A well-crafted lead magnet is your golden ticket to a fast-growing email list. A GetResponse survey found that bloggers who used lead magnets were 57% more likely to report successful results from their content marketing efforts.
Lead magnets have other advantages too:
- They pre-qualify and prime your leads, leading to higher conversions.
- They establish trust with your business or brand.
- They let you capitalize on your best-performing content instantly. (Chances are you already have a few blog posts and landing pages that are teeming with potential subscribers!)
In this post we’ll share what makes a great lead magnet – along with 25+ lead magnet ideas and examples that top businesses and bloggers are using to generate leads. Lastly, we’ll share how you can easily get started creating your own lead magnets and growing your list.
What is a lead magnet?
A lead magnet is an incentive that you offer potential customers or clients in exchange for taking a specific action – for example, subscribing to your email list or requesting a free consultation. The goal is to collect the prospect’s contact information for follow up, build trust by giving value, and move them farther along your marketing funnel.
Lead magnets can take many different forms, from a simple checklist to something more advanced, like an in-depth multimedia course or mobile app.
What makes a good lead magnet?
Not all lead magnets are created equal. Let’s look at some characteristics of a great lead magnet:
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It’s relevant to your product or service
While giving away free iPhones can explode your email list, it just ends up costing you more to maintain all those unqualified leads. The more you align your lead magnet with the goals and interests of your potential customers (as well as the content of the webpage it’s hosted on), the better it will convert.
That said, don’t be afraid to start with a broader topic for your lead magnet and use it as a temporary catchall while you design more targeted incentives for your highest-traffic webpages.
It’s targeted to the appropriate funnel stage
Different lead magnets are better suited to different stages of the marketing funnel. Some typical examples of top-of-funnel (TOFU) lead magnets are ebooks and whitepapers, which can help educate prospects about a problem and introduce them to potential solutions.
Webinars and free trials are often used at the middle or bottom of the funnel (MOFU and BOFU) to encourage users to make a purchase.
It primes your prospect for future purchases
A great lead magnet not only helps you capture your prospects’ contact info, but it also primes them to make a purchase.
Offering a free course is a classic example of priming the prospect: You’re providing value in the form of education, and at the same time you’re demonstrating how your product can make their task easier.
For example, a few years ago Ahrefs put out an in-depth blogging course for beginners. Of course, all the tutorials featured Ahrefs’ SEO software, which familiarized their audience with its capabilities and made subscribing to Ahrefs a natural next step.
It delivers on its promise, no strings attached
No bait-and-switch tactics – you don’t want to lose your prospects’ trust the same minute you win their email address.
Lead magnet ideas to try for your next landing page
These tried-and-tested lead magnet ideas and examples will spark your creativity so you can design the perfect offer for your own audience and reap the benefits both now and over the long term.
1. Giveaway or UGC contest
You can’t go wrong with a giveaway – everybody loves free stuff! In exchange for signing up for a free trial or consultation, enter subscribers in a draw for a sample product or tickets to an industry event. You could also team up with partners to create a value-packed bundle and increase the reach of your campaign.
You can promote your giveaway with social media posts, email newsletters (and partner newsletters), and landing pages on your website.
UGC contests are a fun alternative to a classic raffle or giveaway. They can also generate social media buzz and virality for your business or product launch.
A few UGC contest ideas for you to try:
- Creative challenges, such as asking your followers to create art featuring your product
- Before and after photos using your product
- Adding funny captions to photos related to your brand or industry
To get the best results from giveaways, pre-qualify your leads by making your prize highly relevant to your target audience.
2. Free course or tutorial
While free courses can be time-consuming and costly to create compared to other types of lead magnets, they’re also perceived as higher value and can lead to higher conversions.
Some other major advantages to courses:
- They position you as an expert in your industry.
- They can capture prospects at the top of the funnel and accelerate their progress through other stages of the funnel.
- They can be a hugely effective tool for priming potential customers to use your product or service.
- They give your audience a taste of the customer experience they can expect from your business or brand.
Courses can be packaged in a variety of ways – text, audio, video, interactive elements, or a combination of all of these.
