Marketing Funnels
Online marketing speak for:
“A path toward sales or value add for the owner.”
In this article, we will discuss the basic idea of funnels and then we will dive into how to use them in your business.
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What are funnels?
Definition
In general, a funnel is an object that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom which is used to guide liquid or powder to flow directly to the bottom.
In marketing, a funnel (marketing funnel) is a tool that helps you turn your prospective customers into buying customers. Just like the definition given above, it guides the flow of your customer’s theoretical buying journey from a prospect to a buying customer.
It is also the process through which a business finds, qualifies and eventually sells its product or service to its customers.
A marketing funnel is also referred to as “customer funnel”, “purchase funnel”, “sales funnel”, or “conversion funnel”. Whatever you call it, it still follows the same concept. In this article, we will use the term “marketing funnels”.
Origin
The idea originates back to 1898 when E. St. Elmo Lewis, an American advertising advocate, developed the purchase funnel, or in this article, the marketing funnel. He conceptualized the funnel by breaking down the customers’ buying journey into different stages. It’s a mapped theoretical customer journey from the moment the customer becomes aware of the product or service up to the moment of purchase. His model is often referred to as the AIDA-model, acronym for its stages which are Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action.
The stages of the AIDA model can be summarized as follows:
- Awareness - your prospect becomes aware that your business/brand exists.
- Interest - your prospect likes to know more about your brand.
- Desire - your prospect wants to purchase your brand.
- Action - your prospect decides to purchase your brand.
Below, we’ll take a closer look at each stage of the AIDA model and its examples.
Stages of the AIDA-model
Awareness
This is the stage where your prospective customer first hears about your business or brand. Maybe through a Facebook ad, a mention in social media, or a Google search etc. This could be part of marketing campaigns, social media posts, or simple customer research of a product. Your goal here is to create brand awareness so that your prospect can say “I have heard about that brand before”.
Here is an example:
Assuming that your product is Panels and your prospect doesn’t know Panels. When your prospect first saw the billboard above is when he becomes aware that a brand named Panels exists. Your prospect starts to wonder “what is Panels?”.
At this stage you cannot expect your prospect to fully be ready to purchase your product. Awareness is only the first step in the funnel. If you’re successful at this stage, you might be able to pull the prospect down into the next stage of your funnel.
Interest
At this stage your prospective customer is interested in knowing more about your product or service. Also known as the “Research” phase, your prospect wants to know the benefits. Does it suit their taste, does it match their lifestyle?
The key to driving interest is getting your prospective client to envision themselves using and benefiting from your product or service. People are inherently self centered so becoming a master of WIFM “What’s In It For Me” will help you connect with your buyer’s inner need for satisfaction.
If you are successful in this stage, your prospect will move from the “I like it” stage to the “I want it” stage.
Desire
This stage is closely associated with the interest stage and sometimes happens at the same time. Your prospective customer has decided he wants to buy a product. He is comparing your brand to that of your competitors. This is your opportunity to showcase your brand’s edge over the competitors. The goal is to persuade prospective prospects that your brand is the best and will make them the most fulfilled.
Fulfillment is a tricky topic because people find fulfillment in many differing ways. Depending on what your product or service is, finding a way to showcase your “Value Proposition” in a way that gratifies your client’s need is the goal. The need could be status, style, safety, security, sex appeal or anything else.
If you can do that, your prospect will move from the “I want it” stage to the “I’m buying it” stage.
The Panels Story Builder allows you to create online marketing funnels with ease. Give it a try for free now.