How To Promote Your Lead Magnet

So you've created a lead magnet to build your email list, so now it's time to get it out to the world.

Once you have a few ideas for a great lead magnet, you'll need to actually give your audience the opportunity to opt in for it. This is a crucial part of your list building strategy, so whether you use your website, externally, or social media, there are a number of different options to choose from.

First and foremost, it needs to be easy and accessible for your audience, and as you will likely to eventually have different lead magnets designed for different segments of your audience, you'll need to be strategic about where you place your opt-in. By deciding on the perfect placement for your lead magnet opt-in, you will ensure to continually grow your list of quality leads.

Let's explore some of my favourite places to promote lead magnets:

Website

• Header, footer or sidebar. A classic opt-in placement ensures your website visitors have the chance to see what lead magnet you have on offer. Whether you choose an opt-in box on the header, footer, or sidebar, will depend on your website navigation and layout.
• Pop-up. Whether a full-page pop-up or a small pop-up box on your website, this can work extremely way to get attention to your website visitors. Just make sure that it is targeted to your audience of website viewers, and that you don't get too spammy with the frequency.
• Content upgrade. For example, give them a summary in a blog post, with the option to upgrade to the full PDF version by opting in.

Social Media

• Pinned post. Create a post which has an image or graphic showing your lead magnet, write some attention-grabbing copy, and paste the link to your opt-in. Then simply pin it to the top of your Facebook page or group so it's visible whenever someone visits.
• Cover photo. Using your Facebook cover photo for your page and/or group is a great way to draw attention to your lead magnet. This is great when used in combination with the Call-To-Action button (below) as it makes it even easier for someone to find the opt-in box (rather than having to manually type in a URL).
• Call-To-Action button. You can customise your Facebook page's call to action button under your cover photo to direct people straight to your opt-in page. Choose either the Sign-Up or Learn More and use your landing page URL.
• Facebook groups. You should already be in groups where your ideal customer is hanging out, and so look out for the promo posts where you can share your opt-in. Another great tip is to search within the group for the problem/issue that your lead magnet solves, then comment on the post with a link to your opt-in (keeping it non-spammy and within the group rules, of course!)
• Facebook Lives. Mention your opt-in in your Facebook Lives, and put the link in the description. If you're going to the effort of going live, use the opportunity to share your freebie with your audience and it'll still be accessible for people who don't watch the video live.
• Facebook Ads. The quickest way to get your lead magnet to your ideal customer - this is my favourite and surefire way to supercharge the growth of an email list.
• Stories. I love stories for promoting opt-ins...whether you use an image or video, Instagram or Facebook, Stories are a great way to get attention on your latest freebie.
• Profile/Bio. Whether on your Facebook personal profile, or Instagram Bio, every opportunity you have to edit the real estate can be used to promote your opt-in. So go for it!

Word of Mouth

• Podcast. Whether you're own or as a guest on someone else's, make sure you spread the word of your opt-in and how they can get hold of it. Make sure your lead magnet is something that the audience of the podcast would be interested in, and subtly (or not-so-subtly!) let people know where they can go to download it.
• Networking. If you're a regular at networking events, think about the topics of conversation that often come up when talking about your photography niche. Create a lead magnet that is related to these topics, and next time it comes up in conversation, direct people to your opt-in..."funny you should say that, I have a great resource related to that..."
• Articles and Guest Posts. If the article you're writing is targeted to the audience of your lead magnet, strategically place attention to it either within the copy, or in your author bio.
• Referrals. Know how much your audience love your lead magnet? Don't be afraid to ask them to spread the word for you. If they've had value from it, they will love to be able to offer that value to others on your behalf.

And of course, once you have a list, emailing your audience with information about a new lead magnet is one of the best ways to get eyes on it. People who have received one of your awesome freebies in the past, are likely to opt-in again and share with people they know.