Exclusive video tutorials or workshops are another great lead magnet idea that can be a less costly route to developing a complete course.
3. Quiz
Interactive quizzes and assessments can be used to provoke curiosity or cater to your prospect’s ego, alert them to a potential problem, and point them to your product or service as the solution.
People like quizzes because they’re a fun distraction. Plus, because you can make the results shareable, they also have that virality potential.
Example quizzes and assessments include:
- Check Your Credit Score
- Discover Your Leadership Style
- Find Your Perfect Skincare Routine
- Test Your Digital Marketing IQ
- What’s Your Style Vibe?
4. Calculator
Similar to quizzes, website calculators can stop your prospects in their tracks and get them to engage with your business.
Some typical calculator lead magnet examples:
- Return on investment (ROI)
- Wedding budget
- Caloric needs
- Home renovation cost estimate
- Retirement savings
- Carbon footprint
5. Ebook
Ebooks usually take the form of how-to guides in PDF format. They’re a long-time staple of digital marketers, and with good reason – they’re relatively easy and low-cost to create, and they’re extremely versatile.
Another advantage of e-books is that because they’re relatively cheap to create, you can use them to measure interest for different products and services by creating multiple ebooks targeting different themes.
Plus, you can greatly increase conversions by placing different ebooks on different landing pages and blog posts based on their relevance to the content.
So don’t make the mistake of overlooking the humble ebook.
6. Resource list
Next up, we have the short, snappy resource list. I love these because they’re super easy and inexpensive to create – you can write one up in an afternoon, save it as a PDF, and pop it up on your site the same day.
A short, well-targeted resource list can be seen as even more valuable than an ebook because it helps your audience solve an important problem without taking up too much of their valuable time.
Here are a few example resource list lead magnet ideas:
- Top 10 Podcast Episodes for Real Estate Investing that You Don’t Want to Miss
- CEO Blueprint: The Definitive Reading List for Business Mastery
- 21 Free VST Plugins for Game Composers (a real-life example I worked on, which turned out to be a hit!)
While the actual download itself only needs to be a PDF or Google Doc, you can increase its perceived value by designing a cover for it in the same way that you would for a standard ebook.
7. Checklist or cheat sheet
Cousin to the resource list is the checklist or cheat sheet. People get a real sense of satisfaction from ticking things off a box.
Typical examples of these lead magnets could be “Website Launch Checklist: From Planning to Deployment” or “The Ultimate Travel Packing Cheat Sheet: Never Forget Anything Again!”
8. Industry newsletter
Industry newsletters are powerful because they help you nurture leads over the long term by curating a consistent stream of industry news. They also open up opportunities for partnerships, sponsorships, and (ethical) list swaps with partners or other businesses in your industry.
Newsletters can be sent out weekly, biweekly, or even just monthly – just keep it consistent.
Within your newsletter, you can add CTAs to guide your readers to pages or products on your site. Using email automation software, you can also segment your audience based on the types of content they engage with most often.
To grow your list even faster, consider offering a reward to subscribers who refer your newsletter to friends and colleagues. You can see an example of this in action in the below screenshot of the popular TLDR AI newsletter:
9. Exclusive access to a resource library or private community
Offering your target audience exclusive access to a resource database or private community is a great way to get them in the door and build loyalty over the long term.
Your resource library can take many forms:
- Recorded interviews or podcasts with industry insiders
- A library of all the lead magnets you’ve created to date
- Exclusive offers from partners
- Tutorial videos
- Templates, checklists, and case studies
Your exclusive resource could also be a simple Google Sheet that you update regularly, such as a listing of job openings in your industry.
Alternatively, you can give subscribers access to an exclusive community, such as a private industry mastermind, Facebook group, or Slack channel.
10. Swipe file
A swipe file is a collection of examples, ideas, or templates that can be used for inspiration and reference.
These types of lead magnets do well in industries like marketing, advertising, sales, real estate, and finance. They can also be used in creative professions like graphic design.
Here are a few swipe file lead magnet ideas for you to try:
- Cold email templates
- Cold calling scripts
- Copywriting formulas
- Banner ad designs
- Creative writing prompts
Your swipe file lead magnet will perform better if you package it with a case study or other proof that the templates you’re using have been proven to perform well in the past.
