How to create a lead magnet

In partnership with

In partnership with

Ama, one of our cohort members, has been producing very high-value content. She also started a Substack newsletter 2 weeks ago and sent out an issue which compiled all her value posts.

I suggested her to convert it into a lead magnet, and this is what happened:

I tried to explain and it only got worse 😂 

Since most of you people reading this newsletter are probably not marketers, I figured I should do a deep-dive into what exactly is a lead magnet and why you should make one if you want to bolster your Linkedin presence.

In today’s issue

• What’s a lead magnet

• Why you should make one

• Tools you can use to make the task easy

Let’s dive in.

What’s a lead magnet

I get it – "lead magnet" sounds like some fancy marketing jargon. But don't worry, it's actually pretty simple.

Think of it like this: You know that feeling when you walk past a store offering free samples? You're curious, so you try it out. If you like it, you might stick around and check out more of what they have to offer.

A lead magnet works the same way – it's your "free sample" that gets people interested in what you have to offer.

For example, let's say you're a UX copywriter like Ama. Your lead magnet could be a PDF guide called "5 UX Copy Tricks That Doubled Our Conversion Rates." People interested in UX writing would love to get their hands on that, right?

Example

To help you better understand the power of lead magnets, consider LiGo’s landing page. 

If you scroll down, you’ll see this:

The placement is strategic. When contrasted with trying out the product, signing up for a 5-day email course seems to be a low-effort alternative — much higher conversion!

Even if you don’t try out the product or become a user, getting the email course is still a sweet deal. It’s free value. And on our side, it’s an excellent way to stay top of mind and build trust.

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Why should you bother with a lead magnet on LinkedIn?

1. Helps you stand out from the crowd: Let's face it, LinkedIn is getting crowded. A lead magnet helps you offer something unique and valuable that sets you apart.

2. Showcase your expertise: It's one thing to say you're an expert. It's another to prove it with a high-quality resource that demonstrates your knowledge.

3. Build your email list: LinkedIn is great, but you don't own it. If the Linkedin overlords ever decide to ban you, it’s over. Building an email list gives you a direct line to your audience that you control.

4. Nurture relationships: Once someone downloads your lead magnet, you have a perfect excuse to follow up and start a conversation.

5. Passive lead generation: Once set up, your lead magnet works 24/7 to attract potential clients or collaborators.

Sounds good, right? But I can already hear you asking: "Okay, but how do I actually create one of these magical lead magnets?"

How to create a lead magnet

Let's break it down into three easy steps:

Step 1: Create Your Lead Magnet

First things first – you need to create the valuable content you're going to offer. This could be:

• A PDF guide or ebook

• A cheat sheet or checklist

• A video tutorial

• A mini-course

• A template or swipe file

Choose something that showcases your expertise and provides real value to your target audience. Remember, quality matters! This is often people's first impression of your work, so make it count.

Protip: Use Claude. Give it all the content you have and ask it to generate a lead magnet. Describe the format (excel sheet, pdf, script for a video etc.). Never do things manually. That’s the rule of the Efficient Entrepreneur — this newsletter is brought to you by Claude Abusers @ Ertiqah

Once you've created your lead magnet, you need to host it somewhere. Here are a few options:

• Google Drive: Simple and free. Just upload your file and set the sharing settings to "Anyone with the link can view."

• Notion: Great for more interactive content. You can create a public page with your lead magnet.

• Your own website: If you have one, this is a great place to host your lead magnet.

Some subscribers to this newsletter came through our lead magnets which you can find here on our newsletter’s landing page:

Step 2: Create a Landing Page

Now you need a place to promote your lead magnet and collect emails. You've got a few options here:

• Beehiiv: They offer landing pages specifically designed for lead magnets. Plus, it integrates seamlessly with email marketing.

• HubSpot: Their free marketing tools include landing page creation and form builders.

• Carrd: A super simple (and cheap) way to create a one-page website.

Your landing page should include:

• A catchy headline

• A brief description of what people will get

• An email signup form

• Any other relevant details (like a short bio about you)

Here’s an example of the landing page of our highest performing lead magnet:

Step 3: Set Up Email Automation

The final step is making sure people actually get your lead magnet when they sign up. You want this to happen automatically – trust me, you don't want to be sending these out manually at 3 AM when someone across the world signs up!

If you're using Beehiiv you can set up an automation that sends an email with a link to your lead magnet as soon as someone signs up on your landing page.

_{Side Note: You can use our Beehiiv referral link to get 50% off for 3 months. Good way to just get started.}

With HubSpot, you can connect their Forms tool to set up an automated email reply containing the link to your lead magnet. Here’s a handy guide.

Another option is to use a tool like Zapier to connect your landing page to your email service provider (like MailChimp or ConvertKit) and automate the whole process.

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Bringing It All Together

Let's recap the process:

1. Create your awesome lead magnet

2. Host it somewhere accessible

3. Build a landing page to promote it

4. Set up email automation to deliver it

Once you've got all this set up, it's time to promote your lead magnet on LinkedIn!

Add it to your profile, mention it in your posts, maybe even write an article about the topic of your lead magnet and include a call-to-action at the end.

Remember, this might seem like a lot of work upfront (it'll probably take you a couple of hours to set everything up), but once it's done, you've got a powerful tool working for you 24/7.

People who download your lead magnet are raising their hand and saying, "Hey, I'm interested in what you do!" – and that's pure gold for your personal brand.

If you got any tooling related question, head on over to our Discord server. I’ll help you out personally.

Have a great day,
Mo Rassam