🍊 Lead Magnet Club #13: "just start selling"

in 1962, phil knight borrowed $1000 from his dad to fly to japan, struck a deal with onitsuka, and started selling tiger shoes from the trunk of his lime-green plymouth valiant.
​
no website. no ads. no CRM.
just him, the shoes, and track meets.

today nike does $50+ billion in revenue.
but here's the thing: for nearly 20 years, nike was always one bad month away from going under. they weren't broke, they just had no money. lots of assets, no cash.

the lesson isn't about being reckless.
it's about never quitting.

this week:
🦈 why "grow or die" still matters (even for lead magnets)
📚 what shoe dog teaches about starting before you're ready
🛠️ two tools that let you build while you're still figuring it out

🧲 lead magnet of the week

the 90-day marketing onboarding dashboard by @marialeden

5,537 comments • 2,307 reactions • 111 reposts • one simple keyword: "90"
the post:

"day 1 at your new marketing job. you're full of ideas and are a bundle of nerves... then you're presented with a generic checklist."
maria flipped the script: instead of complaining about bad onboarding, she built the solution.

the magnet itself:
📋 90-day marketing onboarding dashboard in notion, includes channel audits, founder interview questions, buyer persona templates, competitor analysis, and strategy frameworks.

why it worked:​
→ relatable pain point right in the hook​
"you want to add value fast. but diving in without research will lead to chaos later." - every marketer has felt this. she nailed the tension.

→ scroll-stopping visual: gif screen recording​
maria didn't just describe the dashboard. she showed a scrolling gif preview of the full notion workspace. people could see exactly what they'd get before commenting.

→ social proof baked in​
"helped me and over 200 marketing leads" - credibility before the CTA.

→ multiple conversion paths​
comment "90" (low friction) OR DM directly (high intent). she even added "like & repost to skip the line" for extra amplification.

here's where it gets interesting:​
this post went live 6 days ago.
5,300+ comments still rolling in.

imagine doing this manually:
→ scrolling through thousands of comments
→ finding everyone who wrote "90"
→ checking if you're connected
→ sending personalized DMs one by one
→ following up days later when people don't respond
you'd burn out after 50 people.
or worse, you'd miss 90% of your leads.

the system behind it:

maria uses leadshark to automate the entire loop:
→ someone comments "90"
→ leadshark auto-replies to their comment instantly
→ sends connection request if not connected
→ delivers personalized DM with the dashboard link
→ follows up automatically if no response
→ tracks clicks and engagement inside the leads tab

the system runs itself.
6 days in, still converting leads on autopilot.
no manual work. no missed opportunities.
the post becomes a self-running funnel that works like clockwork.

​
💬 see the original post → linkedin.com/posts/marialeden​

📚 book of the week

​

Shoe Dog, Phil Knight​
"the cowards never started and the weak died along the way. that leaves us."
(about the Oregon trail)
three lessons that apply to lead magnets:

1. grow or die​
knight refused to order less inventory, even when the bank was panicking. "why cut your order from $3M to $2M if you believed in your bones that the demand out there was for $5M?"
same for lead magnets: if one post got 1K comments, your next goal is 2K. don't plateau. double down on what's working.

2. we weren't broke, we just had no money​
nike had assets (inventory, contracts, momentum) but no cash. they looked broke on paper but were building empire-level value.
lead magnets are the same: 1,000 comments might not convert into revenue this week. but those 1,000 people? that's your leads for the next 10 meetings, and new partnership opportunities..

3. just start selling​
knight sold shoes from his car trunk at track meets before he had a store, a brand, or even a clear plan.
you don't need a perfect funnel to start posting lead magnets.
post → deliver in DMs → improve based on feedback.
get the plane out of the hangar. ✈️

🛠️ tool of the week

1️⃣ free for club members → ClubAI: full lead magnet builder

stuck on what to post? let AI do the heavy lifting.
clubAI helps you:

→ generate lead magnet ideas based on your ICP
→ write the full post (hook, value prop, CTA)
→ create the actual magnet itself (templates, guides, checklists)

it's like having a co-pilot that's read every viral lead magnet on linkedin.

👉 try it: leadmagnet.club/club​

run it once, tweak the output, then post it this week!

2️⃣ for leadshark users → Leads & Bookmarks

remember how phil knight tracked his early customers?
probably a notebook.
you have something better:
leadshark's Leads (and Bookmarks) page is a mini-CRM built for social selling.

📊 see every lead in one place:

• name, headline, ICP score, date added
• their latest posts and comments (without opening linkedin)
• tags to organize by intent, stage, or whatever system you use

🎯 enrich leads (pro+):

• find emails, and detailed company info
• build targeted lists for outbound follow-up
• export to your main CRM when they're sales-ready

💬 take action directly:

• view recent posts
• react and reply directly
• track who clicked your links

it's not meant to replace your CRM.
it's meant to catch every single lead who comments, so none of them fall through the cracks.
because here's the thing: if someone comments on your lead magnet post, they're warmer than any cold email list.

🦈 try it for free at: leadshark.io​

🎥 LIVE: the social-first GTM system

speaking of systems...

on november 13th (this thursday), i'm going live with two founders who've built the exact playbook for turning social engagement into revenue:

🌀 me (ruzgar): how to capture inbound with lead magnets (i have more data on this than probably anyone on linkedin)
​oleg campbell (founder, extrovert): how to nurture relationships on social before you ever send a cold email
​david from growth momentum: how to tie it all together into a full GTM system that actually converts..

we're calling it: The Social First GTM System

what you'll walk away with:
​ ✅ the system we used to 2.2x reply rates & 4x booked meetings
✅ how to use linkedin engagement to warm up outbound
✅ real frameworks and results from active campaigns
✅ exactly how tools like leadshark fit into a modern GTM stack

🗓 date: thursday, november 13th
​⏰ time: 10 AM PT | 7 PM CET
​📍 hosted by: growth momentum

👉 register now: luma.com/mar43kdv​

💬 note from the founder

i almost quit leadshark in the first six months.
not because it didn't work.
but because it had zero customers.

reading shoe dog reminded me: nike was the underdog for 20 years.
they doubled revenue every year but still couldn't make payroll some months.
the difference between those who fail and those who break through is simple: they just stay alive.

if you've been sitting on a lead magnet idea for weeks, post it this week.
use clubai if you need help. use leadshark to deliver it. just ship something.

the cowards never started.

and you're still here. that means something.

onwards & upwards,

​🌀 ruzgar ​

ps. we're en route to hit 1 million DMs sent through leadshark in 2025. every single one of those started with someone just like you deciding to post their first lead magnet. your turn. 🫡

👥 forward this to a founder who needs to hear it.​
​join the club → leadmagnet.club​
​