Are you one of those marketers or business owners who ask themselves what to do with their content? Do you want to release it for free, or do you want to gain information in exchange for a piece of content?
Gauge your marketing goal before publishing the content. If you want to generate leads, gated content can help you. Keep on reading to learn more about this strategy, how it works, and how you can start using gated content.
Gated Content and How It Works
Gated content is giving readers access to online material by filling out a form. Before they can access the content, they need to provide basic personal information, including name and email address. Through this, you will determine who your potential customers are and their interests. It also can be in the form of guides, product demos, white papers, and webinars.
When a user arrives at your web page, a call-to-action or pop-up will appear, providing free access to content in exchange for basic personal details. After they give the information, you can lead the readers to a landing page where they will learn what’s in store for them when they acquire the content.
Keep in mind that gated content aims to generate leads, not raise brand awareness and visibility. The users do not need to pay to get a piece of content. If you are wondering why the content is hidden from the audience, it is primarily because you want to get leads and create targeted content for them.
Best Practices in Using Gated Content
If you have decided about your marketing goal, here’s a guide to kickstart gated content that fits lead generation.
1. Create Valuable and Relatable Content
Before anything else, make sure that you are providing content wherein the readers can relate and learn. It is the real incentive for the target audience. To create an effective lead magnet, keep the following in mind.
- Relevance of the content to your business brand
- Lead the users by incorporating actionable words
- Provide valuable information that can be shared and used as a reference
2. Develop a Gated Content Landing Page
After creating engaging and valuable content, build a landing page. Take note that this page is where the readers will opt-in to access your content. Don’t forget to create a compelling headline and excellent call to action to captivate the audience’s attention.
In your gated content landing page, you need to integrate a form. Make the opt-in form concise and short. You can ask them for their name, email addresses, and interests for future reference. Plus, people are more likely to respond and fill out concise opt-in forms. You can use a WordPress management company, like Salt Manage, to create an appealing landing page for you that converts leads into customers.
3. Provide Incentive
True value is your utmost priority in creating gated content. As a marketer, you don’t want your readers to leave the website without taking action. Make your content relevant to your target market. More than that, think of your content as a token of appreciation to your audience.
Since they filled out the form and provided personal details, it would be great if your article is cut down into short blogs. This way, they will anticipate regular updates about the topic. Moreover, it showcases your knowledge and authority around that specific topic.
4. Analyze Your Competitors
After brainstorming and creating content ideas for different stages of a potential client, determine and analyze your competitors. While some content can be gated, some should still be ungated. Through competitive analysis, you will see what content they create.
By analyzing their moves and strategies, you will learn how you can set yourself apart from them. Moreover, it helps you in deciding which content needs to be gated and ungated.
5. Decide How Readers Can Access Your Content
There are various ways to connect to your target audience after they opt-in and access the content. But first, carefully think about what works best for the marketing and your market. Here are some of the options you can use:
- Send the content through their email
- Provide a downloadable link
- Redirect the users to another web page
6. Monitor Conversions
After successfully launching gated content, it would be useful to measure its conversion. Does it provide leads? Does it turn readers into clients? You want to know if they take action, follow the steps, and sign up to acquire the content.
There are various ways to measure conversions, including Google Analytics and marketing software. Through WordPress management, you can also track your conversions.
How to Integrate Gated Content
These are some of the best gated content to use for your business.
1. White Papers and Ebooks
Both contents are in long-form, ensuring that the target audience who proceeds is interested in the topic. White papers and ebooks can provide your brand power and expertise because of their authoritative report on a particular topic.
People will subscribe and download your offer because they see that you are an expert in this field.
2. Webinars
Do you want an engaging method of gated content? Through a webinar, you get the chance to speak in front of an audience. Educating them helps build trust and relationships.
If your prospect is in the decision-making stage, webinars can accommodate them because it offers value. But as with all other marketing strategies, make sure that this type of gated content suits your potential clients.
Key Takeaways
The primary purpose of gated content is to gain leads and turn them into buyers. But it will only be successful if you think about the target market demographics and interests. In the business industry, you also need to keep in mind that buyers are now smarter. They want to ensure that they will benefit and gain value from your content.
Hopefully, you can learn how to create effective gated content and incorporate gated content into your marketing strategy. Let your brand stand out by deciding which content suits your audience and by understanding the growing competition.
