Designing a lead magnet that’s unmistakably yours
In Chapter 2, you'll learn how to create high-value lead magnet content and design a finished product that looks and feels like you.
You have your lead magnet topic and format nailed down, and the next step is to write out a draft of what you’d like to say.
In my experience, it’s easier to catch typos and ensure your message has a good flow in a plain document without any bells and whistles. Receiving value is the top priority for your subscriber, so it should also be your top priority as you create.
To start, ignore the fonts, colors, and layouts, and make a plan for what your lead magnet is going to include.
The secret to excellent lead magnet content
The best lead magnets are short, actionable, relevant to your business, and filled with value. This is true whether you’re making a PDF, spreadsheet, video, mini-course, or something else entirely.
The goal of your lead magnet is not just to collect email addresses, but also to create a strong foundation for a long-lasting and mutually beneficial relationship with your audience.
Here are some tips to remember as you outline:
Keep it short: You want to provide a quick win for your audience, something they can easily consume and implement. No need to write your magnum opus at this stage.
Remember your niche and products: Think of your lead magnet as the first step on a journey that connects with the other products or services you offer.
Help your audience take action: When you solve one of your audience's problems, you build trust and establish yourself as an authority. If you’ve helped subscribers achieve something that matters to them, they're more likely to open your emails, trust your recommendations, and ultimately make purchases from you.
With that in mind, open up a blank document and start brainstorming. Write a script for your free video training, list out ideas for your checklist, outline the lessons of your mini-course, or draft your ebook.
Here are some recommended tools to make the creation process quicker and smoother:
Grammarly: Free proofreading software that can help you catch typos and improve your sentence structure.
Hemingway: Another writing and editing tool that can improve readability and give you suggestions for other ways to phrase things.
Unsplash: Free-use stock photos you can use without attribution. (Don’t pull images off Google Images since they might not be royalty-free, which could cause copyright issues.)
Descript: A video editing and transcription tool that you can use to add effects and overlays to your videos, or transform your video and audio files into text.
Once you’re finished drafting, give your ideas to a friend or mentor for a second set of eyes. They might be able to spot gaps and remove unnecessary information to make your product more cohesive.
(Not sure who to ask for feedback? Head to the Podia Creator Community to ask for advice from creators like you.)
BUILD TOGETHER
For my road trip free lead magnet, I started by brainstorming all the packing list items I wanted to include in a Google Doc. Then I went through and wrote a few sentences about why that item is important and what it can be used for.
The full document is less than two pages long, but if someone has never gone on a road trip, this simple packing list will help them feel more prepared and potentially prevent sticky situations.
Styling your lead magnet to match your brand
Now that you know what to say, you can let your creativity shine in the design stage. Here are some different ways you can style your lead magnet so it matches your brand.
Saving your written lead magnet as a PDF
This is the simplest option. If you’ve typed your lead magnet content into Word, Pages, or Google Docs and you’re happy with the way it looks, save the document as a PDF and export it to your computer.
Saving it as a PDF will keep the formatting intact when your subscriber opens it on their device. If you just save it as a regular document file, you could end up with wacky formatting.
Uploading an unlisted YouTube video
If you’d like to use a video or webinar replay as your free lead magnet, you can upload it to YouTube and save the video as unlisted. Only people who have the exact URL can find the video, and you can send the URL to subscribers instantly when they sign up.
Here’s how to upload an unlisted YouTube video .
Creating resources with Canva
If you’d like to add more design elements to your lead magnet, you can do this with a popular graphic design tool called Canva . It’s free to use and there are tons of templates for all types of projects, like ebooks, printables, checklists, journals, brand kits, and more to help jumpstart your creativity.
BUILD TOGETHER
Canva PDF Packing List:
For my road trip packing list, I used Canva to make the information more visually appealing. You can see my step-by-step process in the video below, or keep reading for written instructions.
I started by searching for guide templates in the Canva template library. I knew that I had ten packing list items I wanted to feature, so I looked for a template that I could easily adapt to my information.
I found a design I liked, so I clicked on it and selected “Customize this template.”
Then, I copy and pasted my content into the template, and duplicated the page so I’d have room for all ten packing list items. I changed the fonts and color scheme to match my branding, and I replaced the template’s icons with relevant free graphics from Canva.
When I was finished, I downloaded the project as a PDF and saved it to my computer.
Up next, you'll get a step-by-step checklist you can use to ensure your lead magnet makes a big splash.