AI Summary:
Want to grow your email list with warm, high-quality leads? This blog reveals 5 powerful lead magnet types—quizzes, checklists, guides, video series, and challenges—and shows you how to create, promote, and monetise them like a pro. Whether you’re a business owner or marketing VA, you’ll get actionable steps to turn free value into real conversions, plus tools to automate it all using OBMHub.
5 Lead Magnet Ideas to Grow Your Email List Fast (Quizzes, PDFs, Checklists, Challenges and Video)
Want to grow your email list with warm leads who actually want to hear from you (and buy from you)? It’s time to master the art of lead magnets. Whether it’s a quiz, checklist, PDF guide, or mini-training, lead magnets are one of the most powerful and underused tools for list building and long-term monetisation. And the best part? They work around the clock.
In this blog, I’ll walk you through what lead magnets are, why they’re essential for your business growth, and the exact steps to create, promote, monetise, and manage them effectively, whether you’re the business owner or part of the marketing team.
What Is a Lead Magnet?
A lead magnet is a valuable piece of content or offer that you give away for free in exchange for someone’s contact details (usually their email address). Think of it as your business’s “free sample.” But instead of a nibble of cheese at the supermarket, you’re offering something useful and actionable that positions your brand as the go-to solution.
Examples include:
- A quiz that reveals their gaps
- A checklist that simplifies a complex process
- A PDF guide with expert insights
- A video series
- A challenge or mini course
Why Lead Magnets Work (and Why Most Business Owners Get It Wrong)
You know those “Download my free eBook” offers that collect digital dust? Yeah, those don’t work anymore unless they’re hyper-targeted, value-packed, and strategically integrated into your marketing system.
Here’s why a well-crafted lead magnet is a must:
- Builds trust and authority: It shows you know your stuff.
- Qualifies your leads: You attract the right people who actually want what you offer.
- Nurtures future clients: Email allows you to build a relationship that turns clicks into clients.
- Automates lead generation: Once set up, they run while you sleep (or sip cocktails).
Step-by-Step: How to Create a Killer Lead Magnet
Step 1: Know Your Audience (and Their Pain Points)
Before you create anything, ask:
- What’s keeping them up at night?
- What’s one small win I can help them achieve quickly?
Example: A business owner struggling with marketing management and looking to outsource might love “The Ultimate VA Marketing Checklist.”
Step 2: Choose the Right Format
Pick a format based on your audience’s learning style, the complexity of the topic, and what you can deliver easily:
Examples
| Pain Point | Lead Magnet Format |
| Overwhelm & confusion | Checklist or guide |
| Self-diagnosis needed | Quiz |
| Need a quick win | 5-minute mini-training or challenge |
| Need structure
Visually |
PDF checklist or workbook
Step by step video tutorial |
Step 3: Create Value (Without Giving Everything Away)
The lead magnet should:
- Solve one specific problem
- Be quick to consume (think under 10 minutes)
- Lead naturally to your paid offer
Bonus tip: Make sure your branding is on point, visually and in tone.
Step 4: Build the Funnel
This is where your software or VA earns their keep.
Here’s what’s needed:
- Landing page with qualifying headline (hook), benefit bullets, and opt-in form
- Thank you page with the download or next steps (bonus: upsell or book a call)
- Follow-up email sequence (3–5 emails) to build trust and offer your service/product
Use platforms like OBMHub to automate the entire workflow or build the quiz.. List growth without the tech drama.
How to Monetise Your Lead Magnet
You didn’t just create that checklist to collect compliments. Let’s get strategic:
1. Add a Soft Sell in Your Follow-Up Emails
Talk about your results. Share success stories. Offer a call or direct link to your paid offer. Make the CTA conversational, not pushy.
2. Use It as a Sales Conversation Starter
Got someone sliding into your DMs? Send them to your quiz or PDF first. It qualifies them and makes you look pro.
3. Retarget and Upsell
Use your list to segment and retarget based on what they downloaded or clicked. Then offer:
- Sessions
- Groups training
- Online Courses
- Trials
- First time buyers discounts
4. Partner Up
Use your lead magnet as a “value add” for partnerships, guest podcasts, JV, events, or even giveaways.