11. AI prompts
A modern twist on the swipe file lead magnet – and one that can be adapted to many different industries – are ChatGPT or AI art generator prompts.
For example, if you’re targeting busy education professionals, you could create a swipe file of “51 Time-Saving ChatGPT Prompts for Teachers.”
12. Webinar
Webinars can be a highly effective bottom-of-the-funnel lead generation tool. They’re the perfect vehicle for educating your leads, plus generating sales with an exclusive time-sensitive offer.
Live webinars are also a valuable opportunity to get real-time feedback from your audience about their biggest questions or pain points.
Meanwhile, evergreen webinars can be packaged as replays and used as lead magnets on social media channels or website landing pages. Alternatively, you can use them in email nurture campaigns or deposit them in an exclusive-access resource library.
Below is an example pop-up form that SEJ used to promote a webinar:
13. Free tool
Creating a free online tool can generate leads and backlinks for your website. Again here, it’s important to make sure the tool you’re offering aligns closely with your products and services.
For example:
- Budget calculator (financial planner)
- Website audit tool (SEO agency)
- AI logo maker (graphic designer)
- Color palette generator (interior designer)
- Grammar checker (writing and editing service)
14. Plan or challenge
Plans and blueprints are an effective lead magnet because they appeal to the lazy person in us all. Plus, they let your prospects pass off the responsibility for their ultimate success or failure to someone else (you!).
A twist on the planner lead magnet is the challenge lead magnet, which can inspire your target audience to take action. Challenges work best with a set timeframe.
Here are a few examples of planner and challenge lead magnets:
- Ultimate Blogger Challenge: 30 Blog Posts in 30 Days
- 14-Day Product Launch Roadmap
- 21 Days of Mindfulness: A Journey to Inner Peace
- Easy Meal Prep: Your 30-Day Nutrition Blueprint
- 60 Days to Become Fluent in French
As someone who loves a good challenge, this just might be my favorite type of lead magnet.
15. Product catalog
Product catalogs are an ideal BOFU lead magnet type for e-commerce and retail businesses. They can be used year-round to showcase best-selling products, or offered at special times of the year to highlight seasonal product offerings or limited-edition items.
A useful feature of digital catalogs is that you can implement tracking and analytics to collect information on user engagement and popular products.
16. Free printables or digital templates
Printables are fun to receive because they’re tangible, practical, and visually appealing.
Here are a just a few lead magnet ideas for printables that businesses and bloggers have used to great effect:
- Editable Pinterest pin designs
- SOPs, invoices, proposals, and contracts
- Chore charts
- Workout logs
- Habit trackers
- Recipe cards
- Craft patterns
- Worksheets or workbooks
Digital templates can work well too – for instance, interactive budgeting spreadsheets or Trello or Notion templates.
You can also bundle a collection of templates together and offer it as a “complete toolkit.” This type of lead magnet is popular in the blogging sphere, for instance.
17. Survey or poll
Surveys and polls can be used to capture email addresses while also collecting valuable insights about your prospects or the broader industry. Make your survey visually appealing and interactive to improve user engagement – for instance, by adding images, sliders, or rating scales.
You could gather feedback on industry trends and challenges or even solicit opinions about your products and services. To boost engagement, offer to share a copy of the survey results with participants.
18. Industry report
Speaking of surveys and polls, why not use the information you gather from your audience to create a state-of-the-industry report and use it as a lead magnet?
Your report could include predictions, trends, demographics, or statistics. It can even be repurposed as an infographic or SlideShare presentation.
19. Free book
A free paperback or hardcover book can be a stronger incentive than an e-book because of its higher production cost. (You can ask your audience to cover the smaller cost of shipping.)
An alternative to offering a whole book is to email your subscribers a sample chapter.
You could also create an audiobook version and test which offer resonates best with your audience.
20. Free trial or consultation
Free trials, demos, consultations, and quotes are a tried-and-true bottom-of-the-funnel approach to lead generation.
However, many companies make the mistake of introducing too much friction into their sign-up process, scaring off prospects before they even get in the door.
