If you read my post on how to make content upgrades to grow your email list, you now know how to create awesome upgraded content for your blog. Congrats! But before you break out into that happy dance, there’s still one piece of the puzzle to sort out: you need to figure out how to set up content upgrades on your blog so that you can put them into action.
That’s why I’m using this post to tell you how to set up content upgrades on your blog once you’ve made them.
Are you wondering which tools you should use to set up content upgrades on your blog?
Download my free list of the 8 best content upgrade delivery tools.
The 3 key components of content upgrade delivery
When you set up content upgrades on your blog, you need to make sure you have the following 3 components in place:
1. A call to action
This is something you don’t want to forget when you set up content upgrades on your blog. Whether you place an opt-in button, image, link, or form in your blog post, you don’t want it to stand alone. Instead, you want to add a short call to action above it to tell your audience why they should click on it. Keep your call to action short, descriptive, and persuasive. Be sure to highlight the problem your upgrade solves and the solution it provides.
Check out the call to action for the content upgrade in my blog post on how to write a welcome email series.
Related: How to write a strong call to action for your website + free cheat sheet
2. An opt-in form
The purpose of your call to action is to get your audience to fill out an opt-in form. This form may be embedded directly into your blog post, which often seems like the most intuitive thing to do. However, there’s another strategy that’s usually more effective: instead of embedding an opt-in form in your blog post, embed a button, link, or image that displays an opt-in form when blog visitors click on it.
This two-step process may seem like more work for your audience. But it tends to boost conversions. Why? Because people like to finish things they start. They may be reluctant to fill out an opt-in form that’s embedded directly in your blog post. However, if they click on a button, link, or image that then displays an opt-in form, they’ll be more likely to complete the process by filling out the form.
Here’s the opt-in form that pops up when people click on the content upgrade button or image in my welcome email series how-to blog post.
3. A mechanism to deliver your content upgrade
Once someone fills out your opt-in form, it’s time to deliver your content upgrade to them. To do this, you need a way of automatically sending an email that contains your content upgrade. And because the goal of adding content upgrades to your blog is to grow your email list, you’ll also need a way of automatically adding new subscribers to your email list.
Here’s an example of an email people receive from me when they sign up for one of my content upgrades. At the bottom of the email, there’s a button recipients can click on to download the content upgrade they signed up for.
How to set up content upgrades on your blog
Now that you know about the 3 key components you need to set up content upgrades on your blog, you need to actually create each one. Although the specific process for doing this will vary depending on the tools and platforms you’re using, here are the general steps you’ll need to complete to set up content upgrades on your blog:
- Create an opt-in form for your content upgrade. This can be embedded directly into your blog post or be displayed as a button, image, or link that directs blog visitors to the form
- Link your opt-in form to your content upgrade so that your content upgrade gets sent to new subscribers automatically once they’ve completed the form
- Connect your opt-in form to your email marketing tool so that people who complete the opt-in form are automatically added to your email list
- Embed your opt-in form or opt-in button, image, or link in your blog post
- Write a call to action above your opt-in form, button, image, or link
- Publish your blog post
Related: 6 content upgrade tips that will skyrocket your email list + free fillable checklist cheat sheet
Are you wondering which tools you should use to set up content upgrades on your blog?
Download my free list of the 8 best content upgrade delivery tools.
How to set up content upgrades on your blog using Leadpages*
There are lots of tools you can use to set up content upgrades on your blog. Here’s how to do it with one of the more powerful options out there: Leadpages*.
Step 1: Add your content upgrade as a lead magnet
Upload your content upgrade to Leadpages by clicking on your account initials and then selecting “Lead Magnets.”
On the next page, click “Create New Lead Magnet.” In the box that pops up, fill out the fields and upload your lead magnet.
Step 2: Upload images
Upload any images you want to use in your opt-in form by clicking on your account initials and then selecting “Images.”
Then click on “Upload new image”
Step 3: Create a final landing page
In Leadpages*, you have a few options for what happens to subscribers once they fill out your opt-in form. You can have them remain on the same page or be directed to a generic Leadpages thank you page, a customized landing page, or a specific webpage.
If you want to direct them to a customized landing page, create it before you create your opt-in form. To do this, click on “Leadpages” in the main menu and then select “Create new page.”
Once you’ve selected a template, name your page and then use the widgets on the left side of the screen to customize your page.
Step 4: Create an opt-in form (a Leadbox)
Click on “Leadboxes” in the main menu and then select “Create new leadbox.”
Name your leadbox and then use the widgets on the left side of the screen to customize your leadbox.
Link your leadbox to your email marketing tool and content upgrade by clicking in any of your form fields. This will open an “edit your form” sidebar.
To connect your email marketing tool to your leadbox, click on the “Integrations” tab and add your email marketing tool as an integration. You’ll also need to link your email marketing tool to your overall Leadpages account.
To connect your content upgrade to your leadbox, click on the “Actions” tab and use the dropdown to select the file you want new subscribers to receive. You can also use this tab to specify where you want subscribers to end up after they fill out the opt-in form.
Step 5: Add your leadbox to your blog post
Once your leadbox is complete, click on “Publish” in the top right corner. This will open up a box with different options for publishing your leadbox.
If you want to insert a button that links to your opt-in form in your blog post, select “button link.” Use the options on the screen to customize your button and then click “Get Code.” Copy the code and paste it into the code of your blog post wherever you want the button to appear.
If you want to insert an image that links to your opt-in form, complete the same steps but select “image link” as your publishing option.
Step 6: Publish or update your blog post
You’re now all set to publish your blog post the same way you normally would.
Set up content upgrades to boost the power of your blog
If creating a content upgrade seems hard, figuring out how to set up content upgrades on your blog may be downright intimidating. But the good news is that it’s a straightforward process once you’ve identified the tools you’re going to use and have used them a few times. Taking the time to set up content upgrades on your blog does add a few steps to your blog post publication process. But it makes all the difference in terms of being able to use your blog to grow your email list and your brand.
Are you wondering which tools you should use to set up content upgrades on your blog?
Download my free list of the 8 best content upgrade delivery tools.
Disclosure: * Identifies an affiliate link, which means that we may get a commission if you make a purchase. Our opinions are our own, and we only share what we believe you’ll find helpful. Note that you won’t pay anything extra if you purchase a product or service through this link.