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How To Use Gated Content In Your Marketing Campaigns

Want to make people want your offer?  Take it away.

Have you ever come across an article, report, video or other online content that requires you to “sign up” for full access?

Perhaps you had to enter your name and email, or maybe a phone number.  Perhaps you got to see part of report or maybe you got bonuses by signing up. These are examples of a marketing tactic called gated content.

What is Gated Content?

Gated content allows a marketer to hide value and release it in exchange for information.  As you may be able to imagine, this makes gated content one of the most controversial types of marketing online.

A lot of online marketing tactics rely on giving free information and value without reciprocation. Gated content on the other hand, forces customers to make the decision to input their personal info or leave the page. In a way, this type of marketing tactic aggressively forces the customer’s hand.

If done poorly, it can not only turn customers off forever, but it can create a low engagement rate, low conversion rate, reduce the user’s time on page and increase your bounce rate.  In other words, it can severely hurt your marketing efforts and even cost you tons of money.

However, if you can manage to properly use content gating, you’re almost guaranteed to increase your engagement and conversions and it can even help create a better relationship with your audience.

The Purpose Of Gated Content

You’ve probably already figured out that the purpose of gated content is typically to get a lead.

If you’re unfamiliar with what a “lead” is, it’s essentially contact information of a potential client.  Most commonly, an email, a name or in some cases, a phone number.

The information that a customer enters in exchange for your content often becomes part of a larger marketing plan.

For instance, if you are trying to sell your new diet program, maybe your gated content is an article talking about tips on fat loss and its gated 50% down the page.  This means that when someone hits the 50% mark they’re prompted to enter their email to continue reading the post. That email can then be used to promote the diet program your brand is selling.

With all of this being said, some brands use gated content just to build an email list.  At some point that list will be monetized, but from the beginning perhaps a relationship will be established using a newsletter format.

Types Of Content

Obviously, the first thing you’re going to need to know is what kind of content you can use in your marketing campaigns.

Arguably the most popular content to gate includes articles and blog posts. Most gated posts of this nature allow access to a portion of the content and then require the consumer to “sign up” to continue reading. This works really well if the content is longer form, or provides immense amounts of value all in one space.

Beyond the traditional post, it’s also possible to use a gate on videos, reports, cheat sheets, checklists, webinars, and other resources.  The possibilities are endless with content, but the key is to make sure the content is worth signing up for.

Ask yourself if your customers will be eager to enter their email for the content, if not, think of something else.  It’s better to come up with new lead magnets than to lose a customer forever

Creating Your Content

After you’ve determined the type of content you want to create, it’s time to create it.

As already mentioned, the value you provide is of utmost importance. Beyond value, ask yourself if the lead is relevant and actionable. In other words, is it something your audience wants and can action be taken on it today?

Also ask yourself if it’s something that will eventually lead to a sale.  Obviously, you want to provide authentic and helpful information, but you also need to make a living.

While most people create gated content campaigns in order to sell a product, it’s also a great way to create a list for a newsletter and future monetization opportunities. If that’s the case for you, feel free to brainstorm various creative ideas for lead magnets and even ask your current audience what type of content they’d like created.

After you’ve created your content you’ll just need to install a content gate on your page using an program of your choosing and you’ll be good to go!

The end goal of any marketer is to make money selling products that they believe in.  That’s what gated content when properly used allows you to do.  It forces the customer to make a decision, and that impulsivity allow you to either market a product outright or to create a relationship with your customer by sending them newsletters.

However you decide to use gated content in your marketing plans, remember that your customer is putting a lot of faith and trust in you by giving you their information.  Make sure you earn it and keep it!

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