Lead magnet

A template, a checklist, a calculator, a short course. The purpose is not the gift; it is starting a relationship with someone who has a problem you can eventually solve.

The best lead magnets solve a small, sharply-defined piece of the larger problem you charge for - enough to prove competence, not enough to remove the need.

The list is the asset, and the arithmetic shows why. A page converting at 30% with a thousand visitors a month adds three hundred subscribers. Three thousand subscribers at a 40% open rate, with 2% of openers buying a $200 product, is $4,800 from one campaign - repeatable, from an audience that cost nothing per send.

The usual failure is a magnet unrelated to what you sell. A generic checklist attracts people who wanted a free checklist, and builds a large list that never buys. The test before making one: is the person who wants this the same person who has the problem I charge to solve? If not, the subscribers are a cost, not an asset.