The Biggest Lead Generation Mistakes You Can Make Before a Launch

“I just need more people on my email list.” It’s the muttered, under-the-breath prayer of every small business owner preparing for an upcoming launch. A longer email list seems like it would be the golden ticket for success. But the longest email list in the world doesn’t mean your launch will be a success if it’s full of the wrong kind of leads. 

The way I see it, there are three common lead generation mistakes. If you can avoid them, you’ll be well on your way to creating an email list that’s worth its weight in gold!

Mistake #1: Using the wrong opt-in

With freebies, the idea is that someone wants to download your freebie and they’ll love it so much they’ll want to buy your expensive offer. But here’s the problem: that person who just opted into your freebie wants a low-cost solution — they’re not really into your high-priced offer.

Here’s an example: A copywriter could have a freebie about how to write your website. Super helpful, and lots of people need that, so it’s guaranteed to get some traction and leads. But then the upsell is for their launch copy services. That’s a pretty giant leap from writing a website — launching a product isn’t the same as website copy, and the customers who need help with website copy aren’t quite ready for a product launch! 

Here’s another example: A business coach creates a freebie about small mindset-busting, but their upsell is to get people to buy their sales coaching course. It’s not going to work. Just because you want to bust a specific type of mindset doesn’t mean that you’re ready for a sales coaching course. This type of conversion brings in the wrong leads and that coach is going to be bummed when her sales program doesn’t… well, sell. Oh, the irony.

Mistake #2: Opt-ins that don’t make sense at all 

This one is pretty self-explanatory. If your freebie doesn’t connect to your offers, it’s not going to work, i.e., you can’t make a freebie about how to make Reels go viral if you create web design templates. You can’t upsell people to something totally different. So make sure there is a clear connection between your freebie and your offers, and even think about it as a value ladder.

What can you give them to solve part of their problem now? What can you offer as a next step that solves the next part of their problem? And what's the third step they need help with? That’s how your lead generation strategy should work — by figuring out where people are at multiple points in their journey. Then, you can generate leads at each point with opt-ins that match their needs.

Mistake #3: Opt-ins that lead to a super complicated funnel

Skip the complex sales funnel. Unless you’ve got a super streamlined offer stack (i.e., you’re a mind reader who knows what offer someone wants after they opt-in for your freebie), it’s not worth it. Just give the people what they want – the freebie! Once they have your freebie and see its value, you nurture the relationship via email, ad retargeting, and genuine relationship-building.

If you give them the freebie, upsell them to a low-cost offer, add in another one-time offer, AND then try to upsell them to your course or high-end offer, you’re going to annoy them and get blocked. I am annoyed just writing all that out.

Keep the point of contact simple and in line with your other offers. It’s the first step you want to take to create a seamless, conversion-happy launch. Plus, people will see that they can go to you for what they need, instead of jumping through a bajillion hoops to find the solution they want.

Poor leads can lead to a launch disaster

This whole month of October, I’m talking about Frankenlaunches – the jumbled mess of ideas that create a launch monster. You might not think that a cobbled-together launch starts with your leads, but it does. Think about it. If you’re trying to sell to an audience of people who aren’t really your ideal buyer, you’ll probably throw everything at the wall to see what sticks.

1-month sales period? Sure!
Nobody is buying? Better throw in a huge bonus!
Nobody opening your emails? Send them more!

It all starts to spiral when the people you’re selling to don’t want to buy. That’s why I want you to attend my upcoming workshop, How to Defeat the Frankenlaunch.

It’s happening October 19th at 1:00p ET and we’re digging into: 

• What the Frankenlaunch is and how to identify it
• Who’s susceptible to the Frankenlaunch
• Cures for the Frankenlaunch
• How you can defeat the Frankenlaunch
• How to avoid being affected by the Frankenlaunch in the future
  

I don’t want you regretting your launch creation. I want you to feel like you’ve created something that really helps you sell and serves your audience (because your audience is made of leads that want to buy from you).

Want to learn about the Frankenlaunch and how to avoid it? Make sure to save your spot for this workshop on October 19th at 1:00p ET!