If you have a website, you’re probably already using sign up forms in some way. Forms let you capture site visitor details — such as name, email, and phone number — so you can follow up on orders or send marketing emails.
But forms aren’t limited to newsletter sign-ups or demo bookings. You can also use forms to create gated content - an invaluable way to generate leads for small businesses.
Here, you’ll learn why gated content is an essential part of your lead gen strategy, and how to use forms to create effective gated content and capture must-have details. Plus, discover why lead generation campaigns are so important for small businesses.
What is gated content and why is it important?
Gated content refers to a valuable resource that site visitors can only access by submitting a form with their details. It’s a simple transaction, but one that can seriously benefit your business.
With gated content, you can:
- Capture details of people with an active interest in your product.
- Save information that’s important to you (such as a lead’s role, company size, or location).
- Create a database of first-party data that you can use freely (or at least as described in your privacy policy) so you won’t need to rely on third-party cookies.
- Use gated content as part of your lead scoring strategy to generate quality leads.
- Repurpose high-value content across email and social campaigns.
A strong gated content strategy can help you generate leads without a massive financial outlay, making it a really useful tool for small businesses.
How to create valuable gated content
For your gated content forms to generate the highest quality leads, you need to be strategic about the type of content your audience wants. Here’s how to create valuable gated content for your small business.
Identify your audience’s pain points
Knowing your ideal customer’s goals and challenges is essential for creating compelling gated content. Helping to resolve common pain points or reach common goals is a great way to come up with gated content ideas. Here are some examples:
- If your audience is marketers struggling with lead generation, create a guide on "10 Proven Lead Generation Tactics."
- To reach sales teams who want to close more deals, invite them to watch an exclusive webinar with an experienced salesperson.
- Target young people who find it hard to manage their money with a comprehensive checklist for organizing personal finances.
See 10 examples of effective gated content a little further down.
Decide on the format of your content
Find out how your target buyer prefers to digest information. For example, a busy CEO might prefer to read a quick report than attend a 30-minute webinar, while a social media exec might want to watch a short, engaging video rather than read a lengthy whitepaper.
There are tons of ways to present your resource, so you’ll need to choose the right one for your audience:
- Ebooks and whitepapers – For deep insights and research
- Webinars – For interactive learning and Q&As
- Templates and checklists – For practical tools
- Case studies – To show real-world success and proof
- Reports and industry insights – For data-driven credibility
- Tutorial videos – For how-to guides and demos
Offer as much value as possible
Make sure your site visitors don’t feel shortchanged by your content. Deliver what you promise, and include actionable steps and original insights. Additionally, ensure your content looks the part and consult a designer if necessary.
Include a clear next step to keep your lead engaged. Maybe recommend a demo, call, or trial, depending on the nature of your product.
Build your landing page
When your content is ready for download, it’s time to build out your landing page. The best landing pages for gated content include:
- An informative, attention-grabbing headline.
- A clear value proposition so readers know what to expect.
- A form that asks for the information you need.
- A compelling call-to-action.
When creating a form, only ask for the essentials. In general, the more information you request, the higher the barriers to conversion. That said, you may be able to request more information from users who are further down the sales funnel, as people begin to build trust in your brand.
Build campaigns around your content
Now your content is ready to launch, make sure people can see it. Build social media and email campaigns to gain exposure. If you have the budget, consider creating some paid media campaigns to promote your new content.
Repurpose your content to ensure you make the most of it. Use snippets as social media posts, create an infographic, or even use it as the basis for a webinar.
Track the performance of your landing pages and forms and, if necessary, optimize them to improve your conversion rate.
10 gated content examples for lead generation
Now you know how to build a successful gated content campaign, here are ten examples of gated content that can generate high-quality leads for your small business. Plus the pros and cons of each option.
Exclusive ebooks and whitepapers
Create in-depth guides, industry reports, or whitepapers that address specific pain points or industry trends. These long-form resources are popular gated content formats as they offer tons of value, both for readers and in terms of repurposing.
Example for social media agencies: "The Small Business Social Media Playbook: How to Attract and Engage Customers Online."
Pros:
- Positions you as an authority in your industry
- Lots of opportunities for repurposing the content
- Can help generate helpful organic backlinks to your website
Cons:
- Conducting original research can take several months
- You may need to hire an editor to prepare your ebook for publishing
Webinar and live event invitations
Require registration to attend a free webinar or event that will appeal to decision makers in your industry. As well as sending marketing materials before and after the event, you’ll have a captive audience throughout.
Example for software companies: “Learn about harnessing AI to boost sales with our expert panellists.”
Pros:
- Promote your product to a captive audience
- Demonstrate your own expertise by participating in discussions or delivering a talk
Cons:
- Panellists may require payment to appear (especially at live events)
- Live events in particular can be expensive to arrange
- Registrants may decide not to attend at the last minute
Create a rich library of resources
Create a range of different resources — think checklists, guides, and templates — then allow users to access these in exchange for their details. You could even offer access as a membership with different tiers (with added value for paid memberships).
Example for design agencies: “Explore our library of social media post templates to make scheduling simple.”
