Did you know that the average time spent on Instagram is 28 minutes. During that time, your Lead Magnet can be the difference between a successful lead & a lost opportunity.
INTERESTING FACT: Each content creator, digital marketer or “influencer guru” on Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter or YouTube attempts to answer the same question: How do I make the audience convert successfully through my social media strategy?
When social media marketers create content for social media, they tend to have a journey mapped out for the audience. That journey can take the audience across social channels, profiles, and even user-generated content… with ONE objective. To get that audience interested in your brand, and make them go…
As long as the type of content brings the user to your social media profile, your reels, posts, or carousels should not only serve the audience with problem-solving content, but also motivate them to learn more about your brand’s hot offers.
Just like a moth to a flame, the Lead Magnet can transport your audience from one place to another, significantly boosting your chances of making a sale, or at the very least, earning a valuable lead.
But what is a Lead Magnet? How to create one? Why should you even use it?
This guide will cover all that… and more!
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What is a lead magnet?
A lead magnet refers to a free item or service that is given away for the purpose of gathering contact details, and is used by marketers to create sales leads.
A lead magnet attracts your audience towards a particular target, usually in exchange for information that is used for re-marketing purposes.
To simplify, it means that a Lead Magnet helps transport users from location A to Location B.
“Think of it as a digital magic school bus, where the ticket is the user’s information, and the destination is any relevant content that will encourage the user to make a purchase.”
Why is it important?
Once your social media content has built interest & intrigue for your brand, you need to provide the audience with an extra incentive to tap on your CTA (Call-To-Action) and be transferred to a location of your choice.
A lead magnet can provide that extra incentive by being a type of content that gives ADDED VALUE for clicking on the CTA.
What can be a lead magnet?
A Lead Magnet can be anything from a training montage (think Rocky) to an eBook, and anything in between, as long as it fulfills one or both of its core objectives:
A. To drive social media users towards a resource that urges them to fulfill a call to action (ex: learn more, sign up, buy now, start a free trial 😼)
B. To drive social media users to (consensually) share their contact data for re-marketing purposes (ex: through newsletters or message offers)
Here’s a neat little graphic to help you remember the core objectives of a Lead Magnet:
10 examples of a lead magnet
Here are 10 examples of a Lead Magnet… with fun nicknames that can help you remember them in case your boss wants to have a chuckle:
1. Call to Action (CTA): “The Classic”
This is the tried & tested button that website visitors click to access your brand’s resources, products or services. “Learn More”, “Buy Now”, “Click Here” are classic examples of a call-to-action which lead the users to perform a desired action.
2. Landing Page (Featured): “The Cover Model”
This is where your lead magnet captures attention (and information) provided by the visitor, by highlighting your brand’s most valuable products and features. Here’s a great example by Wix. (PS: A blog post can count as a landing page, too!)
3. Video Tutorials: “The Quick Snapshot”
Unlike a full product review video, short tutorials that present your product’s/service’s unique selling points can hook your audience, like this one created by GetResponse.
4. Webinar: “The Talking Magnet”
Webinars give your audience a chance to dig into engaging video content and, often, to ask questions in a Q&A session. Check out another awesome example by Getresponse.
PS: If you offer them on-demand after the initial live event, webinars can deliver leads for months and even years to come.
5. Landing Page (Gated): “The Pandora’s Box”
Unlike a regular landing page, this lead magnet asks the users to fill out a form with their name, email address, and any other relevant information in order to download a resource. Bonus points if it provides consistent service, such as this awesome “Trending Audio” newsletter by Dalia.
6. eBook: “The Know-It-All”
Unlike Whitepapers which tend to be data-heavy, eBooks are created for easy reading, and can act as a guide that helps readers fully understand the topic. Here’s an entire list of great social media related eBooks by Social Media Today.
7. Content Templates: “The Cheat Code”
Editable templates are a great way to avoid hectic tasks and go straight to the specifics. (Trust me, I’m a writer) Similar to the webinar, an on-demand template can be an evergreen lead generator, such as these ones by HubSpot.
8. Testimonials: “The Social Proof”
Surprised? What better way of showing your brand’s trustworthiness & standing out from the competition than SHOWING it? Testimonials, when used from time to time, can be a powerful lead magnet. Here’s how RecruitRockstars did it.
9. Newsletters: “The Consistent Reader”
This one hits all the right spots. Not only does it provide the user with a consistent resource, but with some creative tweaking, you can make users actively look forward to your newsletter communication, like Sarah has done!
PS: Templates, eBooks, Newsletters, or Webinars can also be known as “freebies”, and can be provided as an additional resource in exchange for the user’s consensual data (ex: email address, contact information)
10. Automated Services: “The Bot Assistant”
If a user is attracted to your automated service, it’s more likely that the user will want to learn more about the rest of your brand. More interest → Higher chance of first contact → Higher chance of sale.
For example, NapoleonCat’s Statistics allow you to choose any country in the world to see its current user demographics on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and LinkedIn.
11. Manual Services: “The Above & beyond”
A brand can also provide real-time audits as a lead magnet, which works really well with a small, niche audience looking for quick assistance. For instance, you can provide 30-minute profile audits for small Instagram business owners.
Meow get it. That’s a LOT of fancy words and concepts to remember, so here’s a quick and easy graphic to remind you of the various examples of a lead magnet:
How to create your lead magnet
Now, if you’re a particularly creative cat looking to stand out of the crowd, you can create your own branded Lead Magnet, depending on your available resources and your brand’s objectives.
Follow these guidelines to create clear & effective lead magnets that will attract the right audience to your brand through social media.
- KNOW YOUR WHO: By clearly identifying your target audience, you will be able to create a lead magnet that refers to your audience’s likes & interests.
- KNOW YOU: What makes your brand stand out? What makes your brand recognizable? Once you have those answers, make sure to add those branded elements, colors, fonts, and illustrations to your lead magnet.
- KNOW THE PATH: What will be the next step for the audience once they click on your lead magnet? Create a coherent path that continues the customer’s journey toward your objective.
Here’s a graphic to help you easily remember the steps for creating your own lead magnet:
Conclusion
It’s all about keeping your audience’s attention! Lead Magnets allow your piece of content to bring the audience from your social media post to a strategic location, in which you use your brand’s unique offer & incentive to woo the audience.
You now know how Lead Magnets work on social channels, and you’ve seen real-time examples of social media brands using them successfully.
What now? The (digital) world is out there for the taking!
Hop on the magic school bus, and use these Lead Magnets to align your original content with your brand’s growth through social media.
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