway drug, we've heard it called a dip of the toe in the water offer, we've even heard it called an appetizer. I don't know. But simply put, a lead magnet does exactly what the words describe. It helps to attract prospects, or leads, to you and your business. 

That can look really different for unique business opportunities and just different structured industries, but typically, a lead magnet is used to create the very first micro-commitment between you and your prospects. The first time they say yes to what you have to offer.

So, you make an offer, called your lead magnet, and your prospect says, "Yeah, I'd like to know more." But look, there is no one-size-fits-all, but there are a few universal principles that we're gonna take into consideration.

So, number one, a lead magnet needs to deliver solid value in the eyes of the prospect, not you, but them.

Number two, it should give them some sort of quick result.

And number three, it should be easy to access and do.

Said another way, the most effective and high-converting lead magnets should be high in reward and low in risk. So the first thing that you want to do is you want to provide something that has a high reward for the client, meaning instant value, quick results.

Second, be sure it can lead to a high reward for you. In other words, ultimately, they show interest in taking that next step with you, joining your program, or your group, or your one-on-one coaching, whatever it is, it gets to conversion.

And then number three, it should have low risk for them. In other words, they just have to provide an e-mail, or a phone number, possibly not even that.

And then it also, number four, should have a low risk for you. You create it once, without weeks of effort and tons of money, just a simple, value-packed lead magnet that can be used over and over again.

So let's look at some practical details of what types of lead magnets work well, not so well, and why. So a really popular one, but not very effective, but you hear it all the time, is, a free strategy session, or a discovery call, a triage call, quick conversation with you, sounds like a great idea in the eyes of the business owner, primarily because you know, if you can get their ear for 10 or 15 minutes, you can show them the huge amount of value that you can provide to them, and you just know that they're gonna wanna use your products and your services. That's great. But in the eyes of the prospect, it, rightly or wrongly, might just sound a little bit like, "Sales pitch!" Not very sexy to them.

So the clients see this as a really high-risk proposition for the first step, or the first touch with you. They feel like they have to come prepared to say no to what you're gonna offer. They'll probably be on the defensive right from the start, and they may not even request it at all. So that's not great for you, it's not great for them, and most likely, it won't produce very good results.​

So another popular idea that we see a lot is a monthly newsletter. And, let's be honest, it's low risk for the prospect, because they don't have to read it, and they can unsubscribe at any time, and it also means that what you're delivering, what you intended, that value, isn't getting delivered to them, they're not reading it. Ultimately resulting in low results for you too.

And then of course there's the free course, or the free e-book, and these are high risk for you, due to the cost of production, your time, your money, and to receive the intended value, they have to watch it, or they have to read it to completion, and do the work. Which on average, might happen about 10% of the time. So again, not good for your future conversion.

So here are some high-reward, low-risk options. A cheat sheet. An evaluation. Ten to 15 top tips for X, Y, and Z. Or your five best practices to get X results. Or maybe, like a guide for solving a certain problem you know they're facing, that they can get quick results from. Things like these allow them to immediately see your value, and if you do it right, they'll see the need to have a continued relationship with you.

A good lead magnet is when the rewards outweigh the risk of engagement. And last but not least, a lead magnet will do nothing if you don't have a conversion strategy to support it. Like anything business, an isolated tool can be awesome, but it is useless without a system around it. So once a prospect has your lead magnet, and they might be led to the next step, you gotta follow up on that. Because I don't care how amazing your lead magnet is, if you don't provide good follow-up, and a low-friction customer journey, you will not have the conversion that you desire.

So as you create and develop your lead magnet, be sure that you design the entire system and strategy around it. The best way to do this is to begin with the end in mind. How do you want them to engage with you? What is the goal? What is that next step? Then reverse engineer all the way back to that good first step, that first impression, that first value that you wanna provide them. That is your lead magnet.

So if you think about the game of chess, the masters are thinking two, three, ten steps ahead of their opponent. They know what they want, they know how they want the game to end, which of course is winning, victory. So they plan, and they strategize before they even make the first move.

What is your current lead magnet? Send us a link in the comments below, and we'll take a look. We'd also love to see how it fits into your overall conversion and monetization strategy.

Now, stay tuned, because over the next few weeks, we're going to continue to look at what it takes to produce a signature system, which allows you to scale your business more effectively, efficiently, faster, which of course oftentimes starts with a lead magnet. So be sure to subscribe and follow along as we lay it all out for you over the next few weeks.

Also, follow us on Facebook through the link, and stay up-to-date with everything that's going on online, as well as in the Charlotte area. So, here's to you, and here's to your business.

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