The digital revolution is offering small businesses excellent opportunities to expand and grow in the market. It is all about trying new things and forums to market your business. So, stop chasing the traditional means and start looking for the newest trends in the market. These days, companies are obsessing over lead magnets since it is a great way to increase the target audience.
Lead magnets provide businesses with exclusive data they need by offering something in return to users. It could be anything, discounts, and free planners, something that is valuable to the audience. It has to be anything for which they are willing to give their email addresses. Thus, expanding your email marketing list. So, how about you give a shot to lead magnets? Here are ten lead magnet ideas to expand your small business.
1. Trial Software
If you are into online applications and software, this is one of the most effective strategies to grow. Companies use lead magnets to give free access to tools and software to the users once you sign up. So, something that was costing your $20 or $40 is being given for free in return for your email address. You can alter the duration of the free trial, making it as short as for three days or as long as for 30 days.
Well, this is how anti-virus software works. It gives free trials for a couple of months, after which you have to pay to use the services. Even Netflix is doing the same thing. A free trial is a way to tell people how fantastic your service is, convincing them to continue benefiting from it.
2. Offer Exclusive eBooks
Believe it or not, but eBooks itself are a great marketing tool. Hence, don’t mind offering these through lead magnets. Alongside getting contact information from users, you are delivering your brand message too. However, people would only be willing to exchange information if your eBook offers value. Therefore, you not only have to pick a trending topic, but also focus on the eBook design. After all, those boring templates no longer appeal to the users.
Besides, the topic should be pertinent to the nature of your business. For instance, if you own a pet shop, then write about ‘5 things you should try with your pet’ or ‘ways to train your pet.’ Similarly, if you are selling sports apparel, then come up with ‘yoga techniques to release stress.’ At the same time, focus on making it interactive to keep the users hooked.
3. Free Templates
These days, people are too busy to spend time creating templates, especially when free ones are available out there. Hence, consider making different templates to cater to a variety of audiences. You can come up with templates of planners, appealing enough for people to give their email addresses in return. If you are offering any online courses, then make study planners for students. After all, they won’t mind dropping their emails to keep their schedule on track.
Well, a free resume and cover letter templates can boost your email list in a minute. People are searching all over the internet to find exclusive templates to set their resumes apart. So, why not surprise them with some fantastic templates? Besides, these are super simple to create and don’t require much time.
4. Free Shipping
Don’t you find shipping costs super annoying? People are already struggling to make the entire purchase, while shipping charges are another expense to their long list. Therefore, offer free shipping through your lead magnet. There would be hardly anyone unwilling to drop their email address in return for free shipping. Make sure to keep it a limited time offer, so people don’t take forever to decide.
At the same time, it also encourages people to purchase since there are no extra costs associated, helping them seal the deal. You can ask them to drop their email addresses to receive a free shipping code. It won’t only build your email list, but generate higher sales, leaving you with sufficient profits for expansion.
5. Fun Quizzes
Sometimes, you have to think out of the box and come up with entertaining stuff. These days people are enjoying quizzes since it helps them learn about themselves in a fun way. You can pop up a quiz without any requirements so users can get started smoothly. Once they complete the quiz, you have to ask for their email address in return for the quiz results.
There are no chances of clicking the back button without seeing the results. Hence, helping you reach out to more customers. Many brands have already come up with these quizzes. Tour guides are making quizzes like ‘what kind of traveler you are’ while food chains are bringing things like ‘food that suits your personality.’ Thus, these are not only entertaining but also have higher chances of leads turning into conversions.
6. Ultimate Guides
In today’s world, competition is increasing rapidly. You would see every other brand offering something or the other, making it challenging to generate unique content. So, how about you make something out of the existing content? These are known as resource guides. They give summaries about diversified topics, improving understandability amongst the audience.
Usually, when doing projects or research, people don’t have time to read the entire document. Here is when these guides come to their rescue, saving much time. You can offer it with your lead magnet, and people won’t mind dropping their email address for something they need. Remember, you can’t copy-paste content to land yourself into trouble, instead give references by creating backlinks.
7. Checklists
Have you come across blog posts offering step by step advice? Articles like ‘steps to clean your house’ are more towards instructing the audience and teaching them how to clean their house. These are the kind of blog posts waiting to turn into checklists. After all, it is super convenient for people to cross out the things they have done and seen things that are pending.
Honestly, it is super simple to create. You just need to sum up the heading and create boxes before the points. Don’t forget to enable the printing option since people like ‘ticking’ the boxes physically, giving them a sense of accomplishment. Thus, people won’t mind giving their emails or other contact information in return, increasing the customer’s reach while taking a step towards expansion.
8. Scrumptious Recipes & Health Tips
Everyone loves food, and there is no better way than getting emails in return for some mouthwatering recipes. However, this option is not limited to food chains; any business can implement this idea and see what wonders it can do. If you are running a brand for sports attire, then give out diet recipes and diet plans through lead magnets.
Similarly, it is not necessary to restrict yourself to recipes; you can also give away some nutritional tips. These days, people are struggling to avoid junk food, so you can also tell nutritional foods to satisfy junk cravings. Besides, consider creating some fun challenges – ten different smoothies, or ten desserts to try.
9. Giveaways & Discounts
Who doesn’t like winning free stuff? Giveaways are all about free goodies and discounts. Thus, you can create a similar lead magnet, giving a chance to people to participate in the giveaways. Of course, you can ask something in return for gifts; it could be email addresses, sharing your page, or inviting friends to like the page. After all, it is a great way to create brand awareness.
Honestly, people don’t mind these small requirements in return for free products or services. Besides, if you end up creating an entire list of requirements, then it would negatively impact the participation rate. Moreover, expansion is quite impossible without new customers. Hence, you can offer 10% to 20% off on first-time signups. So, whenever someone reaches out to your website, this little surprise of discount would welcome them.
10. Cheat Sheets
Sometimes, the nature of business is complex, and blog posts are incomplete without jargon and complex information. For instance, an ophthalmologist has to use relevant medical terms to explain eye treatments. Therefore, to promote understanding of the content, you can create cheat sheets of your blog posts. It is a one-page sheet, covering all relevant information.
You can break paragraphs into bullet points with relevant subheadings for better reader accessibility. It would allow them to see things they are looking for instantly. However, you don’t have to skip information, instead change the size and make it more compact.
Final Word
Unfortunately, small businesses don’t have enough resources to ante away loads of money. Hence, they are making every possible effort to grow and expand through lead magnets. It is increasing your customer reach, sales, and profits, opening doors for expansion. There are countless ideas to set your lead magnet apart from competitors. But the goal is always to offer value to the customers. So, think about valuable things your brand can offer to the audiences. Or you can look above to see ten lead magnet ideas to expand your small business.