Why Do I Need A Sales Funnel?

Getting website traffic is easy.

Invest $1,000 and you’ll receive one of three results:

• 100,000 local YouTube views
• 50,000 views of your Facebook ads
• 500,000 targeted impressions on adWords

The million dollar question is how do you transform all these views into engagements, leads and sales?

Sales Funnel Defined.

A sales funnel is a digital marketing technique. It’s the “ideal” algorithm you intend your customers to experience as they evolve from Prospect to Lead to Customer to Repeat Buyer and brand ambassadors!

Let’s review a popular 6-stage sales funnel that we often use for our Clients:

Stage 1: Create awareness.

Before selling anything, you must ensure your prospects are aware of your products/services. A wide range of tactics should be used to reach new prospects:

• Ads and boosted content on Social Media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, etc)
• Banner ads on industry-specific platforms
• Video Marketing (YouTube, SnapChat, Periscope)
• Guest blogging about your product/service

New prospects know little or nothing about your brand; and are not necessarily ready to buy anything, yet. The main goal for this stage is to NOT SELL. Rather, we want to grab their attention and spark their desire to learn more about you.

Example: phlearn.com is running very affordable social media ads:

Stage 2: Discovery.

Once a prospect clicks your ad, engages with your brand or visits your website, it becomes critically important to retain his attention by creating an amazing buyers journey.

The most popular reasons people stop their Discovery stage are:

1. No limited time special offers (“I’ll come back, later.” – they rarely do.)
2. Brand does not create emotional engagement
3. Outdated dinosaur website design
4. Bad user interface (hard to navigate)
5. Poor unique selling proposition statement (“Why should I buy it?”)
6. Website bugs, errors
7. Poor social media presence
8. Poor product description
9. No charts, tables, infographics that compare various product features.
10. No Video intro
11. No personalization (quote from the owner, team picture, mission statement)

It is a true alchemy to place multiple elements, in the proper order, with compelling messaging on your website. After all, you’ve got to educate prospects enough to make them interested in learning more.

Example: SchaumburgDentalStudio.com

• Unique Selling Proposition statement describes the “Why become a patient?”
• Multiple Calls-to-Action elements = phone calls and emails
• Video presentation immerses viewers in the story
• Service advantages described cause buying behaviors
• Multiple review sources build credibility
• Personalized text & imagery connects the office with patients

Stage 3: Evaluate.

When your prospects are interested in your product, they will begin evaluating their true need to buy. Often, they look elsewhere for research material that supports or contradicts their initial opinion.

At this stage, our job is to convince them that you are their best choice; and they absolutely need your product.

Here are a few very useful tactics:

1. Provide case studies
2. Provide customer reviews (Video reviews are best!) on your site as well as links to third-party website with reviews (Yelp, Facebook, Google)
3. Downloadable product demo
4. Price calculator
5. Educational materials

Example: ComradeWeb.com:

• Case Studies section includes charts and numbers
• List trusted brands as Clients
• Free, information-packed downloadable eBooks

Stage 4: Engage.

At this stage, a large number of prospects are interested, but still not ready to buy your product.

They might not have the money/accumulating additional resources, waiting for better timing, or simply are not impulsive buyers.

Our goal at this stage is to NOT lose them. How?

The following creative tactics keep real people engaged in real ways:

1. Interactive contests, games, surveys and polls
2. Limited time offers
3. New, engaging case studies
4. Additional product features
5. Webinars and events

Example: for comradeweb.com we’re constantly creating new engaging case studies.

Stage 5: Commit and purchase.

At this stage a prospect gives his mental agreement to buy your product and is ALMOST ready click on “Buy now” button. ALMOST.

At this stage there is still a tiny doubt, and a last reassurance is needed. The following tactics works great at this stage:

1. Display customer testimonials near the “Buy now” button
2. Add price comparison charts that demonstrate your offer’s superiority
3. Add multiple reassurance elements
4. Offer a Free Trial or 30-day money back guarantee
5. Add a limited-time discount offer

Example: for checkout at this website’s store: we integrated several reassurance icons such as discreet shipping, free US shipping, etc.

Stage 6: Delight people.

You think the process is over? NO… Not yet!

Now you need to transform your clients into brand ambassadors who will promote your small business!

– How?

Make them love your brand:

1. Provide product support via Social Media
2. Create and distribute FREE Tutorials and educational materials
3. Initiate and support user communities
4. Run Contests and games for existing clients

Example: phlearn.com has created a 13,000+ user community:

It’s worth a conversation to set your project apart.

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