In the social media and influencer marketing age, many businesses think that email marketing is a thing of the past. But in 2024, email marketing (and email itself) continues to thrive. According to statistics, email is the first thing more than half of us check each morning. Plus there are more netizens with an email address than a social media account.
So, if you’re not already capturing your website visitors’ emails, and building your email list, then now is the time to start. If you want more of the right types of leads in your advice business, email is powerful but you need to know how to make people want to share their details with you.
Why do you need a lead magnet?
In short: you have a lead magnet on your website in order to build your email list.
Building your email list is a key way to start to build your community of leads, which you can turn into clients down the track.
So what does a lead magnet have to do with that?
Most people don’t just sign up for newsletters, so the easiest way to get more people on your list is to add an enticing opt-in incentive to your website. Enter the lead magnet.
A lead magnet is a fancy term for a super valuable freebie that people register for and get to download or access from your website.
They get some free, valuable information, and in return, you get their email address to add to your list.
What should a lead magnet include?
No-one likes giving over their email address for a freebie, only for the freebie to turn out to be a dud. At Crisp we believe that lead magnets should be of amazing value and should give an insight into the additional value that they would get if they became your client. In short, you want them to feel like “wow, if the free stuff is this good, imagine how much better it would be if I paid to be a client?!”.
Lead magnets should be:
- Specific to you and your business, addressing the needs and interests of your target audience. A generic lead magnet might attract a broader audience, but it won’t have the same impact as something finely tuned to your unique offerings.
- Add value to your potential clients, and that value needs to be immediately apparent. Before they sign up, potential clients need to know that the resource will be beneficial for them.
- Highlight what they don’t know, but need to know. Addressing knowledge gaps positions your business as an authority in the field and helps build trust. It can also create a sense of curiosity and prompt your audience to find out more.
- Provide something practical to get them started, but leads to them needing to contact you for the next part of the process. It should provide a glimpse into the depth of expertise and assistance that clients can expect from your business.
- Solve a problem that your ideal client has, and also give a taster of what you can help them with. By addressing a specific pain-point, your ideal client get the sense that you truly understand them and their business.
Some businesses worry about giving too much value away for free, before a potential client becomes a client. At Crisp, we think most of the value isn’t in the information, it’s in the implementation.
So our advice is to err on the side of generosity, for the trust and goodwill it will create with your ideal clients. If you don’t give enough away, they may worry you that your business is shallow and ‘one-dimensional’.
What should a lead magnet look like?
There are so many possibilities when it comes to lead magnets. You can make them whatever you like! But the key thing is that they need to be top quality, fully designed in your branding and be consistent with your website in terms of design, language and tone. It should also have a call-to-action at the end, with your details and how they can get in touch with you for more information.
Your lead magnet could be anything from a downloadable PDF or Excel document, a video, a calculator, a quiz, a podcast episode… whatever it is, it should be exclusive content that only subscribers can access.
The lead magnet generally should be provided to your potential client via email. This email can include the freebie as an attachment, or include link to where the lead magnet is (eg. a page on your website).
Lead magnet ideas for financial advice businesses
Coming up with an idea for a lead magnet is often the hardest part, so we’ve taken the guesswork out of it for you with these ideas that you can use in your financial advice business:
- Checklist, eg. 5 signs you need a financial adviser
- Calculator, eg. retirement calculator
- Cheat sheet, eg. tips to hit your savings goal
- Quiz, eg. investment personality type
- Workbook or eBook, eg. investments that [people in your niche] should consider
- Whitepaper or report, eg. market commentary for a particular industry
- Video tutorial, eg. how to get your kids involved in financial decision making
Choosing the right type of lead magnet will involve consideration of your business, your services and your ideal clients.
Ready to create your lead magnet?
Are you ready to kickstart your lead magnet strategy?
Get in touch with Abi.
We can work with you to find the right lead magnet for your business and start building your list of engaged, potential clients today.
