Session 28: Do you have a Marketing Funnel?

In session 28 of A Marketing Podcast, I’m focusing the marketing funnel. I provide an overview of what a funnel is, the different types of marketing funnels, as well as creating your own marketing funnel.

Session 28: Do you have a Marketing Funnel?

What is a Marketing funnel?

Process of working your potential customer through several phases of the customer discovery journey.

Although, different to the consumer or customer discovery journey, the funnel is the mechanism for ensuring your potential customers move through the journey, and don’t fall into a competitor’s funnel.

The funnel itself includes three main phases to progress your potential customers to the purchase point.

* Awareness

* Decision

* Purchase

Awareness: Getting people to know about you, your product/service, company

Decision: Helping leads make the decision to buy from you

Purchase: Ensuring the best pruchase process, and marketing for customer experience/upsell

Why should you have a marketing funnel?

Marketing funnels are a structure plan/strategy to walk leads through the three phases.

It’s also a grouping of tactics that work to aid in the progression through the funnel which helps you perform the right tactics at the right time.

How is a Marketing Funnel different from a Marketing Strategy?

the funnel is specific to lead progression to purchase. Where as a strategy is about setting the guidelines for your funnel, and the tactics in the funnel.

Virtually all your marketing efforts should be focused on funnel progression, however some more so than others.

Marketing funnels   also help you in developing your marketing mix as part of your overall marketing strategy.

[[AD]]: Check out the 12 page template and the first 10 sessions of the podcast to learn about developing your next marketing strategy.

How to develop a marketing funnel for your business?

Firstly, know your customer (free strategy template will help with that as well as listening to Session 4: Understanding and developing your target audiences)

Then develop a strictly linear progression from initial awareness to purchase (again using your current customers as an example).

Then once you have that step by step progression developed, we need to understand that in the real world it’s not that perfect. Leads will move down and up in your funnel as they take their discovery journey with your product/service/brand.

Make sure that your messaging in your marketing funnels and your marketing messaging can live on it’s own, but leads your potential customer to the next step in the funnel.

How to accommodate leads entering the funnel in the middle?

It’s not easy. So don’t stress too much about getting it right first time.

The trick is to implement tactics and messaging for each phase of the funnel so that it aligns with the current leads position in their discovery. More importantly than tactic is the message you use.

Break it down by phase:

Awareness: Is the easiest as your messaging is more generic and talks to your product/service form the highest level. It should however help leads understand exactly what you provide and what sets you apart (Your USP is your awareness message – If you don’t have a USP grab the 12 page template and listen to Session 6: Creating your unique selling proposition).

Decision: In the decision phase you need to help your leads by educating them on the finer details of your product/service. As well as providing incentive to make the decision to buy (in that order).