“Lead magnet” is a functional term for opt-in gift. Opt-in gift says what it is, but lead magnet says what it does.
Simple explanation: When they opt in to your email list, they get a gift.
Lead magnet breakdown in 2 steps:
- Post blog content designed to attract people who would already want what you have.
- Offer them a gift in exchange for their email address.
The idea is not that it’s any old gift. It’s an informational gift that tackles a problem that they’ve been burning to solve and have turned to the internet for answers.
The more difficult and perplexing the problem, and the stronger your presentation for solving it, the more likely that they will go for the gift.
Once they’re on your list you can start communicating with them. That begins with offering more useful tips.
When you send the tips, try to picture that person sitting with you in your office, legs crossed, leaning toward you, telling you their troubles in earnest and hoping that you’ll be able to help them as the expert that you are.
Lead Magnet Examples
Let’s think of some perplexing problems in a few different niches that you could probably quickly and easily develop an opt-in gift around just based on what you know as an expert.
Dog Trainer Opt-In Gift
- Website: Dog Training and Dog Care Expert
- Problem: “My dog won’t stop jumping on people”
- Solution: dog training book, videos and in-person dog coaching available
- Opt-In Gift: 5 Simple Reasons Your Dog Jumps on People and What to Do Next
Yoga Instructor Opt-in Gift
- Website: Yoga Wellness
- Problem or Question: Will yoga help me lose weight?
- Solution: Bigger course teaches how to make yoga a part of your daily quest for weight loss and better health (sent as an autoresponder series by email, or PDF ebook download)
- Opt-In Gift: 5 Yoga Poses to Master as You Embark Your Weight Loss and Healthy Lifestyle Journey
Couples Therapist Opt-in Gift
- Website: Therapy Center
- Problem: “Husband is always on his phone”
- Solution: Couples therapy or an ebook: Less Phone Time, More Face Time with Your Partner
- Opt-In Gift: Your Husband Won’t Stop Using His Phone and It’s Killing Your Marriage: What to Do Now
Professional Chef or Culinary Expert
- Website: Cooking Website
- Problem: “I love to eat but hate to cook”
- Solution: Ebook or Emailed Course: Daily Dinner Hacks for People Who Love to Eat but Hate to Cook
- Opt-In Gift: 5 Money-Saving, Time-Saving Dinner Hacks to Get a Homemade Dinner on the Table Every Night
Create an Opt-In Gift to Build Your List: Just 2 Low-Cost Tools and Some Simple Instructions to Get You Started
- Aweber to manage your list (or another list manager like MailChimp if you already use that)
- Canva to create professional graphics, branding, ebooks and other digital products
I’ve Created a 6-Day Emailed Course on How to Create an Opt-in Gift to Grow Your List
Once you take this course, you’ll know:
- Basics of how to work in Canva
- How to start list-building IMMEDIATELY using Aweber
- How to attract people who ALREADY want what you offer on your website
- How to create a lead magnet or opt-in gift to get you new signups
- How to get people on your list now, so you can offer them products they WANT and NEED, later
This emailed course will set you up for list-building! Over time, you’ll be able to launch digital products that help people, by sharing what you know.