When you’re taking the time to write regular content for your blog, you want it to deliver.
A blog should help you build your audience. Plus, it should give you a way to convert those visitors into leads. Otherwise what’s the point?
We don’t want to simply create content for the sake of getting something out there. You need to be strategic in how you use your blog. Because that way you can lead people onto the next step of working with you.
But this is often the step people miss.
You can’t assume every visitor will read your content, then click on your contact page to book your services or buy a product from you.
You need to make it super clear what you want your visitor to do next.
A lead magnet is a brilliant way to attract new leads. And in this post you’ll learn what a lead magnet is and how to use various CTAs (call to actions) to increase sign ups.
Hook visitors in with a lead magnet
A lead magnet is a free, valuable piece of content you offer your audience in exchange for their email address. It should offer your readers something they truly need and help them overcome a very specific pain point. It should provide lots of value, and offer a quick win they can put into action straight away.
These days it’s not enough to simply throw up a form that says ‘Sign up to receive our latest updates.’
You need to give your audience a good reason to give you their email address. Because every email address you collect, is a lead that you can potentially turn into a customer.
So think about the common challenges and problems your customers face.
Then create your high value piece of content they can only access by entering their email address.
This could be in the form of, for example, a simple pdf, a mini video course, a 5 day challenge, or a webinar.
Members of the Pet Biz Thrive Online Club get access to detailed tutorials on how to create and set up their lead magnet on their website and blog. And because they have the knowledge and support they need, many members have grown their email list to over 300 subscribers in just a few short months.
Include call to actions
Blogging gives you an extraordinary opportunity to attract potentially thousands of visitors every month.
And many of them could be the perfect fit for your products or services.
But if you’re not utilising call to actions in your blog content, they won’t know what to do next. And if they don’t know what to do next, you could lose those visitors forever.
Which is why you need to give your visitors ample opportunity to sign up to your free lead magnet.
You need to place visible call to actions in or around your blog content.
I wouldn’t recommend adding all of the options below to your blog. This may annoy people and put them off. But a mix of 2-3 works well.
In content CTAs
This is where you include the form to sign up to your lead magnet within the content of your blog posts.
As your visitor reads down your blog post, the lead magnet form provides a break in the content.
These tend to be some of the best performing CTAs since they catch the eye mid flow.
You can create your lead magnet form within any email marketing system like Mailerlite.
Then all you need to do is place the piece of code where you want it to appear within your content.
Hello bar
A hello bar is a sticky bar that runs along the top of your website.
And here you can include either a button that directs people to your lead magnet landing page, or you can include the form fields so they can sign up immediately.
A hello bar can stick to the top of every page on your website. So even when your visitor scrolls down to read your content, it’ll stay in the same place, enticing them to sign up.
The hello bar is a plugin you can download on WordPress. If your website is built using another platform, they often have similar options to achieve the same result.
Sidebar CTA
This option is pretty straightforward.
If you have a sidebar on your website, you can include the form to sign up to your lead magnet there.
Similar to In Content CTAs, you would create your form within your email marketing system, then place the code where you want it to appear within your sidebar.
Exit intent popup
Exit intent pop ups appear when your visitor attempts to exit your website.
So when someone goes to click the X to close down your page, your lead magnet will pop up on the screen.
This essentially acts as a last-ditch attempt to bring people onto your email list before they potentially leave forever.
You can create an exit intent feature within most email marketing systems.
Welcome mat
A welcome mat is a full screen call to action that appears as soon as someone lands on your blog.
I personally don’t like this option as much as the others I’ve mentioned. It’s almost like thrusting a business card in someone’s face before you even shake hands.
The reader hasn’t had a chance to read your content or learn what you’re all about, and you’re already asking them for their email address.
This is usually more successful for large, renowned companies where visitors already know who they are.
But if you like this idea, you could always test it for a couple of months and see what kind of response you get. You can read more information about welcome mats and see examples on the Sumo.com website.
As business owners we need our blogs to work hard for us. And one of the best ways to do that is by using a lead magnet to collect qualified leads. Look into the different form options available to you and trial each one for a couple of months. That way you’ll find out which one is the most effective for your own blog.
If you’d like support to help you grow your blog and email list, AND learn how to turn those visitors and subscribers into paying customers, then come and join us inside the Pet Biz Thrive Online Club.
You’ll get access to the blogging and email marketing module, group coaching calls, community support, and so much more!