When it comes to marketing funnels, there are many things to consider. And depending on your product or service, the sales funnel can be quite lengthy, meaning you’ll need to put a lot of time and effort into creating a sales funnel that will keep your customer engaged, educated, and ultimately convert-ready. So today I want to share with you some tips on how to get the most out of your marketing funnel efforts.
Clarify the funnel’s goals.
Anyone can create a series of emails to send to your customer base, but creating a targeted funnel that addresses their pain points and gets the intended response is a little more difficult. Start the process by looking at your target customer and doing a little research. What are they worried about? What are they worried about? What other things do they do in their lives? What would stop them from buying your product? And what pain points and frustrations they are looking for you to solve. These are the things you should be talking about in your marketing funnel. And be very clear about your goal. Do you want them to buy from you? Do you want them to keep buying from you later? Do you want them to tell their friends about your product?
Explain it visually.
Once you have a good idea of what you want to tackle and the intended purpose, it’s time to visually map out the funnel. There are some great software options that will help you with this, but if all else fails, you can sketch it out on a piece of paper or on a whiteboard. Explain where they enter the funnel (lead capture form, social media, your website, a paid ad, etc.) This could include text messages, follow-up phone calls or visits, webinars, emails, videos, etc. Clearly mark anywhere in the funnel that is considered a ‘conversion point’. These are the areas you want to monitor to determine whether your funnel is successful or not.
Add a little spice.
Now that you have an initial draft, go back over the stream and note where you plan to go for a logical appeal versus an emotional one. Do you have a good mix of both? Too much logic and you won’t motivate your customers to act now. Too much emotional attraction and you risk losing your prospect because they don’t have a clear plan of action. The perfect funnel has a combination of both.
Simplify it.
At this point, you may be ready to start writing, but hold on. You want a well-thought-out funnel that tackles everything you want to tackle, but you also want to make it as easy as possible for your customers to take the next step. So it’s time to take a look at your funnel with an editing eye. Are there too many hoops to talk to a salesperson? Does the sales message get lost in a sea of emails? Just the process, and help your customers convert.
Write your funnel.
Now that you’ve spent some time planning your funnel with a good mix of emotional and logical information and you’ve gone through the editing process, it’s time to start writing. Start with a draft and have other team members (or a sales writer) review the copy for edits and clarity. Once you think you’re in the right place with the concept, it’s time to get started. Check your numbers often and note emails that don’t have good open or click-through rates, and focus on that for future rounds of editing.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not Inc.com’s.
This post 5 Secrets to Creating a Marketing Funnel That Converts
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