How to Manage and Optimise It
Let’s talk maintenance, because this is where most businesses drop the ball.
Weekly:
- Check your opt-in numbers
- Track email open and click-through rates
- Tweak subject lines, headlines and call to actions if needed
Monthly:
- Repurpose the content into blogs, social posts, and videos
- Promote it again across your channels (remember: not everyone saw it the first time)
Quarterly:
- Update the content to keep it fresh and relevant
- Test a new format or angle (e.g. turn a PDF into a quiz)
Grow Your List
Let’s bring these lead magnets to life with examples that don’t just attract leads, they convert them. Each one below is something we use (or help clients build) every day to grow their list and their income.
1. Quiz – “Where’s Your Marketing Gap?”
Example: “What’s Missing in Your Marketing Machine?”
A quick, fun quiz that helps business owners pinpoint where their online marketing is breaking down — is it strategy, systems, visibility, or VA support?
Perfect for: Business owners who feel stuck or scattered.
Outcome: Segments leads by their biggest pain point so you can offer tailored solutions, whether that’s a plan, a system upgrade, or management.
2. Checklist – “The Ultimate VA Marketing Checklist”
Example: “All the Tasks a VA Can and Should Be Doing to Grow Your Business”
A powerhouse checklist that gives clarity on what tasks to delegate to a VA to stay visible, generate leads, and build consistent marketing momentum.
Perfect for: Business owners with VAs or marketing support staff.
Outcome: Makes delegation easier and naturally leads into your VA marketing strategy program or OBMHub for marketing management.
3. PDF Guide – “Hot Leads on Repeat”
Example: “How to Attract and Convert Leads Without Paid Ads”
Our downloadable guide gives you the exact strategy to bring in high-quality leads consistently using organic content, smart calls to action, and value-first lead magnets.
Perfect for: Purpose-led service providers wanting more leads without the marketing mayhem.
Outcome: Builds trust, drives authority, and naturally segues into working with you for marketing strategy or setting up OBMHub automations.
4. Video Series – “How to Get Sales on Your Website (Without Paid Ads)”
Example: “6-Part Training: Turn Your Website, Social Media and Goodle into a Sales Machine”
A powerful short-form video series that walks business owners through how to optimise their site for visibility, credibility, and conversions, without needing a redesign or a massive ad budget.
Perfect for: Coaches, consultants, and online providers.
Outcome: Shows the power of strong messaging and funnels, and leads beautifully into booking a session or using OBMHub to build out the backend.
5. Mini Challenge – “3-Day REEL Challenge”
Example: “Create 3 High-Converting Instagram Reels in 3 Days”
A quick, action-packed challenge delivered via email, facebook group or LMS where we teach you how to script, film, and post Reels that build trust, attract leads, and drive traffic to your offers.
Perfect for: Business owners and VAs who know they should be doing Reels… but don’t know where to start.
Outcome: Builds momentum, creates engagement, and opens the door to your socials strategy program or ongoing support.
Don’t Just Create—Leverage
Creating a lead magnet is not just a “nice to have”, it’s a non-negotiable if you want predictable leads and sales. But the power is not just in creating one. It’s in the system that supports it, the nurture that follows it, and the strategy that monetises it.
Need help designing one that fits your business, brand, and ideal audience?
Unsure of your marketing gaps? Discover yours here.
Need software to deliver your lead magnet funnel?
If you’re tired of duct-taping together tech and want an easy way to build high-converting quizzes, mini-trainings, and a lead magnet system that flows — check out OBMHub.
Inside OBMHub, you can:
- Build interactive quizzes that segment and convert
- Deliver PDFs, checklists, and mini-trainings through your own branded LMS (Learning Management System)
- Automate emails, nurture sequences, and funnels — all in one place
- Get live support and setup help so you can grow without the tech headaches
👉 Start your OBMHub journey today — with free setup, onboarding, and training to get your lead magnets up and converting in no time.
Visit OBMHub →