Pros:
- People will keep returning to your site to make use of your resources
- You can solve lots of different pain points via different resources
Cons:
- It’s time consuming to create lots of separate resources
- It may require more admin to set up memberships (especially with multiple tiers)
Offer a free trial, session, or audit
A limited-time trial is a great way to show how powerful your product is. Offer this in exchange for contact information so you can follow up and get useful feedback (or clinch a sale) when the trial is over.
Alternatively, consultants can offer free audits or strategy sessions. Leads can see the value you offer before committing financially.
Example for accounting software developers: “Use our invoicing software free for two weeks to see how it can simplify your accounting processes.”
Pros:
- Demonstrate the value of your product or service to close sales
- Get feedback from triallists even if they choose not to subscribe
Cons:
- You’ll need to invest in adequate resources (such as hosting and data architecture) to provide free trials
- May not be suitable or realistic for businesses with physical products
Create interactive tools or calculators
Build calculators, quizzes, or assessments that provide personalized results. You can then offer insights and even tailor future email campaigns based on the data you capture.
Example for financial advisors: “Calculate your potential return on investment when you seek our mortgage advice.”
Pros:
- Capture personalized results and create individualized campaigns based on these
- Create a user-friendly tool that people can share with others
Cons:
- You may need to hire a designer and/or developer to create professional-looking interactive tools
- Ensuring the tool works well across different browsers, devices, and operating systems can be tricky
Create downloadable case studies
Showcase your customer success stories in an engaging gated case study. You’ll need to ensure these contain information that’s relevant to potential customers, such as pain points, goals, budgets, and onboarding experience.
Example for sales software: "See how our customer increased conversions by 150% with our product."
Pros:
- Highlight real-world examples of how your product has solved a problem, building credibility and trust
- Case studies are evergreen, so they’ll continue to provide value long after they’re first published
Cons:
- You’ll need to get permission from clients to share their details and results
- Case studies must be highly engaging to keep readers interested
Create courses
Create a multi-part email course on a valuable topic to position yourself as a thought leader while also capturing valuable lead details.
Multi-part courses take time to build, and you’ll need to think carefully about how you present information to keep your audience engaged. Videos, quizzes, and activities can all contribute to interesting learning experiences.
Example for marketing agencies: "Master SEO in 7 days in this free email course."
Pros:
- A well-designed course positions you as an expert in your field
- Include upsell opportunities and sales pitches throughout the course
- Keep potential customers engaged for a longer period of time
Cons:
- It takes a lot of time and resources to build a course that offers true educational value
- Course content may need frequent updates to stay relevant
- You may attract visitors who aren’t necessarily interested in buying your product
Gate valuable video content
Create high-value gated video content (such as tutorials or exclusive interviews). Video is a massively popular format, so by investing in video content you can reach users on platforms like TikTok as well as generating leads.
Example for gym owners: "Watch our tutorial on how to deadlift with the right form."
Pros:
- Video is popular and engaging, especially if you have a highly visual product
- Demonstrate your knowledge while adding a personal touch, building trust with leads
- Use videos across multiple marketing channels
Cons:
- Videos must be engaging and attention-grabbing to hold viewers’ attention
- Not all viewers will be true leads
- Competition with videos that have higher production budgets
Create a private community
Build a private network to facilitate conversation and connection between your site visitors. As well as creating a forum, you can drop exclusive insights and content in the group, enticing more people to sign up.
Slack, Discord, and LinkedIn are all popular platforms for creating private groups.
Example for growth marketers: "Sign up and get access to our private growth marketing community on Discord.”
Pros:
- Create a community of likeminded people with a common interest in your product
- Members may promote your brand within the group and beyond
- Once established, conversations and interactions can keep members engaged and help nurture leads
Cons:
- Managing and moderating a community can be difficult and time-consuming
- Without proper moderation, your community might be prone to spam, negativity, or low-quality discussion
- You’ll need to spend time nurturing and building momentum within the community
Allow early access to new products
Generate a list of loyal customers who can give you useful feedback on new releases by offering early access or beta testing opportunities. Users who register can use beta phase features before anyone else, giving them a headstart in their own businesses.
Example for expanding SaaS companies: "Be the first to try our new sales automation tool – sign up for early access."
Pros:
- Generate buzz and a feeling of exclusivity among group members
- Get valuable early feedback to improve your product
- Find and work with your most loyal customers
Cons:
- Early adopters might lose trust if the product is buggy or incomplete
- Early access participants may expect additional support, putting pressure on your team
Setting up gated content in Transpond
Transpond is a powerful marketing platform for small businesses. Use our sign up forms to create and configure gated content for seamless UX and simple data capture.
With Transpond, you can:
- Decide how and when users can access gated content, ensuring they submit genuine email addresses and user details to download your resources.
- Report on gated content, enabling you to track conversions and see who has downloaded your resource.
- Use gated content in automations, triggering new actions (such as campaign enrollments or lead score assignments) when a user downloads a gated resource.
Whether you’re just starting out or have an established company, Transpond gives you the tools you need to generate and nurture leads for your small business. Try Transpond free today or explore our pricing packages.