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33. I Finally Looked at My Lead Magnet Data—Here’s What Surprised Me

Author
Marci Rossi
Published
Wed 20 Aug 2025
Episode Link
None

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You know that thing you know you should be tracking but keep putting off because… life? For me, that thing was lead magnet performance. And once I finally sat down and looked at the actual numbers—conversion rates, unsubscribes, follow-up emails (or lack thereof)—I had a few moments of “well, that explains a lot.”

In this episode, I’m walking you through the exact process I used to audit my lead magnets, including what I track, how I track it, and what I found when I finally stopped winging it.

Spoiler alert: one of my freebies had a 64% conversion rate. Another had no email sequence at all. And the one with the highest unsubscribe rate? Yep, I kept it anyway—and I’ll tell you why.

Whether you’ve got one freebie or ten, this episode will help you figure out what’s working, what’s not, and what to fix first.


Key Takeaways

  • Visits ≠ Conversions: Why high traffic doesn’t mean your lead magnet is performing—and what to do about it
  • Unsubscribes Tell a Story: What a 4.5% unsubscribe rate actually revealed about my lead magnet (and why I didn’t delete the freebie)
  • The Metrics I Track Now: Visits, opt-ins, open rates, click rates, and conversions—broken down in plain English
  • What to Fix First: How to tell if your issue is messaging, formatting, or a wonky mobile experience


Thrive in 5: Tracking Your Lead Magnet's Performance

Want to stop guessing and actually start improving your lead magnet performance? Here’s your five-step plan:

  1. Set Up a Tracker
    Use a Google Sheet, a napkin, whatever. Just start tracking the basics.
  2. Track These Numbers:
    Visits, opt-ins, conversion rate, unsubscribe rate, email opens, clicks, and conversions.
  3. Add In Your Numbers:
    Pick your period and start plugging those numbers in (your email service provider should be able to give you all of these!)
  4. Set Up a Recurring Task:
    Whether that's once a month, every couple of months—whatever. Have a recurring task to update your numbers. Once you know where to find them, it's pretty simple to update them.
  5. Tweak, Test, Repeat:
    Start small—maybe it’s your subject line, your call to action, or even just checking how your page looks on mobile. Make one change, give it time, and then recheck your numbers. 


If you take one thing from this episode, let it be this: the data will tell you where the leaks are—but it won’t fix them for you. That’s where The Shortcut comes in. It’s not just about patching up a lead magnet or tweaking a subject line. It’s about building the systems that run your business when you’re not glued to your laptop—so your offers, emails, and yes, your lead magnets—actually work together.


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