Episode 473: When the lead magnet is too awesome - #Tashmas Day 12

Have you put tooooo much into your lead magnet? Are you worried you’ve given too much for free, and now you need to charge for it?

This is a pretty common occurrence, especially for those business owners who have a lot to say, a lot to share, and are generous with their audiences. This episode digs into what to do, what not to do, and how to ensure your lead magnet is doing its job.

PLUS because it’s Day 12 of #Tashmas, I have quite a spectacular offer for you. (AND Day 12 of #Tashmas also means… it’s my BIRTHDAY!)

Wait… What is #Tashmas?

I do it for both my birthday (1-12 March) and pre-Christmas (1-12 December) every year! Every day from now until my birthday on 12th March, there will be a new daily podcast episode, with a hot tip or practical strategy as per usual… but you ALSO get a gift! I love sharing the birthday vibes, and what better way to do that?! The daily gift could be a freebie, a special offer, a competition… but there will be something for YOU every single day.

Today’s gift is a VIP Package – but with VERY limited spaces, so check it out sooner rather than later if you’re keen to work together.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

Here for the links referenced in the show notes?

Podcast: These opt-ins are a waste of time

Podcast: How to get 100 people on your mailing list in a month

VIP package offer: Lead Magnet Development and Optimisation! Grab it for HALF PRICE (just $1495 AUD plus GST) here: tashcorbin.com/lmvip

EPISODE 473: Listen using the player below, or click the links to your fave platform to subscribe and listen over there:

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Over-Engineered Lead Magnets

Having a lead magnet that’s just far too awesome is something that actually comes up a lot inside my Take Off programme. It usually goes like this: people want to create a freebie, their lead magnet, or opt-in. Then, the freebie idea grows and grows, with more and more included in it… until it has expanded so much that it’s no longer a good lead magnet.

You can start to feel like you can’t really give this away for free anymore, because it’s too big. It’s far too valuable and involved, so you’re tempted to change the entire model and turn it into a leveraged or passive product. This lead magnet was created to be a freebie and achieve a certain job, but now it has a price on it, there’s still a gap in your strategy. The goal that you were aiming to achieve with the lead magnet still has not been achieved.

It’s Lead Magnet Scope-Creep

The scope creeps, and you end up creating something that’s too awesome or too big, but now you don’t have a lead magnet that actually does the job it needs to do in your business.

Let’s be clear – this happens because you have a lot to share. When you decide to create this lead magnet, the scope easily becomes bigger due to your wealth of knowledge, experience, and advice. But just because you have a lot to say doesn’t mean it should all be jammed into one thing.

What’s the job of a Lead Magnet?

The job of a lead magnet is to grow your audience with hot leads. If you charge for that lead magnet because you’ve put so much into it, you’ll reduce the number of hot leads you attract. There are very few circumstances where something that has a price tag attracts more people than a free lead magnet.

If the lead magnet’s role is to grow your audience with hot leads, putting a price tag on it limits its ability to do that job.

Additionally, if you put too much information into the lead magnet and it becomes bigger, less people will sign up and complete it. One major driver of whether a lead magnet attracts hot leads is the number of people who complete it. Maximising completion is essential, not just maximising the number of sign-ups.

Have you done it before?

If this has happened to you before or if you’re creating something and the scope is creeping bigger, here’s my advice. Remember that you don’t have to put everything into one lead magnet. You don’t have to include everything in one offer or service, even if it’s a paid product.

People measure the value of something they are going to buy, and the value they have accessed when they actually access it, based on the percentage they complete. So if they see that your lead magnet has 16 components and they only need half, they’ll feel they’re only getting 50% of the value.

Does it all need to be in one resource?

Often, it’s better with free content and lead magnets to create multiple smaller free things rather than delivering everything in one. Your lead magnet needs a high completion rate and should prepare people to buy from you. Limit the scope of the lead magnet to one specific journey, one specific light bulb moment, and present one particular offer as the next logical step. Focus on getting people to complete it and being ready to consider the next investment, which is usually to buy something.

Let us learn from you

If you want to maximise your audience growth and build trust with your audience, put your zone of genius on display. Make it accessible to more people. Find ways to ungate as much content as possible – for example, my podcast is ungated content, and it’s some of my best advice and content. In my gated content (lead magnets), I also give really powerful, practical strategy and advice – I have lots of lead magnets and free resources for people to opt in to join my mailing list, but I don’t gate all of my best content.

The more I keep my content behind opt-ins or payments, the fewer people are exposed to my work. My best, most effective content is here in the podcast and on social media. I do this unafraid they’ll stop wanting to work with me, as I know my offers’ value proposition isn’t just about the information they get. It’s about the mentorship opportunity and the connection inside my paid products and services.

You’ve got more to share

I give openly and freely in my gated and ungated content, because I know there’s a huge difference between listening to a podcast and actual mentoring. My low-ticket courses are a self-study way for people to access more in-depth training, but I have far more free resources and podcasts available. If you’re creating a lead magnet that’s getting too awesome, see what content you can pull out and share in different parts of your content.

Focus on the job the lead magnet needs to do and ensure you guide people to that piece as efficiently as possible, so they’re ready to consider the next step, which is to pay for your offers.

Risks of over-delivering

The lead magnet should fill your audience with hot leads ready to work with you. Pouring too much into it makes you more likely to charge for it, altering your business model and requiring different strategy decisions. The more you add to the lead magnet, the longer it takes me to complete and the longer you’re delaying me being able to pay you. When the lead magnet is too awesome, remember that you want it to do its job and not gatekeep all your best work.

Craft your lead magnet in a way that it can deliver on its promise, and get people to the next step as efficiently as possible. And if that means there’s a heap of extra information or advice that’s been drawn out of that – put it on your socials or in your feature content instead. Let your genius shine!

The final #Tashmas gifts!