9 Opt-in Freebie Mistakes - Don't Make Them!

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9 Opt-in Freebie Mistakes – Don’t Make Them!

So you don’t want your Opt-in to suck or fail… give yourself a pat on the back!! I mean it.  Why bother putting all this work into an Opt-in Freebie so you can have two people sign up.  If you want to make Blogging your Business then that’s not going to get you very far.

Some of these mistakes I have personally made and some of them I was lucky to stumble upon beforehand which helped me to avoid them all together.  Hopefully this list will help you avoid ALL OF THEM.

Before we get into the actual mistakes themselves, let just take a quick moment to chat about why you are doing this in the first place.  None of these will matter if you are not creating an Opt-in that provides value to your readers.  If it doesn’t provide value to them, it doesn’t matter how pretty, how much you market or how well branded it is, your readers won’t be interested in trading their email address for it.

Because that’s the point…. you give them value and they give you their sacred email address.

So first and foremost, take some time to make sure what you are creating doesn’t suck and then the tips below will help you make it shine!

As promised, I’m going to help you out big time and give you this FREE Opt-in Freebie Workbook that you can use right away to figure out exactly what your audience needs!

Last quick note (I promise).  In case you are wondering, I trust, use and recommend Mailerlite.  I have used/Paid for Converkit and I’ve tried Mailchimp and as far as I’m concerned, they don’t even compare. It’s also completely free for up to 1000 subscribers and then still much cheaper and more user friendly than Converkit!


Now that we have that figured out, let’s talk about all the things that your NOT going to do.

Lead Magnet Mistake #1

Information Overload

The last thing you want is for your reader to feel overwhelmed with soo much information that they don’t even want to finish reading your freebie!  This will make them lose confidence and chances are the will probably delete the next email they receive from you!

Keep it concise and straightforward and stick to what is actually providing them with value.

Lead Magnet Mistake #2

Not letting your Brand shine

There is a reason why branding is soo important.  You want people to easily recognize who you are so they can spot you and gravitate towards your content.  Make sure each page of you Opt-in Freebie has at minimum your web address.

If you can include a logo, brand colors and stick to brand fonts, that’s even better!

We’ve got three great sets of full editable Opt-in Freebie Templates that you can use to create, eBooks, worksheets, checklists, planners etc.. And.. They are available for both Canva and InDesign.  You can literally create the look of you Opt-in Freebie in minutes!

This is our most popular Opt-in Freebie Templates Collection for Canva and InDesign (click the image to check out our shop!):

Lead Magnet Mistake #3:

Not making it easy to find

I know the old saying goes Quality over Quantity but in this case we want BOTH.  Make sure your Opt-in Freebie is great but then also place it all over your website so people notice it. Make sure it’s included in your Sidebar, within your blog posts and you can even do a pop up to really get their attention.  Don’t assume everyone will notice it just because you put it in the side bar or one blog post.

Make them notice it!

Lead Magnet Mistake #4:

Not Enticing readers with Great Graphics

It’s one thing to create an actual awesome Opt-in but how you present that Opt-in for download is sadly even more important!  It might be the best Opt-in ever but if the graphics to sign up suck or aren’t there at all… you might find it challenging to get people to actually sign up.

You want something that catches their attention and gives your readers a Call to Action.  Tell them what to do.  I know that sounds bossy but it works!

You can also find this great Canva Blog Post Opt-in Template in our Freebie Library!

Lead Magnet Mistake #5:

Not making it easy to get access to

We want to make it as easy as possible the reader to get their freebie.  If they have to go through a 5-step process, chances are they will say forget it before they even finish.  The whole point is to provide value to get their email address so make it as easy as possible for them to give it to you!

Lead Magnet Mistake #6:

Not making sure the system works

Just because you set it all up, doesn’t mean it’s working properly.  Take the time to test out by signing up for the opt-in yourself and go through the reader’s experience. People will be hesitant to trust you if they sign up for something and give their email address and they don’t get what they were promised!

Lead Magnet Mistake #7:

Not asking them to get in touch with you

The Opt-in Freebie was the first step to your reader getting to know you.  They already think you have something of value for them, so take the opportunity to further the conversation with a personal invite!  Even if they don’t get in touch, they see that you are willing and waiting if they ever do want to connect in the future!

Lead Magnet Mistake #8:

Not letting them know what’s next

I always like to say, “Join our community to get your FREE…” that way they know right from the get-go that I want to be able to continue to send them emails after the opt-in freebie!  I can add them to my weekly newsletter so they get blog post updates and I can also send them extra updates when I have a shop promotion or new products that are being released!

They won’t feel like they are getting spammed if I told them in advance that they weren’t just getting the Opt-in Freebie but they were joining my newsletter.  PS. Don’t spam people regardless.  Your readers don’t want to hear from you 50 times a week.  Having a weekly RSS feed let’s them get the your recent upgrades without being overwhelming!

Lead Magnet Mistake #9:

Under Promoting the Opt-in

Yes, you already have it on your website, but you also need to splatter the crap out of it all over social media.  Make sure to promote at least 1-2 times a month on all your Social Outlets and keep it on your regular Pinterest Schedule. 

Make sure you have several different pins to attract maximum coverage.  Another great trick for something like an eCourse is to have a pin for each day of the course. Maybe the content on one of the day’s will specifically attract someone that might not have thought to sign up!  This has been really successful for me!

So…. Don’t make those Opt-in Freebie Mistakes!

Make sure to also see our post on How to Get your First 1000 Email Subscribers!

I hope I’ve given you enough to consider so you don’t make these mistakes and you make the most out of your Opt-in Freebie!

Got any questions about one you already created or any big mistakes you made and learned from?  Comment below, I would love to hear about it!

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My Secret-Sauce Checklist for Launching an Irresistible Lead Magnet
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Tasha DaCosta

Tasha DaCosta is the founder of Lady Boss Studio and Funnel Breezy, where she helps passionate female entrepreneurs create high-converting websites and sales funnels so they can grow their businesses with freedom and ease.

Tasha DaCosta | Lady Boss Studio
Hi, I'm Tasha!

Mama, Successful Business Owner, Forever Learner, Coffee Lover and Maker of Beautiful Things That Are Setup Make You Money.

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