How do you make ebooks and whitepapers work as lead magnets?

Let your audience be your guide. Using your analytics, figure out what type of content you've produced they like the most, and work off of that.

It’s highly recommended to write an ebook on topics which you’re familiar with. Something on which you’re currently working on or have worked upon. Why? Because of this exact two reasons: 1. Authenticity 2. Credibility There is another way you could do this without going into specifics. That’s creating ebook by curating others content with full disclaimer and credits given.

There are already a ton of ebooks and whitepapers so you need to build hype or interest in whatever you’re building/doing separately and then free ebooks and whitepapers that are actually informative, easy to understand, compelling, visually pleasing and hoping offering the reader an opportunity to become a (insert here - customer, investor, partner, early adopters etc) and to join a community can all be a successful strategy to gain traction and get leads etc.

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One of the easiest ways to choose an ebook topic is to use your internal data. From past clients to your current audiences. Choose the most repetitive pain point/challenge you notice. Ensure the ebook solves that problem for your audience and creates bigger problems that your core offer actually solves. If your ebook doesn't align with your paid offering, it is useless for your marketing efforts.

Supplement with infographics, visuals, etc. and make it visually pleasing/easy to read. It’s also fine to use AI to research and even help write but always put your real touch on it and proof thoroughly for “hallucinations” etc.

Pro Tip: Deliver the content of your ebook/lead magnet in multiple formats. From written PDF, ePub, Google Doc, Notion to Audiobook or Video Recording Walkthroughs, if relevant. Users digest information in multiple formats. You offer just one, you lose the other parts of the pie.

Remember this when you are writing ebooks and whitepapers: 'THESE ARE NOT MEANT TO SELL, BUT TO EDUCATE.' The idea behind creating these two types of content should be to provide your readers with relevant and quality information that can build trust in your brand. Long-form content is usually consumed by people who are mostly practitioners of the topic or are willing to learn more. Provide your customers with what they want, and once you have given them exactly what they were looking for, they will come back to buy from you without you having to sell it to them. Write ebooks and whitepapers with the sole purpose of educating and providing the right information. This can help you establish your brand as a thought leader among readers.

It isn't just about this. You need to offer useful information the audience doesn't already know. Not just the same stuff everyone else has already said.

Carousels are HOT on LinkedIn. Think Instagram informative carousels. Export as PDF so they are easily viewable. Posting as an album does not look great.

There's so much thought leadership floating around it's often hard to distinguish "thoughts" from "leadership" One great way to cut through the endless wave of PDFs is to build an actionable playbook into the thought leadership. Rather than simply offering a provocation, show how brands or individuals can use the provocation to grow or get ahead. Don't stop at the thought, make your provocation synonymous with a novel solution.

- Design a visually striking cover that represents your content, intriguing readers and encouraging them to explore more. - Organize your content with headings, and subheadings for easy scanning. Highlight key information to guide readers through the material. - Customize ebook sections for various audience segments, addressing their unique pain points, goals, and preferences. This enhances relevance and reader engagement. - Choose a font size that remains legible and comfortable to read across various screen sizes, ensuring a seamless reading experience on both desktop and mobile devices.

The ebook cover is probably the most underrated element of a lead magnet. It needs to scream value, professionalism, and effort put into it from all angles. If those thinking of getting it don't perceive it as valuable, they won't download it in the first place. Also, using best practices in designing the consumable parts of it can make a huge difference from a successful ebook to a flop. Pro Tip: Use appropriate font size and line-spacing. As simple as it might sound, this is the no. 1 mistake people make when they create ebooks.

No quality work is sufficient, if it doesn't get found. No book (ebook) is good enough, if it doesn't get read. Understand the keywords that potential audiences would search to find your content. A great way to do this is start with a tool like semrush and review your competitors' websites. It will give you a lot of potential keywords. Another source (for free) is using Google keyword planner. Remember that the words with the biggest possible audience are likely to have the most competition. Therefore, go for longtail keywords. For example, "cars" can be everything from a Disney movie to repair to buying. Therefore, "used antique cars in Tulsa" will have a much smaller audience but that audience will actually want what you sell.

So, there are 2 ways one can optimise for the SEO. Either the ebook's topic is the one which has the relevant search volume and is expected to bring in traffic, then in that case, yes everything from Title, Meta Tags to be updated with relevant keywords (apart from some off page). Other approach is that the lead page is the one that needs to be SEO optimised. So, depending on the use-case, you need to get the ball rolling! :)

Engage in multichannel marketing and make sure you cover all your platforms. You want to be able to spread value all around, mo matter what channel.

Your audience isn't in one place, they're everywhere. If you opt for a single-channel approach you're only hitting a small percentage of your target market. You also need to think about how people consume content, test out different forms across multiple channels. If you reach people through a podcast create a video as well, turn the podcast into a blog post, send it out via email. There are so many channels to reach people through, don't focus all efforts on just one.

Sponsoring popular/relevant newsletters to promote your ebook is one of the surefire ways to put it out there in front of an existing audience. Got 600+ leads like this, from a single sponsorship.

Targeted Messaging Tailor your promotion messaging to the specific audience of each channel. What works on social media might differ from what resonates in a webinar.

In a world of fleeting attention spans and boundless options, the art of promotion rests upon strategic omniscience. The channels are the conduits, and your content, the protagonist of an unfolding narrative. Each platform offers an opportunity to engage, to educate, and ultimately, to entice. The synergy of these channels transcends the sum of their parts, and when orchestrated adeptly, they coalesce into an ecosystem where your content thrives, your audience is captivated, and your business reaps the rewards.

Most sales happen in the follow-up, so don't skip this important step! Few people are convinced to make a purchase after just one touchpoint. Setting up a nurture sequence after the initial download is a great way to keep showing those warm leads that you're the answer to their problems. Don't repeat yourself and don't spam potential clients' inboxes, but keep in touch with relevant, helpful information. That way, when they're ready to make that purchase, your company is the first one that springs to mind.

To avoid: There are so many generic "lead magnets" that are built on clickbait titles. If you do that, you capture an email address / phone number with a contact who will never ever be interested in your brand. To do: Create content with an amazing business value that nobody else creates. It has to be useful and relevant to the specific audience you are serving. If it's not specific enough it can't be highly relevant. Sometimes you can serve a broader audience and create brand awareness, in such cases, don't expect immediate lead generation impact.

I love Notion and Gumroad (both offer free versions) for hosting products like this because I can organize my favorite content in one place. Consider your "delivery" options. Podia is also a great choice.

Promote your ebook or whitepaper well to your target audience. You can do this through email marketing, social media, paid advertising, and other channels. Make it visually appealing. Use images, charts, and graphs to break up your text and make your ebook or whitepaper more visually appealing. Craft a compelling title to grab attention. The cover design should be attractive and provide a glimpse of the content's value. Create a dedicated landing page for your lead magnet. Include a concise description, benefits, and a prominent call-to-action (CTA) for downloading. Keep the form fields minimal to reduce friction.