Lead generation, which is the process of turning prospects into leads, is critical to the success of any B2B SaaS business. After all, without leads, you won't have any customers.
61% of marketers today rank lead generation as their number one challenge. With competition more fierce than ever, it's getting harder and harder to get your foot in the door with potential customers.
But that doesn't mean it's impossible.
Lead magnets are one of the most - if not the most - effective ways to generate leads for your B2B SaaS business. In this post, I'll show you how to create powerful lead magnets that will help you get more leads with examples from some of the best in the business.
What is a Lead Magnet?
A lead magnet, also known as a gated offer, is a content upgrade you offer website visitors for their contact information. The purpose of a lead magnet is to entice your website visitors to sign up for your email list so you can market to them and eventually convert them into paying customers.
Lead magnets come in all shapes and sizes. Ebooks, white papers, checklists, templates, courses, and webinars are all common lead magnet types.
What separates a good lead magnet from a bad one is its value. A good lead magnet is something your target market finds valuable and willing to exchange their contact information for.
How to Create a Lead Magnet
While creating an effective lead may seem daunting, it's actually not that complicated. Here's what you need to do:
Research your buyer persona
Who is your target market? What are their pain points? What type of content would they find valuable?
Answering these questions is critical to creating an effective lead magnet. After all, you can't create a lead magnet that your target market doesn't want.
HubSpot, for example, offers a free guide, "Digital Marketing For Small Business," that clearly targets small business owners who want to learn more about digital marketing. As a leader in digital marketing software, it's the perfect lead magnet for HubSpot to attract qualified leads.
Narrow down your focus
While it's tempting to offer all the information you have on a topic, it's essential to narrow your focus when creating a lead magnet.
A lead magnet is a splinter of your core offer and should give enough information for the freebie to be valuable but leave enough out to intrigue your target audience to buy your main offer.
DigitalMarketer's "Become a Better Copywriter in 10 Minutes" offers a specific, actionable tip that copywriters can use to improve their skills.
It's a great lead magnet for DigitalMarketer because while it does provide value, it's a starting point for their paid certification in Direct-Response Copywriting. This certification goes much deeper into the art and science of copywriting and is a great upsell for those who devour the freebie.
Ask for the right information
When creating a lead magnet, decide what information you need from your website visitors to market to them effectively. Only ask for information that you absolutely need. The more information you ask for, the less likely someone is to sign up for your lead magnet.
At a minimum, you should ask for an email address and first name. You can include additional fields like job title or company size, but only if you need that information to market to your target audience effectively.
Promote your lead magnet
There's no use creating a lead magnet if no one knows it exists. Instead, promote your lead magnet on your website and social media channels. You can also promote it through paid advertising.
Pop-ups and landing pages are also effective ways to promote your lead magnet. You can use a tool like Unbounce to simplify the process and create high-converting collateral. Make sure your lead magnet is visible and easy to find on your website. Also, include a clear CTA that tells your website visitors what they need to do to get the freebie.
Test and analyze your results
Lead magnets aim to drive conversions and ask for a time commitment in exchange for contact information.
It's important to track your lead magnet's performance by looking at your conversion rate. A low conversion rate could mean that your lead magnet isn't valuable enough or that you're not promoting it effectively. Create multiple lead magnets and test different offers to determine which generate the most leads.
You should also track how your lead magnet performs over time. Once you've generated a significant number of leads, analyze how many of those leads turn into customers. A high conversion rate from lead to customer means your lead magnet is compelling and attracts the right kind of leads.
Copywriting Tips for Your Lead Magnet
The success of your lead magnet depends on how well it's written. Your lead magnet should be clear, concise, and persuasive. Here are a few copywriting tips to keep in mind:
- Focus on the benefits: Explain how your lead magnet will help your target audience. Highlighting how your offer will solve a problem or make their life easier is more likely to get someone to sign up.
- Use active voice: Write in active voice to make your lead magnet more persuasive. For example, "You'll get access to our exclusive course" is more active than "Our exclusive course will be accessible to you."
- Create strong headlines: Write headlines that clearly state the benefit of your lead magnet. A tool like CoSchedule can help you write effective and clickable headlines.
- Use images: People are more likely to sign up for a lead magnet if it includes an image. Adding an image also makes your lead magnet more visually appealing.
- Format for skimming: Most people won't read your lead magnet word for word. Format your lead magnet, so it's easy to scan and extract the most important information.
- Edit ruthlessly: Use tools like ProWritingAid and Grammarly to edit your lead magnet for grammar and spelling mistakes. Editing your lead magnet will make it more polished and professional.
Start Utilizing Lead Magnets
Lead magnets are a great way to generate leads for your B2B SaaS business. You can quickly grow your email list and get more leads by offering something of value in exchange for contact information. As long as you focus on creating high-quality and relevant lead magnets, you'll be able to generate leads that convert into customers.
Case studies make for great lead magnets because they show potential customers that your product is effective. If you need help creating an effective case study, let's chat. I help businesses like yours create case studies that show results and drive conversions.
