What Is Gated Content, and How Can It Generate Leads?

Have you ever heard of the term “gated content”? Relax, you’re not alone. This marketing phrase is one to be aware of, though, as it’s often a question marketers ask themselves.

Let’s pass the gates together and learn all about the benefits and drawbacks of gated content, what types there are, and look at some examples.

What Is Gated Content?

Gated content is content that users can only access in return for personal information like email, phone number, address, and so on. Basically, you need to fill out a form, in order to see that content.

Basically, that’s why it’s called “gated content”. The key to the gate is the form you fill out, and once you do, you can pass and use all the information behind it.

But what do you benefit from keeping your content hidden from free access, you ask? That’s a good question. As all things in life, there are pros and cons to gating your content.

Here’s the deal.

Benefits of Gated Content

Gated content is a cost-effective lead generation strategy. The types of content usually used are e-books, white papers, webinars, templates, etc.

Gated content provides:

• Better lead generation. The goal of gated content is to generate qualified leads. Chances are, if someone submits their personal information through your contact form, they are interested in your services more than someone who just reads your regular, ungated content.
• More sales. Since the leads are more interested in your products/services, it’s natural that your business will generate more sales from gated content.
• Email segmentation. Depending on the information you require, you not only gather email addresses, but also segment your prospects into smaller groups, which allows you to better target them.
• Customer insights. Again, the information you obtain from your contact form will grant you the opportunity to gain more insight on your customers – their location, age, company positions, and so on.
• Stronger relationships. People willing to give you personal information are more likely to develop a strong relationship with your business. Of course, it’s up to you to follow up and develop said relationships in a way that is mutually beneficial.

In a nutshell, the benefits of gated content are mainly oriented toward marketers and organizations looking to develop stronger relationships with qualified leads.

This will generate more sales, as the clients you target are more invested in your business, as opposed to other potential customers who could be a hit or miss.

Drawbacks of Gated Content

Content gating is not recommended in the case that you’re looking to bring in website traffic, improve search engine optimization, or strengthen your brand visibility.

Gated content brings no:

• SEO benefits. You will not be able to benefit from search engine optimization, since your gated content is not accessible to search engines.
• Traffic. Not every user will fill out your form, and no traffic will come to your website, respectively.
• Wider audience. The majority of people will probably leave your page, deciding not to share their information, so you will not reach a wider audience through gated content.
• Brand visibility. The gated content pages will not be indexed, so users will not see them, therefore you will not gain any brand visibility.

You should be aware that content gating is bad for SEO, and will not bring in much traffic, nor brand awareness.

Now to review some gated content examples.

Types of Gated Content

Here are some of the most common types of gated content.

• E-book. One of the most attractive inbound marketing strategies is to offer e-books. Leads can’t resist them, the market of electronic books is rapidly growing, and e-book readers are expected to reach more than 1.1 billion readers by 2027.
• White paper. White papers are long-form content on authoritative, in-depth topics. They provide a lot of valuable information and are aimed at solving a particular problem.
• Templates. This is an actionable form of content. Templates are generally loved by everyone, as they provide tons of value, and can help users make their jobs and lives easier.
• Webinars. Another form of content that can easily be gated. Again, webinars offer extra value and insights that can encourage people to fill out your contact form.
• Video. It’s okay to offer a high-quality video, in return for the personal information of users. Sure, videos are everywhere. They are the most popular type of content, but even so – many users would gladly input their details on condition that the video provides great content.
• Free trials. Consumers aren’t always willing and ready to buy. Offering free trials is an awesome way to both let them try your product/service and get their personal info.

Gated Content Best Practices

Naturally, you need to know how to properly execute your gated content strategy. Otherwise, you risk losing your potential customers, instead of luring them to provide contact information, and showcasing the value of your business.

Let’s check some of the best steps you can take when setting up your gated content.

1. Create a Good Landing Page

Landing pages are a huge part of most marketing campaigns. Basically, every marketer wants to create an irresistible landing page that immediately converts visitors into customers.

Part of that landing page could easily include some awesome gated content, like a free e-book. It’s an extra incentive for people to perform the actions you want them to, and it provides more added value to your proposition.

2. Use Audience Segmentation

Sometimes you have to deal with large amounts of data regarding a very diverse audience. Knowing this, would it be a good idea to apply the same message to all of them?

Of course not, that’s why marketers use audience segmentation. The goal is to divide your audience into smaller groups with common interests – location, age, gender, interests, and so on.

This way you are able to provide better offers, ads, and know what type of gated content will be the most attractive.

3. Analyze the Buyer Journey

The buyer journey usually includes three main stages: the awareness stage, the consideration stage, and the decision stage. Respectively, knowing which stage of the journey your potential buyers are at can help you to better understand their concerns, and overcome them.

This could be especially important when talking about gated content, as you will know what you can offer to the potential buyer, in order to help them, and gain their trust.

4. Measure Your Results

Of course, you will never be certain what you’ve achieved until you measure the results of your efforts. It’s vital to track the conversion potential of your content, and how effective it is in generating leads.

By measuring your results, you will be able to adapt your future content and establish what your audience is looking for.

Wrap Up

You know now what gated content is, and how your business can benefit from it.

Awesome!

Now, it’s essential that you conduct thorough research, and analyze your audience. Whatever you establish, remember that it’s impossible to know the results without the proper data.

Always follow up on your results, and if necessary, apply changes to get the most out of your gated content.