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1. How to create an offer that generates leads?

The first step in the process of converting website visitors into leads is the offer. 


An offer is like a carrot that you dangle in front of your site visitors to tempt them into giving you their contact information. If the offer is useful enough to them, they'll happily give you their contact information in exchange for it.

Remember that you want to create offers that will appeal to new visitor to your site (those whose contact information you do not currently have) as well as existing leads in your system (those that you uploaded as part of your Get Started Checklist a little while ago).

The nature of these offers might differ slightly, depending on who you’re targeting for conversion (or reconversion), but the way offers work is the same no matter what.

How Offers Get You Leads

For every offer that you create, you should be setting up the following elements (we'll teach you how to build each of them in future steps):
  • Call to Action (CTA) - an image or text link on your website that teases what the offer is, and entices visitors to click through to a landing page
  • Landing Page - where you fully explain what the offer includes. A landing page always includes a form.
  • Form - where you collect the visitor's contact information in exchange for the promised offer.
  • Email or lead nurturing campaign - where you link to an offer via email or lead nurturing campaign to prompt your existing leads to reconvert
Conversion Path

After a user fills out the form, they become a lead and should be sent to a "thank you" page.
  • Thank You Page - where new leads are sent after submitting their form info. This page includes the promised offer and CTAs leading to different offers/landing pages further along the buying cycle


What You Should Offer

In the end you'll want to end up with a range of offers where each appeals to a different segment of your audience - that way, you're ensuring that no matter who hits your site, there's a carrot that will be appealing to them. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
  • Free guides
  • Free consult / analysis / report
  • Free whitepapers
  • Free videos
  • Free kits (combinations of assets - whitepapers, videos, reports, etc.)
  • Free samples
  • Contests
Click here to download free marketing offer templates to customize for your own needs!

11 Ways to Create Offers from Existing Content

1. Whitepaper or eBook: Compile three (3) to five (5) blog posts that discussed similar topics and combine them into a whitepaper or eBook. You can also write a whitepaper or eBook from a previous research study or data set.

2. Tip Sheet: Create a tip sheet that outlines how people could use your product or service to help them with their problem or need. For example, if you're a plumber you could create a Tips Sheet on "How to Troubleshoot a Clogged Drain."

3. Top 10 Industry Trends: Document the ten latest trends impacting your industry this year. Write a short summary on ten new industry developments or write what you think will be the ten biggest changes to your industry during the next year.

4.How-To Guides: Create simple guides for your prospects to download and help them with a problem. For example, if you’re selling mortgages, create a guide to picking the right mortgage for you.

5.Checklist: Create a checklist of steps people could take to solve the problem that your product/service solves. For example, if you’re a moving service, create a packing checklist visitors can download.

6. Common Questions: Write down the ten or 20 questions you most commonly hear and create a tip sheet or guide that answers each question.

7. Product Demo Videos: Create a video that shows off all of your product’s features and benefits. At the end of the video, give the lead an option to download a product use case document.

8. LinkedIn Question and Answers: Go to LinkedIn Answers and find every question and answer that relates to your industry. Compile them together in an eBook format.

9. Kits of Material: Compile some of your related eBooks, guides, tip sheets and blog articles into a compelling Downloadable Kit offer.

10. Sales Team Materials: If you have a sales team, ask them what material they send to prospects that convince them to convert. Package this material into a toolkit visitors can download.

11. Case Studies: Show off your leading customers and share their success with future customer.  Video record their testimonials for even more content and to build credibility. Offer the case studies as free downloads.
When you've created your offer, you'll then create a landing page that includes a form visitors will need to fill out in order to receive this offer. Next, you'll learn how to create this landing page!