Understanding Marketing Funnels

If you are a marketer, chances are, you’ve heard the term “marketing funnel” a time or two. But, what are marketing funnels? And, more importantly, how do they work? Keep reading to find out!

What Are Marketing Funnels?

According to marketing guru, Neil Patel a marketing funnel “is the set of steps a visitor needs to go through before they can reach the conversion,” or become a customer. And, the marketing experts over at HubSpot refer to a marketing funnel as the “buyer’s journey and the different stages a prospect passes through until he/she converts into a paying customer.”

What Are The Different Marketing Funnel Stages?

The are four different marketing funnel stages:

• Awareness
• Interest
• Consideration
• Conversion 

1. Awareness – The Top Of The Funnel

The first stage of the marketing funnel is awareness. According to HubSpot, potential buyers in this stage of the funnel are trying to solve a problem or meet a need, and they have come across your product or services during their search.

People in the awareness stage are often not quite ready to buy just yet because they have just discovered that they are in need of the product or service you offer, and they are just starting to research potential solutions.

Another thing to keep in mind is that people in the awareness stage could have just stumbled upon your website for the very first time, so they are often not even aware of the products and services you offer.

2. Interest – You’ve Captured Their Attention!

The second stage of the marketing funnel is interest. These leads are actively looking for a solution to their problem or need. Any lead that has made it to this stage is now familiar with your brand and genuinely interested in the products or services you offer. They are currently checking out your website and trying to decide if your products and services can help them solve their problem or alleviate their need. 

3. Consideration – You Are In The Running!

The third stage of the funnel is consideration. When your leads get to this stage, this means that they are getting ready to make a decision, and they see you as a potential solution to their need. However, they are still researching their options and most likely checking out your competitors as well. They are also probably scoping out any customer reviews your business may have. So, you are in the running, but you still haven’t closed the actual sale. 

4. Conversion – Making The Sale

The fourth stage of the marketing funnel is conversion. At this stage, your prospects convert from lead to customer. They decide to go with your company as the solution to their problem or need. They hit the “Check Out” button in your online store and pull out their credit card. Or, they pick up the phone and schedule one of your services. Congratulations, you have made the sale!

How To Move Prospects Through The Marketing Funnel

In order to get your potential customers to move through your marketing funnel, you must nurture them. 

Create Great Content

One great way to nurture your prospects is to have great website content. Think about it. Content is what draws your prospects to your website in the first place. Did you know that companies that blog get 55% more website traffic than those who do not. 55%! That’s huge. 

But, just getting prospects to your site isn’t enough. You need to make sure the content on your website is high quality content that will educate your site visitors and make them want to come back for more. Your business should be blogging, creating great landing pages, putting out e-books and white papers, and writing newsletters. 

Use Forms

In order to nurture your prospects, you also need to make sure that you have forms on any of your web pages that host important content, so your prospects can opt-in to keep getting content from you.   

Try A Retargeting Campaign

Another great way to move prospects through your company’s marketing funnel is to initiate a retargeting campaign. Retargeting is a form of paid online advertising that helps your company to target visitors who have left your website. Retargeting is a crafty way to give your past website visitors a little nudge back in your direction. 

Use Email Automation

Depending on the email platform you have, you might be able to automate your prospect emails so that they get content that’s specific to where they are in the buyer’s journey/marketing funnel. For instance, you might send an email to those who have just signed up for your blog that thanks them for becoming subscribers and contains a list of your five most popular posts. Or, you might send an email to those in the consideration stage that contains some positive customer testimonials of your products or services. 

Optimize, optimize, optimize

Make sure your website is SEO-friendly so it’s showing up in your prospects’ Internet searches. You won’t get visitors to your site if they can’t find your company in the first place.

EmoryDay Can Help Your Prospects Move Through Your Marketing Funnel!

The EmoryDay team can get your prospects from the top of your marketing funnel to the bottom! Let us help finetune your funnel and turn those prospects into paying customers. Get in touch with us today!