Taking your ideal customers from point A to point B is more difficult than it sounds.
You have to guide your interactions with them from the first time they come in contact with your brand until they’re converted into customers.
If you want them to become loyal, you’ll have to keep them engaged after they make a purchase as well.
The best way to optimize your conversion process in the digital age is by creating a marketing funnel.
Marketing funnels function as a bridge between marketing and sales, guiding potential customers through the buyer’s journey you want them to take.
If you’re ready to optimize your web presence and increase conversions, read on to learn how marketing funnels can help.
What Is a Click Funnel?
A click funnel, also known as a marketing funnel, is the set of steps a potential customer has to take on their way to making a purchase.
In real life, it’s the path they walk through a store before reaching the cash register. In the digital world, it’s how they navigate through your website, all the way from the landing page to the checkout cart.
The funnel imagery illustrates the number of people that make it to each subsequent step in the buying process.
Many people will see the store’s sign, but only a few will walk inside and look around.
Of those that choose to browse, only a portion will decide to buy something before they leave.
The goal of a marketing funnel is to make it easier for customers to reach that final stage, increasing your chances of making a sale.
How Funnels Function and Increase Conversions
The way your website is designed can either increase or decrease the likelihood that a customer will buy your product.
To better understand the concept, let’s head back to the retail example for a moment.
Imagine you walked into a clothing store and saw an open room with haps of dresses, shirts, pants, and shoes of all sizes.
What are the chances that you would buy something?
If you’re like most people, the chances are slim—the reward wouldn’t be worth the effort it took to sort through it all.
Now imagine you walked into the store and found racks that were neatly organized by item and size.
They’re laid out in a manner that gently guides you past a variety of jackets, pants, and accessories on your way to the cash register, interspersed with attractive displays that show you how to pair their most popular items.
Friendly clerks are there to help if you have questions.
Shopping in a store like this is effortless, and, dare we say, may even be fun.
If you’re looking for something specific, you’ll find it with ease—along with a few other items that complement it.
How much more likely are you to buy something from this store than the first one?
Your click funnel does the same thing for people visiting your website.
If they’re bombarded with buying options the second they land on your homepage, they’ll feel overwhelmed and leave.
On the other hand, if you capture their interest and help them find what they’re looking for, they’ll stick around longer and are more likely to buy.
Ways to Optimize Your Funnel Marketing Strategy
Now that you understand how important marketing funnels are to conversions, it’s time to make one of your own.
Here are a few key points you need to know about funneling your customers from point A to point B.
Capture Initial Interest
The mouth of the funnel opens up before people ever visit your site or purposely interact with your brand.
It involves getting your name out into the open and letting people know that you’re there to help.
This may take the form of SEO, Pay-Per-Click ads, social media campaigns, or lead magnets like free e-books and whitepapers.
Investing in these marketing tactics will not only increase awareness of your brand, but it will also let your potential customers know they have a pain point your services will fix.
Make It Interactive
Once potential customers reach your site, you have to hold their attention to make them stay.
One of the best ways to go about this is to make your landing page interactive.
Including attractive images, clean design, videos, or short quizzes will give you a chance to showcase the benefits your business provides without feeling “salesy”.
One study by Unbounce showed that landing pages with a video increase conversion rates by up to 80%.
These interactive elements should all have a call-to-action that sends visitors along to the next step: evaluating their purchase decisions.
Help Them Make a Decision
If your potential customer has made it this far, they’re ready to buy—now your job is to convince them to buy from you.
This is a great time to provide case studies and highlight positive reviews from past clients.
You may also want to make an online chat box available on this page in case they have any questions that might prohibit them from buying.
Make the checkout process as easy as possible and give them the chance to sign up for your newsletter.
This will help you stay front-of-mind when they’re ready to buy again in the future.
Evaluate Your Results
The only way to know for sure whether your strategy is working is to perform an in-depth funnel analysis.
Before you implement changes, decide what metrics will determine success.
Do you want to increase sales of a specific program, reach a certain number of email subscribers, or earn a higher ROI?
Whatever metrics you choose, make sure they’re both measurable and valuable to your business’s bottom line.
After launching your funnel, track these metrics over a few months.
If you aren’t seeing the kinds of results you hoped for, identify the bottlenecks and make changes accordingly.
A great marketing funnel isn’t static, it’s dynamic.
Pay attention to your customers, market trends, and the metrics you gather to keep improving your funnel over time.
Don’t Wait Any Longer to Optimize Your Marketing Funnel
Your marketing funnels function as a guide to help customers reach the end of the buyer’s journey.
If you haven’t optimized yours yet, now is the time to get started.
Not sure how to do it on your own? Allied One Marketing is here to help.
We can take care of your SEO, content creation, brand development, and everything in between.
Don’t lose any more customers to a poorly optimized internet presence—contact us today to find out how full-service marketing can boost your business’s bottom line.
