Ahh — the elusive optin. It’s one of those things that we know we need to have in business, yet struggle with creating one that actually helps our business.
Optins go by many names these days: lead magnet, content upgrade, freebie, etc.
They all are a piece of content you’re putting out into the world in exchange for an email address to continue the conversation, and hopefully, convert into paying customers.
On this episode, I’m going to break down step by step how to create a killer optin for your business AND the downfalls to avoid.
Let’s start at the beginning: a lead magnet is right up there near the top of your funnel if you’re picturing a funnel with me now as you listen.
The top is actually all of your content, social media — basically all the ways you’re getting visibility. The optin, the hook that grabs the attention of the visitor and turns them into a stranger, into a lead.
The whole point of an optin is to give a tease or taste of what you do and/or solve a baby problem that then agitates a bigger problem your offer can solve.
Here’s something to help you frame it: 98% of the people interacting with you, visiting your website or checking you out online are not ready to buy ANYTHING — so that’s where the optin comes in.
Here’s how you map it out:
When I help clients map out a potential opt-in idea, the first question is always:
What are you trying to get them to do… basically, what’s the point?
If you don’t know what the purpose is, then there’s no point in creating it. It has to actually be useful, have immense value AND lead to your offer in some way.
Here is an example: if you’re a nutritionist and you’re trying to get your leads to sign up for a nutrition coaching program and they happen to also have Chron’s disease — and are struggling with medication, or multiple surgeries, something like How Making These 5 Changes To Your Diet Can Help Manage Chron’s Without Medicine would be a great killer option.
Don’t you think that someone who downloads that eBook could potentially be a good candidate for your program — and that you need to continue the conversation and get to know them more to see?
That’s the magic of a good optin — it helps to narrow your lead pool so that qualified people start to join your email list.
If you go back to my Chron’s disease optin — it arouses curiosity. If you’re someone who hates dealing with the effects and unpredictability of Chron’s AND also hates medicine, two big pain points for this audience, you’ll instantly be intrigued by the optin.
The other purposes that optins can serve are:
– Curiosity
– To teach
– To peel back the curtain
– A collection of resources
– Secrets/hacks
– Save time or make them look better
Now here’s where most people get stuck:
1. They have no idea what to create.
This is a valid problem because there are so many potential ideas you could do. If you’re unsure of what the BEST optin to create is, first — take a deep breath because you’re likely a perfectionist, I can spot them a mile away.
Then try these things:
• Look at what titles in your industry/niche are already selling well on the Kindle store and Amazon bestsellers list.
• Check out the comments on popular blogs/posts by other authors (or your own if you get a lot of traffic/comments) to see what’s NOT covered that they’re still asking questions about.
• Review your own Google Analytics to see what posts you’re creating are popular.
• Check out Quora and see what questions in your industry/niche are being asked.
All of these ideas will give you a good idea of what the hot topics are, where the gaps are in the market, and who your ideal target really is.
2. They’re creating too many optins simply because they like to.
Now I can raise my hand, I have an entire backlog of optins (all super useful, not all tied to my offers along the years). This my friend, is a HUGE problem, and the one I see the most… well besides having no offers.
We entrepreneurs seem to be the all or nothing type.
Just because you CAN create it, doesn’t mean you should.
Tattoo this on your arm if you have more than two optins you’re currently promoting on your website.
The problem will too many optins is that 1) it leads to confusion by your lead 2) they usually don’t tie into your offer, so they never convert and are deadweight on your list and 3) its’ really hard to gauge if you’re actually hitting the mark with your marketing messaging if you’re not consistent.
The No. 1 rule with optins — is that you have ONE optin to promote everywhere and that’s it. Anything else you create should be a content upgrade (attached to a blog post at the end) or part of a paid program/workshop, etc.
3. They don’t know what format to put their optin in.
This is a simple one — and usually becomes a problem when there is analysis paralysis. Here’s are a few of the best-converting types of optins that you can pick one and get started with:
• A free trial/sample — could for software, products, tools, etc.
• A checklist
• A coupon/deal
• A quiz/assessment
• Swipe Files/Templates
• Cheatsheets
• Webinar/ Video Training
• Toolkits
• Free consultations
• Ebooks/ Reports
• Favorites list (linked to your Amazon affiliate products, of course!)
Now, you’ve gone through how to find a good topic, what type of optin to create, how to make sure it’s actually helping your business… the final question that you need to ask is:
Would someone actually pay for this?
If the answer is no, your optin is either too vague or not helpful enough. While you can certainly give away too much — for most people, they don’t give enough in an optin and it turns to quick unsubscribes — which makes everyone sad.
Now my friends, go create a killer optin.
About Marketing Magic:
The Marketing Magic podcast is where women entrepreneurs trying to do all the things come to get inspiration, business strategy, and on-air coaching on how to get their business noticed and growing. If you have a business that people need to know about in order for it to grow, you’re in the right place. This is the place to uncomplicate your marketing. Be sure to listen, subscribe, and leave a review! Join the conversation of other unapologetically successful women in her Facebook community, The #girlboss Club.
