A sales funnel sets the stage for constant leads and sales. Say you’re an e-commerce business selling printable calendar templates. Your target audience is people aged 25 to 65.
To reach these people, you create engaging social media ads and direct them to a landing page, where you offer productivity tips and ask them to opt-in to your email list.
From there you continue to send them informational content, show them articles or videos on why you’re product will help them in real life, and then go for the close.
By establishing a consistent flow of real leads, your business will continue to grow.
Before we get too deep, let’s talk about the stages of a sales funnel.
Stages of a Sales Funnel
A sales funnel consists of four different stages, which are the Interest, Decision, Action, and Close.
At each stage, your team must engage prospects and measure engagement.
While leads in the Interest stage are typically warm and willing to purchase, they should be converted into customers by making an offer.
Sales reps can measure the success of this stage by monitoring engagement, identifying problem areas, and adjusting their strategy.
In the Decision stage, sales reps must ask pertinent questions to qualify leads.
Then, they must close the deal by pivoting their focus to a positive onboarding experience.
The decision stage begins with a customer’s first impression. Regardless of whether it’s an existing customer or a potential customer, content is king.
Visitors will make decisions based on what they read. Sales reps must be convincing and persuasive enough to entice customers to stay.
Putting yourself in your customer’s shoes and understanding what he or she wants is critical to this step.
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During the Decision stage, a customer is most likely to want their problem solved immediately, and they’ll be more likely to return if it is solved quickly and efficiently.
Upsells and Downsells in Sales Funnel
Using upsells and downsells to increase the lifetime value of your customers is a great way to boost your sales. But there are a few things to keep in mind when using these techniques.
First, make sure that you use complementary upsells.
For example, an upsell for a diet program might include a workout manual, while a downsell might include a guide on how to improve self-confidence.
Secondly, determine the price point of your product or service. You might be offering a high-priced product, and you may need to use a different selling environment.
Or you may want to take orders over the phone.
You and your sales team will decide which upsells to offer. Once you’ve established the price point of your product, it’s time to implement upsells and downsells in your sales funnel.
Importance of Opt-Ins
In marketing, it is important to capture leads to improve conversion rates. These sales leads have a variety of benefits that make them an important part of a sales funnel.
Not only do opt-ins allow you to target your marketing efforts, but they also give you a chance to customize your sales funnel.
Creating a strong opt-in strategy requires a thorough understanding of your audience. People at different stages of the conversion funnel want different things.
That’s why you should segment your list based on behavior.
If a visitor opts in on a product page, they are probably ready to purchase, whereas a visitor who opts in on your homepage is further up the funnel.
To increase opt-in rates, you should ensure that your website has an active presence online.
By making use of online social media platforms and other tools, you can improve your online presence and get more visitors to opt in.
Once you have done that, you can focus on building a more effective opt-in plugin.
The right opt-in plugin will allow you to collect and manage opt-ins easily.
Importance of Urgency
Urgency in a sales funnel is an effective way to drive conversions, but it must be used in moderation. Constant pressure could make your customers stop taking you seriously.
Instead, offer great deals for a limited time. That way, they’ll be more likely to take action.
But how do you use urgency to drive sales?
Buyers are driven by time scarcity. This is especially true for e-commerce businesses. Inbound demand is a more realistic goal, and time scarcity works very well with it.
Limiting your offer to a limited time or offering a free trial period can entice customers to buy right away.
Buyer urgency presents a different type of challenge. It requires salespeople to find a pressing business goal.
The “when is the latest you need to X” question helps salespeople uncover this urgent need.
People like to feel that there is a limited amount of time before something expires. They tend to spend more money when they think about things that are limited or are impossible to obtain.
Scarcity and urgency are powerful psychological triggers. When paired with the right language, they can generate a sense of urgency and make people feel as if the sky’s the limit.
Using this type of language will help your sales funnels convert better.
Return on Investment of Sales Funnels
There are many types of sales funnels you can create. From quiz funnels to a high ticket offer, you want to make sure you are maximizing the return on your investment.
Use our ROI Funnel calculators to see what funnel would work best for you!
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