The One Where Tia Helps You Fill Your Calendar From Your Next Freebie Drop

(Without wasting time on leads who have no intention of buying)

The hiking trail stretched ahead of Alex as she climbed higher up the Austin greenbelt, early morning sun filtering through the cedar trees. Her weekly Saturday hikes were sacred… the one time she disconnected completely from her coaching business.

Or at least, that was the plan. Today, her mind kept circling back to the frustrating sales call she'd had yesterday.

The prospect had gushed about her "101 Content Creation Ideas" guide, claimed it had completely changed her approach to social media, but when Alex mentioned her $6,500 coaching program, the enthusiasm had instantly cooled.

"I'm not really looking for paid coaching right now," she’d said. "I'm just trying to figure out how to post consistently."

It was the third such call this week alone.

At the trail fork, Alex paused to catch her breath and take a sip of water. She noticed another woman sitting on a nearby rock, typing furiously on her phone despite the "disconnect in nature" vibe of the trail. Something about her looked familiar.

As Alex replaced her water bottle, the woman looked up.

"Alex?” the woman called out, putting her phone away.

It took Alex a moment to place her. "Megan? From the business mastermind last month?"

Megan nodded, smiling as she stood up. "I recognized you from your profile picture. I've been following your content since the event."

They'd met briefly at a marketing mastermind in Dallas where Megan had presented a session on conversion optimization. Alex hadn't been able to attend that particular talk, having chosen a different breakout session.

"I'm surprised to see you here," Alex said. "Are you visiting Austin?"

"Moved here last week," Megan replied. "Taking in the local trails when I'm not setting up my new office. I consult for tech companies on their marketing funnels."

"What a coincidence," Alex laughed. "I was just mentally troubleshooting my own funnel issues while hiking. So much for disconnecting."

"Business owner problems," Megan nodded knowingly. "Anything specific, or just general overthinking?"

Alex hesitated, then decided there was no harm in getting an expert opinion. "I've got tons of lead magnet downloads, but very few sales calls. The ones I do get aren't converting well."

"Mind if I ask what your lead magnet is?" Megan asked as they continued walking together.

"101 Content Creation Ideas for Coaches," Alex replied.

Megan nodded thoughtfully. "And what's your offer when you follow up?"

"A strategy call to discuss my $7,500 coaching program."

"Ah," Megan said. "Sounds like a classic funnel mismatch. You're creating top-of-funnel lead magnets, but expecting to have bottom-of-funnel conversations."

"What does that mean exactly?" Alex asked.

"Someone who wants 101 content ideas is probably just getting started. They're nowhere near ready to invest thousands in coaching. They're still figuring out the basics."

Alex felt a flash of recognition. "But I need to start somewhere to build my audience, right?"

"Absolutely," Megan said. "There's nothing wrong with top-of-funnel lead magnets for building an audience. The problem is the incongruence between what you're offering and what you're expecting as a result."

As they continued down the trail together, Alex gained a completely new perspective on her marketing strategy.

The Funnel Alignment Framework

What Alex learned that day on the trail changed her entire approach to lead generation.

Most coaches make the critical error of using content that attracts beginners, but then immediately trying to sell high-ticket offers to them.

The solution isn't to stop creating top-of-funnel content, but rather to match your lead magnets to your DM conversation goals:

1. Identify Your Conversation Goal

   • For awareness and list building: Top-of-funnel, broad-appeal lead magnets are perfect

   • For booking sales calls: Bottom-of-funnel, problem-specific lead magnets work best

   • For market research: Middle-of-funnel, solution-exploring lead magnets are ideal

2. Match Lead Magnet Content to Your Goal

   • Top-of-funnel: Lists, idea generators, broad educational content

   • Middle-of-funnel: Comparisons, case studies, method explanations

   • Bottom-of-funnel: Assessment tools, specific problem solvers, roadmaps

3. Set Appropriate Next Steps

   • Top-of-funnel responses should lead to educational sequences

   • Middle-of-funnel responses should lead to deeper engagement and nurturing opportunities

   • Bottom-of-funnel responses should directly lead to sales conversations

4. Create Congruent Conversation Paths

   • Each lead magnet should have its own specific follow-up sequence

   • The conversation should feel like a natural extension of what they downloaded

   • The next step should make logical sense based on what attracted them

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Real-World Application

When Alex returned home from her hike, she immediately created a new lead magnet: "The Coach's Client Conversion Calculator: Are You Ready to Scale to $10K+ Months?"

This targeted tool helped emerging coaches assess if they had the right foundation to scale their business to consistent five-figure months. The very nature of this lead magnet appealed to coaches who:

1. Already had some clients and understood the basics of their business

2. Were specifically thinking about scaling their revenue

3. Wanted to create more predictable monthly income with better systems

The new lead magnet aligned perfectly with Alex's "Aligned Entrepreneur: 6-Figure Coaching Accelerator" program, which specifically mentored coaches on scaling up to consistent $10K+ months.

The results were immediate and dramatic. While download numbers decreased by about 60%, call booking rates increased by 300%.

The DM conversations started more naturally, with many prospects already in a position where scaling was the next step - exactly the problem her coaching program solved.

Most importantly, her closing rate on sales calls jumped from -20% to ~65% because the prospects on the calls she did have were properly aligned with her offer.

They weren't beginners looking for content ideas; they were established coaches looking for the exact transformation Alex specialized in providing.

Try This Today: Funnel Alignment Check

Take these steps to check if your lead magnets and DM conversation goals are properly aligned:

1. List your current lead magnets and categorize them:

   • Top-of-funnel (broad appeal, basic information)

   • Middle-of-funnel (specific methods, comparative information)

   • Bottom-of-funnel (problem-solving, decision-making tools)

2. Identify your goal for each lead magnet:

   • Building awareness and audience

   • Nurturing and educating prospects

   • Generating sales conversations

3. Create appropriate next steps for each category:

   • Top-of-funnel → Educational content sequence

   • Middle-of-funnel → Deeper engagement opportunity

   • Bottom-of-funnel → Direct call invitation

Several months later, Alex found herself back on that same hiking trail. As she reached the now-familiar fork in the path, her phone buzzed with a text from Megan:

"Just saw your latest launch results LinkedIn post. Impressive! Same time next Saturday?"

Alex smiled as she typed back a quick "yes."

That chance reconnection had transformed her business. Her calendar was now consistently filled with highly qualified prospects, and her closing rates had never been better.

By aligning her lead magnets with her DM conversation goals, Alex had created a predictable system for converting the right prospects at the right time …without wasting energy on DM conversations that were never going to convert.

Today’s Mega-Prompt: "Funnel Alignment Check"

Your lead magnets might be high-value… but if they’re out of sync with your funnel, they’re costing you thousands.

Today, you’ll fix that.

This mega-prompt gives paid members a simple way to review every lead magnet against its funnel stage… top, middle, or bottom …and realign it with clear DM conversation goals. You’ll spot what’s missing, find misaligned content, and walk away with actionable next steps to guide leads smoothly from curiosity to conversion.

Paid members get exclusive access to a mega-prompt that delivers:

✔ A full alignment check across all your current lead magnets
✔ A breakdown of funnel gaps that might be blocking conversions
✔ Practical new lead magnet ideas that match each funnel stage
✔ Clear action steps to move leads from download to sales conversation