If you want your small-to-medium-sized business (SMB) to succeed at driving revenue, you need to generate leads — that is, attract people with a vested interest in your company. If you’re looking for ways to do that, lead magnets are an excellent idea.

A lead magnet is something you offer to people who visit your website. Users submit their email addresses, and you send them whatever material they signed up to receive. For your lead magnets to work, they must be something your target audience will find useful.

If you’re unsure what to use for your SMB lead magnets, don’t worry — there are quite a few options at your disposal. We’ll explore some of the best lead magnet ideas below, so read on to learn more.

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8 SMB lead magnet ideas to try

There are many different lead magnet formats you can use. Some are educational, while others are more salesy. But they all serve the same purpose — to keep users engaged while also obtaining their contact information.

Here are eight of the best SMB lead magnet ideas to try out in your marketing!

1. Newsletters

One of the most common types of lead magnets is newsletters. Newsletters are a great way to keep users plugged in to what’s happening at your company.

 

 

Your newsletters can update readers on the latest things your business has done or the latest products it’s released. Alternatively, they can list all the latest posts you’ve published on your blog, or at least highlight the best of the bunch.

Your newsletter frequency is up to you — you can send them out anywhere from once a week to once a month. In any case, you’ll typically want to send them right to users’ email addresses.

2. Ultimate guides and checklists

Users often appreciate receiving educational content, particularly if it’s from industry experts like you. That’s why another effective lead magnet format is ultimate guides and checklists.

An ultimate guide is a long piece of written content, often broken down into several sections or chapters, that gives users an in-depth overview of a specific topic.

For example, an ultimate guide to sound systems should cover everything there is to know about what sound systems are and how they work.

Checklists are similar but much simpler.

For example, you could create a checklist for performing basic home pest prevention. Then you would provide an extensive list of items that users could complete to prevent pests in their homes.

3. Ebooks

Ebooks are another educational resource you can send to users. As lengthy as ultimate guides tend to be, they aren’t quite long enough to qualify as actual books — but ebooks are exactly that.

 

 

Like any piece of content, ebooks should focus on a particular topic in your industry and work to hand readers plenty of useful information on the subject. Writing ebooks takes time, so don’t just throw something together so you can say you have a book.

If you use this type of lead magnet, ensure that you give it the time and care it deserves. You can then offer to email it to users, either for free or for a price.

4. Case studies

Case studies are excellent ways to show what your business can do, making them one of the most valuable SMB lead magnets. They show off the results you’ve been able to drive in the past, indicating what you can do for customers in the future.

Of course, many case studies are in-depth, meaning you may not want just to post them on your site. Instead, you can offer to send them to users’ email inboxes. When people sign up, they can receive case studies to help them see what your company can do.

5. Resource libraries

Depending on your industry, resource libraries may be another great type of lead magnet to use. A resource library is a list of tools or materials that can help users achieve a particular task or learn about a specific topic.

For example, maybe you run a graphic design company.

You could compile a list of online tools that people can use to improve their graphic design. You could also create a list of informational pages on your site about graphic design techniques.

Either way, you could offer to email the resource library to users who want to sign up for it.

6. Templates

Sometimes, you may write an article that walks users through the process of creating a particular document or material. Users could just follow your instructions to make the document from scratch, but wouldn’t it be better to start with a template?

Fortunately, you can offer users that very thing.

Templates make excellent lead magnets, minimizing the amount of work users have to do to create the material you’re helping them develop. When you offer users a chance to receive them via email, many people will gladly take it.

Templates are fantastic tools for everything from spreadsheets to emails. All you have to do is put together a single template to start driving tons of leads.

7. Calculators

Another type of lead magnet format to try is calculators. I’m not talking about a standard calculator for performing arithmetic — I mean specialized calculators you create to provide users with specific, business-related numbers.

The most common type of calculator to send out is a quote calculator. If your business offers quotes for your services, you can choose to gate those quotes behind email forms.

Maybe you email users the calculator itself, or perhaps users plug the numbers into a calculator on your site, and you email them the finished quote. Regardless, anyone with a serious interest in what you have to offer will be happy to submit their email addresses in return.

8. Product trials and demos

The final lead magnet on our list is product trials and demos. Users might be interested in your products, but not enough to buy them. You can send them a demo to help them see how useful your products are and encourage them to buy.

 

 

This is particularly effective if you offer a program or software. Users can submit their email addresses on your site, and you can email them the demo. After testing it out, they’ll be encouraged to buy the full version. Moreover, you’ll have their email address to reach them!

WebFX can drive up leads for your business

Ready to start creating some SMB lead magnets for your company, but need some help doing it? WebFX has your back! We have over 20 years of experience working with lead generation and email marketing, and we’d love to use our skills to benefit your business.

With our lead generation services, you’ll get help creating any of the above lead magnets you choose. You’ll also receive a dedicated account representative to keep in touch with you about our every move.

To get started with us, just call 888-601-5359 or contact us online today!