Why Lead Magnets Still Work In The AI World

byNewydd105

670 followers

7 months ago

If you’re building an online business and wondering why your traffic isn’t turning into sales, chances are… you need a lead magnet.

Lead magnets are something of value you provide to potential clients in exchange for their email address. Despite all the noise around AI and the latest tools; 90% of online sales still come from an email list.

Building an email list is an essential part of online sales.

What Are Lead Magnets?

A lead magnet has perceived value to the person wanting it. It is usually the first point of contact that a person has with your business and brand. It should encourage them to want to explore your business further and hopefully buy from you. In exchange for the item or information they are willing to give you their email address.

Here are some examples of lead magnets and how I use them.

• An email series of 60 lessons - this is my most successful lead magnet. It is a series of 60 lessons that tells a story and a lesson learned. One lesson per week is sent to the subscriber via email with a call to action. (It is all automated through an email responder.) The response from this is around lesson 10-12 a person will subscribe to the membership.
• Newsletter - a weekly newsletter with a tip; an actionable step and a call to action. Sales from this tend to be product focused. The reader wants a one-off item to solve a problem although I have generated some membership sales as well. Generally, I get one sale per week from a newsletter.
• Quizzes - the quizzes have the highest engagement of all my lead magnets but conversion rate for is low.
• eBooks - popular but again low conversion rate
• Cheat Sheet - relatively low engagement and low conversion
• Video Information - very high engagement but low conversion

The results indicated above are from my experience and my industry. You may get different results and should experiment with what works best for you.

How to Advertise Your Lead Magnet

Getting your lead magnet in front of your potential sign ups is just about making as much noise about it as you can. I use

• Social media - Facebook, X and Pinterest as my main platforms for promoting with my Facebook business page being the most successful.
• Website - the lead magnets are advertised on each page using widgets down the side of the page.
• Cross-advertising lead magnets through the newsletter
• email nurturing - I use segments within my email structure and will cross-advertise to the list.
• Podcasting - mentioning lead magnets within a podcast with a link in the show notes.

And again results will vary depending on your industry and where you are most likely to find your customers.

Why Lead Magnets Work

Lead magnets aren't just a way to make a sale. In the online world they help to build trust and keep your customers coming back for more. It is estimated that someone needs to see your product at least 15 times before buying. I have heard larger viewing estimates of 27 views but data tends to support 15.

When you offer something genuinely helpful for free, you create a relationship with your viewers before asking for anything in return. It positions you as someone who gives value, not just someone trying to make a sale.