Including too many required form fields, requesting credit card details, imposing dense terms and conditions, or offering too short a trial period are typical “sins” of lead generation.
The less friction, the better.
21. Mobile app
A free mobile app can be a powerful tool for establishing a pattern of habitual engagement with your brand.
Today, you can launch a minimum viable version of your mobile app quickly and cheaply using no-code mobile app tools.
22. Whitepaper
Whitepapers are similar in format to ebooks but are typically targeted at technical, corporate, or professional audiences.
They often educate decisionmakers about a specific problem or highlight a new technology. They tend to be more technical and data-driven than an ebook, with supporting charts, graphs, and citations.
For example, a whitepaper could highlight trends in machine learning or discuss the industrial applications of 3D printing.
23. Case study
Case studies are a long-time favorite of marketers because, used effectively, they can do the hard work of persuading your audience, leading to an easy sell.
Case studies work best when they combine curiosity and social proof. For instance, “How we boosted free trial signups for XYZ Company by 52% using this simple technique.”
24. Promo code
Promo codes, discounts, and coupons can drive immediate signups and sales and build loyalty with your brand.
Here are a few different approaches to try:
- First-purchase discounts
- Free shipping
- Early bird pricing
- Limited-time offers
- Bundle discounts
- Seasonal discounts
- Free gift cards
25. Waiting list
There’s no reason why you can’t start collecting email addresses before your product is officially released. Why not ask users to sign up for a beta or early access list?
This doesn’t just apply to products and software. I’ve seen waiting lists for lead magnets that are still in the process of being created. For example, “Sign up to get my free ebook about XYZ when it’s released. You won’t want to miss it!”
26. Blog post “extras”
Probably the easiest way to create a lead magnet – offer a PDF or audio version of your existing blog posts. Similarly, you could offer a transcript of a video or podcast that’s hosted on your website.
Even more easy, consider turning some of your top blog posts into gated content, where viewers can only access it after entering their email address.
3 lead magnet examples analyzed
Before we wrap up, let’s look at three great examples of lead magnets in action:
1. Mention (free trial)
Mention’s free trial form, shown below, is a perfect example of a low-friction signup form. It’s featured prominently at the top of their homepage, with a minimalist design and clear call to action.
It offers a generous 14-day trial period and assures users they don’t need to provide credit card information. Beautiful!
2. Ranktracker (online tool)
Ranktracker’s free SERP Simulator is an example of a simple online tool that’s perfectly aligned with its target audience of digital marketers and SEOs:
3. MyFitnessPal (mobile app)
A classic example of the mobile app lead magnet done well is MyFitnessPal’s hugely popular fitness app. The free version of the app doesn’t skimp on useful features like calorie tracking and meal logging.
After users have become accustomed to using the app and have experienced value from it, upgrading to access the more advanced features is a natural next step.
How to create a lead magnet
There are three key components to creating lead magnets and delivering them to your prospects.
First, you’ll need the incentive itself. This might be a coupon, ebook, video, website calculator, or anything else.
Next, to get your lead magnet into the hands of your audience and grow your list like wildfire, you’ll need a tool for creating landing pages and opt-in forms.
Woorise makes this simple by helping you create attractive landing pages, newsletter signup forms, giveaways, surveys, and quizzes. No coding experience is required – you can easily customize the look of your online forms with the easy drag-and-drop form builder. You can also set your forms to trigger based on specific user actions, such as when a user is leaving your website.
Woorise also offers more advanced lead magnet templates like interactive calculators, event registrations, and more.
Finally, you’ll also want to connect an email marketing platform so you can continue to nurture your leads. Woorise integrates with top email marketing and automation platforms like ActiveCampaign, ConvertKit, GetResponse, and HubSpot.
Closing thoughts
A thoughtfully crafted lead magnet isn’t just a one-time transaction – it’s the start of a journey toward lasting and fruitful relationships with the people who will ultimately become your biggest fans.
It’s easy to overthink the creative process, but remember that you can make tweaks as you collect audience feedback. So create a first iteration, build a simple form with Woorise’s easy drag-and-drop builder, and get your lead magnet out the door and working for you today.
