Sales funnel. Why does my company need it to sell on the internet

A sales funnel is one of the core elements of an online marketing strategy for your business. It represents the path that a person can go through within our online commerce, covering from the first approach they have with the brand, until the moment they become a customer.

If you are looking for tools to get and retain visitors to your website and convert them into customers, you should be thinking about the implementation of a sales funnel.

What is a sales funnel?

A sales funnel is a marketing term to the objectives we set ourselves when we start an online shop, website or blog, especially if the objectives are commercial.

It is a model that can be adapted to any process that wants to generate a conversion (actions taken by our clients and aligned with our objectives).

It is a way of determining the different phases or steps that each of the visitors to our website must take to achieve a specific objective, such as making a purchase or a subscription.

Phases of a sales funnel

1. TOFU (Top of Funnel)

It is the initial phase in wich the goal is to capture the attention or attract as many users as possible. In this part of the process, the user has discovered that he has a necessity and is looking for a solution to satisfy it. This is why, as a company or online shop, our goal will be to get them to visit our website or other channels and let them know about the solution provided by our products or services. Some examples of types of camapaigns in this phase of the funnel are: display advertising, native ads and video campaigns in RRSS.

2. MOFU (Middle of Funnel)

This is the intermediate phase in wich the user knows what they want and is evaluating different options, including our product or service. At the moment they take us into consideration, that is when they become a lead or potential customer, and thus move on to the next stage of the funnel. Some examples of types of campaigns based on the behaviour of my users, comparison shopping campaigns and SEM campaigns with generic terms about our product or service.

3. BOFU (Bottom of Funnel)

This one is the last phase of the funnel in wich we have the goal of converting that lead into a final customer. To do this, we must influence their purchase choice so that they finally become a final customer by choosing our product or service. Some examples of campaign types in this stage of the funnel are: SEM campaigns with branded terms about our company and social media campaigns with audiences similar to our customers.

Now that we know the stages of the sales funnel, you may be wondering what exactly are the function and adavantages that a sales funnel can bring us. We´ll tell you about them below!

What is a sales funnels for?

• Attract new potential customers and increase traffic to our website.
• Convert potential customers into buyers.
• Convert shoppers into loyal buyers.
• Automate sales process to save time and effort in our digital marketing strategy.
• Identify problems in the stages of the funnel. At wich stage is the potential buyer stuck and why does he not complete the action?
• Establish a better relationship between our clients and the company, improving, engagement and brand image.

In summary, a sales funnel allows us to orientate our sales strategy, products and services towards our customers. In this way, we will ensure that we structure the entire purchasing process to meet their needs and adapt to their tastes.

 With a sales funnel we will be able to attract users and guide them to make the purchase decision while optimising the whole procedure by detecting weak points and elements for improvement.

Now that you know its importance, we will tell you wich are the fundamental elements you should have when creating it.

Key elements for creating a sales funnel.

• Define the ideal customer. Knowing this ideal customer or buyer people, will help you to focus your sales strategy by tailoring your message to meet the specific needs they may have.
• Having a value proposition. It is important to identify smething that makes your product different from the rest.
• Having visibility. This is an essential factor for users to be able to reach your company´s website and find out about your products.
• Have useful content. Content is essential at any stage of the sales funnel. You must take into account that the content you disseminate in the different channels of your company cannot be the same for users who are in the first stage of the funnel as for those who are at the end.