Understand The Funnel
Posted on | December 4, 2009 | No Comments
Recently there has been so much focus on social media. More and more people are tweeting, uploading their latest presentations, music or videos, creating fan pages and of course blogging. If you’re in business, you must be asking yourself what is the point of all this if you’re not seeing a difference to the bottom line?
Though social media is hot, like Email campaigns, ad banners, web applications and SEO, they are all essential within a bigger context. This context has been explained in many ways. But the approach that is clearest to me is as the funnel.
Are Web Sites Dead?
Hell no. I’ve been asked this question more often as of recently. The idea that your marketing strategy no longer requires web sites is absolutely ludicrous. Your web presence is comprised of numerous digital tactics when working together can be more effective than any sales force. Sorry…I’m not suggesting to fire your sales staff. So please don’t. Your sales or customer service teams are also essential in the funnel. However, your web site is the hub which all of your digital tactics are connected to. I consider it the place where the “business” of your marketing efforts takes place online.
What Is The Funnel?
The funnel is a marketing concept. It is a business framework to convert browsers into buyers and prospects into real leads. With this framework you can decide how to attract prospects, convert them into customers and retain them as loyal advocates for your business by providing them what they need.
There are many benefits of thinking of your customer experience as a funnel:
- You begin to see your marketing approach holistically as a business strategy and not just a set of random tactics
- It ensures consistency of your brand message across all tactics
- You eliminate flights of fancy marketing ideas that have little or no value to you or your customer
- It puts your customers first by looking at what they need to be sold
- You can justify the cost implications of developing and optimizing tactics within your strategy
- You can see what works and what doesn’t and innovate new marketing methods
Steps In The Funnel
Remember the funnel is a framework to work in. It’s not a pre-determined set of tactics or applications. The application of the funnel will vary depending on your business, your marketing strategy and the type of customers you have. Regardless, each step is applicable and should be understood.
Acquisition
This step is about telling the world that you exist and you have something they could benefit from. This step is about looking outward to places where your prospects are – online or offline – and drawing them to your offer. The tactics you deploy here must quickly demonstrate your value proposition before they decide to take the next step.
- SEO
- Adwords
- Social networks
- Blogs
- Consumer review sites
- Affiliate marketing
- Display ads
- Event sponsorships and presentations
- Offline marketing
- Viral marketing
Keep in mind not all of these tactics are equally effective. Some would argue that optimizing your site for search engines is far more effective than display ads. This is true because customers searching for your product or service are more inclined to buy than those who happen to see your ad and may click on impulse. This is not to say ads don’t work. It all depends on what your goals are.
Value Proposition: This is vital for any strategy to work. You must have a clear value proposition. Something your customer can quickly grasp. It establishes credibility, purpose and usefulness in the customer’s eyes.
Conversion
Give them the offer they can’t refuse and make them buy what it is you’re selling. This step can be broken down into two parts:
1: Demonstration: Show how your product or service benefits your customers. This may include such features like:
- Product details, features, benefits and suggested uses
- Product demos such as rich interactive applications (RIAs), video tutorials, and images
- Product comparisons
- Trial or limited usage offer
- Testimonials, customer stories, and reviews
- Press releases
- Submit a question or sign up for a newsletter
What you need here really depends on what it is you’re selling and to whom. Put your customer first and understand what it is they need to be sold on you.
2: Purchasing: This turns browsers into buyers.
- Shop carts
- Payment options
- Payment processing such as PayPal
- Order or request form
- 1-800 numbers
So many businesses focus on driving traffic to their storefront or web sites just to loose their customers at the register. It is critical that your buy process is simple and easy to follow. If your customer doesn’t feel taken care of, not only will you loose the sale but also you’ve lost a customer. I’ve seen sales double on sites as a result from small tweaks to their buy process.
Retention
Your customers are gold to your business. How do you continue to support them so they can help grow your business?
1: Support: The customer experience doesn’t end when your customer leaves your store, office or web site. It continues as long as they may have a need for you product or service. Post purchase support is often over looked by many businesses. Because of this it is really telling how an company values their customers. By providing customer support, help, follow-ups, post-sale advice or offers gives the customer the impression you value their business. Under support we can see:
- Product support & return policies
- Special offers & discounts
- Customer forums
- Customer feedback
- 1-800 numbers
- Personalization
- FAQs and self-help guides
- Newsletters
- Surveys & Polls
This makes the next part of the funnel easier.
2: Advocacy: Getting your customers to work for you. The best marketing tactic is word of mouth or viral marketing. And your best messenger is a happy customer. If you’ve done all the previous steps correctly they will speak on your behalf – for free.
- VIP loyalty services
- Referral or Tell-a-Friend programs
- eCoupons
- Newsletters
- Free events
For less savvy marketers or business owners, you can see there is so much you have to consider when designing your customer experience. For those with more experience you are probably well underway in developing such a strategy. However, using the funnel as a framework will provide you guidance and foster ideas. And as a framework it can be easily modified to suite your own business and customer needs.