6.5 Lead Magnets

The best format depends on your industry and what your customers find genuinely useful:

• PDF guide -- comprehensive resource on a topic your customers care about. Best for service businesses.
• Checklist -- actionable, one-page. Quick to create, high perceived value.
• Free audit/assessment -- automated or manual review of something the customer cares about. Highest-intent leads because they're asking you to look at their specific situation.
• Template or calculator -- a tool they can use immediately.
• Video series -- 3--5 short videos delivered by email over a week. Higher engagement, more production effort.

Rules for creating content people actually want:

• Solve one specific problem -- "How to plan your wedding photo booth" not "Everything about weddings"
• Make it genuinely useful -- if someone could use this and never hire you, it's good enough. Counterintuitively, the more you give away, the more they trust you.
• Keep it concise -- a 5-page PDF that's all substance beats a 30-page PDF full of filler
• Brand it -- your logo, colours, website, and phone number on every page. This is marketing, not charity.
• Design matters -- use Canva (free) for professional-looking PDFs without a designer

The opt-in form is where visitors exchange their email for your lead magnet:

• Fields: Name and email only. Nothing else. Every extra field reduces conversions.
• Headline: State the benefit, not the format. "Get Your Free Wedding Photo Booth Planning Guide" not "Download Our PDF."
• Button text: "Send Me the Guide" or "Get My Free Checklist" -- not "Submit"
• Privacy note: Small text under the button: "We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime." Required by Australian Spam Act 2003.

When someone submits the form:

• They should receive the lead magnet by email within 60 seconds (automated via your email platform)
• Redirect them to a thank-you page that says "Check your inbox" and offers a next step (book a call, browse services)
• Add them to a nurture email sequence (section 7.2) that follows up over the next 7--14 days
• Notify yourself so you can follow up personally with high-intent leads

A lead magnet nobody sees captures nobody:

• Add a banner or popup on your homepage (after 30 seconds or on exit intent)
• Add a CTA at the bottom of every blog post
• Create a dedicated landing page (section 6.6)
• Share on social media with a link to the landing page
• Mention it in your email signature
• Use it as the offer in paid ads (section 8)