Sales funnel
If you’re in business, marketing or e-commerce, you’ve probably heard the term “Sales Funnel” thrown around a lot. You’re probably also aware that developing a clear, well-oiled funnel can work wonders when it comes to generating leads –converting complete strangers into loyal customers!
Mapping out a sales funnel can be a time-consuming and expensive process, especially if you don’t know where to start. Whether you’ve yet to develop a Sales Funnel for your business or just need some help refining it, it’s beneficial to work with a lead conversion expert who can help you map out the customer journey, clarify the process and start to bring in more leads.
What is a Sales Funnel & how does it work?
The Sales Funnel outlines the journey someone has to take in order to become a customer. Understanding the Sales Funnel is essential for business owners, as it helps you to visualise the customer journey and patch up any holes where potential leads could be slipping away.
There are three key stages in the Sales Funnel:
1
AWARENESS & DISCOVERY
This is the first step in a customer’s journey and one that we all enter into whenever we go shopping.
This discovery step is when the customer first becomes aware of your business. In an offline model, this could be walking past your store, hearing about you from a friend, or seeing an ad in a newspaper.
In an online environment, this first stage may involve someone finding your post in Instagram, seeing an ad online or appearing in a search result.
Customers who find you at this first stage will either leave, or ideally, will filter down into the next stage of the funnel.
2
Research & Learning
The second stage of the funnel occurs when those customers who have made their way through the discovery stage decide to stick around and find out a bit more about you. This may involve them browsing through your website, checking out your social media channels or reading reviews.
In an offline model, this may involve someone coming into your store, browsing and asking questions about the products.
We’re now entering the bottom of the funnel, where the customers make the final steps to conversion.
3
Final Purchase Decision Making
Once your customer has reached this final stage of the funnel, congratulations! They’re ready to buy your goods or hire your services. They’ve done their research and decided yours is a product they want to commit to.
Online, this may involve them adding your product to their cart or booking a ‘discovery call’ with one of your sales reps. Offline, this would involve them taking your product to the checkout or signing up for your service.
In order for the sales funnel to function effectively, each stage has to be strategically planned so the customers are guided effortlessly down. A clunky sales funnel will have potential customers disappearing at the early stages as they may not be getting the information that they need in order to commit.
Bumper Leads helps businesses of all sizes turn potential customers into dedicated, lifelong customers. Find out how we can help your business by clarifying your Sales Funnel and bringing in leads!
Why is a Sales Funnel important?
Having a Sales Funnel is a clear, concise way to help you and/or your sales team to truly understand the best way to bring in new customers. It’s also a useful way to get a better perspective on how you’re tracking with marketing efforts more broadly.
Sales Funnels help you visualise your customer journey
A good way to picture a sales funnel is by imagining you’re working at a brick and mortar store. First, you want to be visible to passing customers so they’re intrigued by your store and will walk in. Next, you want to greet them and be available to answer any questions they may have.
We’ve all had the experience while shopping where we’ve struggled to find the store, then been ignored by staff members or haven’t received the information we need to confidently make a purchase. In these cases, the customer will simply walk away and find somewhere that can actually help them!
On the other hand, we’ve (hopefully!) also all had the experience of walking into a store that’s been easy to find and stocks exactly what we’re after. When we get inside, the staff greet us politely and offer their assistance to help us find what we’re looking for. In this case, we’re gently guided from the front door to the cash register with confidence.
Making sure you’re visible, informative and accessible are key steps to converting leads. It’s clear to see from the examples above exactly why having a streamlined funnel has the potential to convert far more leads than a clunky one!
Sales Funnels help you to better qualify cold leads
It’s not uncommon for businesses to receive leads without having any idea where they’ve come from. While this can be exciting, it’s important to understand exactly how these leads are finding you, so that you know which marketing areas to invest your time and energy into. The Sales Funnel helps your sales team know exactly where your customers are coming from, whether it’s Facebook, Eventbrite, LinkedIn, or through organic searches.
Sales Funnels help you define your overall sales process
Developing a strong Funnel helps you define your overall sales process. It allows you to identify and fix any bottlenecks while helping you develop a clear and effective sales strategy.
Sales Funnels teach you where to invest your money
Once you know exactly where your cold leads are coming from and you have a better idea of your overall sales process, you’ll be able to clearly see where you should be spending your marketing budget. This helps to maximise your ROI and avoids wasting your money on areas that simply aren’t useful.
How we can help
The Lead Generation Experts at Bumper Leads can help you develop your Sales Funnel to convert more customers.
We first do this by building out a Customer Journey Map where we take a look at how you’re currently receiving leads and analyse the touchpoints a prospective customer has to go through before converting. Every business is unique, so this process is customised to each and every one of our clients.
After our initial session together, we’ll provide you with a clear strategy to help you automate, systemise and future-proof your business.
In addition to building Sales Funnels, we are experts in Lead Generation, Lead Conversion, Email & Marketing Automation and developing Online Business Strategies.
Bumper Leads can help you develop an effective Sales Funnel and automate your business so that you’re able to sit back, relax, and focus your attention towards wowing your customers and thriving in your industry. Get in touch with our team of Marketing Specialists & ActiveCampaign Consultants, and kick-start the process today!
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