Gated content—free stuff that people can only access by providing their contact information—is one of the top three ways to get great B2B leads.

And the best gated content is specifically designed and created to help leads with navigating each stage of the buyer’s journey.

If your gated content is relevant to prospects when they need it most, whether they’re just finding out about a product or considering many products or deciding between just a few, those prospects are more likely to convert to buyers.

The best gated content also adds value for your prospects, providing them with helpful information rather than pushing them with hard sales tactics to make a purchase.

That’s what this list is all about—15 great gated content ideas for B2B lead generation that are proven winners when it comes to motivating prospects to become buyers. Here we go.

1. White Papers: A well-researched white paper offers prospects valuable insight, relevant information and useful content that search engines also love. White papers are written about specific topics or business challenges and position your company as the voice of authority within your industry, particularly with company founders, CEOs and top-level executives.
2. Video Content: Video is a popular and increasingly effective way to engage your audience with sight and sound. Videos don’t have to be expensive to produce. They just need to tell a relevant story. Video content is great for how-to info, tips, useful advice, interviews, touring a facility, showing company culture—almost anything you want to show, you can do it with video. Producing a series of videos simply increases its appeal.
3. E-books: Often longer than a white paper, e-books explain complex topics in interesting and easy-to-understand ways that consumers love. Usually quick reads, e-books will also establish your company as a trusted authority on the subject matter or industry.
4. Guides: Similar to white papers, e-books and how-to videos, guides are often written to provide useful content for a prospect to learn how to use a product, accomplish a skill or understand a process.
5. Webinars: Webinars are livestreamed presentations that take place on a specified date and time. A subject expert from your company presents the material as they would in an in-person seminar and includes a Q&A session at the end. Interested audience members register for the webinar and provide their contact information to receive a link to the presentation.
6. Tip Sheets: Easy to consume and quick to create, tip sheets condense everything that a lead needs to know about a topic into one actionable list.
7. Infographics and Data Visualization: The compelling visual nature of infographics continues to grab the attention of non-readers by presenting data in a digestible format that’s easily shared. The emerging trend of data visualization incorporates moving and interactive components, allowing prospects to filter data sets and adjust viewpoints to suit their needs for better understanding. Infographics and data visualization are visual assets that are often requested by marketers to help tell a variety of stories about a company in a more memorable way.
8. Templates: A customizable template for a request for proposal (RFP) or general spreadsheet will easily adapt to a potential buyer’s specific needs. Templates are cost-effective to create and provide value with an editable template structure.
9. Swipe Files: Buyers will find a collection of tested and proven ideas very useful and valuable, whether advertising copy, sales ideas, social media headlines, clipart, action verbs—good stuff you’re OK with other people stealing to make their jobs easier.
10. Email Course: Email is a great medium to reach your audience. Offering ongoing email courses or a learning series helps to simplify a complicated subject or topic in a digestible way while growing your email list.
11. Product Demos: Potential leads often appreciate testing a product or a service before putting money down to buy. Whether live or taped, product demos will get them excited after getting acquainted with the product. If the demo includes a virtual test, then prospects can use all of the features themselves. This can increase conversions by convincing free users to become customers.
12. Experiments and Analysis: Sharing your company’s product experiments and subsequent analysis through gated content is another way to use the insights gained to benefit your company.
13. Free Trials: Packaging your offering as a free trial in return for a prospect’s contact details is a chance for them to give it a try. Free trials are usually for leads who may want to buy but just need a nudge to commit. Free trials that don’t require credit card information tend to convert better than free trials with a credit card.
14. Research Reports: If you are conducting custom research or commissioning research on behalf of your company, an industry research report offers valuable insight into aspects of your business that your audience would be interested in reading.
15. Case Studies: Case studies involve an intensive study and detailed examination of a particular business challenge your company solved for one of your clients. Because they reveal your thought processes and solutions, gated case studies are only available to those who are really interested in learning more about your company without publishing it on your website for anyone to review.

An Exhaustive List of Lead Magnet Ideas

What businesses are doing with gated content is leveraging their lead magnets to grow their B2B leads.

What is a lead magnet? It’s the incentive that businesses offer to prospects in exchange for their email address or other contact information. Lead magnet incentives are the stuff of gated content, providing that free research or information about a product or service that’s relevant to a prospect during their buyer’s journey.

If you want to generate leads online, you’ll also want great ideas for lead magnet content. A great lead magnet does one or more of these things:

1. Provides high value to a potential lead.
2. Is instantly accessible by a prospect.
3. Benefits a specific buyer action.
4. Solves a prospect’s real problem.
5. Promises and delivers instant gratification—a painless perk.
6. Is easy to digest and understand.
7. Demonstrates your expertise or unique value proposition.

Looking for great lead magnet ideas? Here’s our exhaustive list!

• Newsletters
• Email subscriptions
• “Best of” blog posts
• Checklist.
• Cheat sheets
• Scripts
• Toolkits
• Web apps
• Resource lists
• Calendars (digital or printable)
• Planners
• “State of the industry” articles
• Worksheets/workbooks
• Printables like posters or art
• Inspiration files
• Writing or brainstorming prompts
• Calculators
• Generators for topics and more
• Customizable spreadsheets
• Recipes
• Podcast subscription
• Tutorials
• Transcripts, either video or audio content or interviews
• Mind maps
• Recording replays
• Audio books
• Process documents
• Slideshares
• Customizable templates
• Swipe files
• Samples and examples
• E-books
• Free books plus shipping (or digital versions)
• Sample book chapters or Cliff’s Notes
• Guides
• Webinars
• Reports
• Infographics
• White papers
• Educational podcasts or audio
• Video interviews
• Event tickets
• Webinars
• Free coaching sessions or other services
• “Prediction” articles
• “Expert roundup” blog posts
• Libraries/vaults
• Quizzes
• Surveys
• Prize giveaways
• Manifestos
• Comic strips
• Quotes
• Desktop wallpapers
• Community-building challenges
• Free memberships
• Free trials
• Coupons
• Case studies
• Product launch waiting lists
• Early-bird discounts.
• Free shipping.
• Free consultations.
• Free quotes.
• Catalogs.
• Research reports.
• Experiment and analysis.
• Email subscriptions.
• Product demos.

11outof11 for B2B Lead Generation

When you want gated content lead generation results and excellent lead magnet design that is relevant to prospects when they need it most, connect with 11outof11. Request a complimentary call with an 11outof11 expert. Contact us to learn more.