The difference between a successful and unsuccessful business often comes down to their marketing strategies. To create a thriving business, you need to attract a lot of people into your sales funnel and convince them to convert.
To get people into your sales funnel, you should create engaging content, address the prospects’ needs, and create a good first impression. You should also focus on educating your audience, assessing and optimizing the funnel, aligning marketing and sales goals, and targeting the relevant audience.
But all of that is easier said than done. So let’s look deeper into each tactic so you can start attracting people into your sales funnel today.
8 Strategies to Get People into Your Sales Funnel
Every day, you are bombarded with thousands of ads. You see them everywhere- on your Facebook feed, when you’re watching YouTube videos, and even when you’re just walking down the street.
With so many businesses fighting for attention, it’s no wonder that most people have developed what is known as ‘banner blindness.’
Banner blindness happens when people stop paying attention to banners and advertising because they’re so used to seeing them everywhere.
So with this challenge in mind, how do you get people to notice your business when they’re surrounded by other ads?
1. Create Engaging Content
Marcus Sheridan, one of the most well-known marketers, says, “Great content is the best sales tool in the world.” Creating content is one thing, but creating great content is another.
Your content should be engaging, interesting, and relevant to your target audience. But most importantly, it should provide value to their lives.
Value-driven content educates your audience and helps them make better decisions. It doesn’t try to sell them something but instead builds trust and rapport.
Once you have built trust with your audience, they’re more likely to do business with you. You can create many different types of content, such as:
- Blog posts
- Infographics
- Videos
- eBooks
However, you must create captivating, high-quality content. Otherwise, people will simply scroll past it. Here are a few tips to make your content stand out:
Make Headlines Attention-grabbing
Compare these two headlines:
- “How to Make Money”
- “How to Make $100,000 in 6 Months.”
Which one would you click? A typical browser will go for the second. The second headline is more specific and tells you that you will learn something valuable from the article.
It’s also interesting and makes you want to read on. When writing headlines, ensure they are exciting and use rich keywords.
It is also important to mention that there is a very thin line between clickbait and attention-grabbing headlines. Clickbait headlines are often misleading and can damage your reputation.
Your headline should accurately reflect the content of your article.
Use Images, Graphics, and Videos
You’ve probably heard the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. People are more likely to engage with and remember content that has images, graphics, or videos.
Ensure the images you use are high-quality and relevant to the topic you’re discussing. They should also be visually appealing and make people want to know more.
Videos capture people’s attention and are a great way to show off your products or services. You can also use them to answer frequently asked questions or give a behind-the-scenes look at your business.
Be Concise and Precise
When getting people into your sales funnel, you only have a few seconds to make an impression. That’s why it’s essential to be concise and precise in your content.
Long-winded paragraphs will only bore prospects, and they’ll likely scroll away before they get to the end. Breaking your content into smaller sections makes it more digestible and easier to read.
It’s also important to use simple words and avoid complex jargon. Write as if you’re speaking to a friend; otherwise, your content will sound too salesy.
2. Address the Prospects’ Needs and Pain Points
When was the last time you bought something purely because it was on sale? Chances are, it’s been a while.
Most people don’t make purchasing decisions based on price; they’re more likely to buy from businesses that understand and address their needs.
To get people into your sales funnel, you must show them how your products or services can solve their problems. But you can’t solve a problem you don’t know about.
That’s why it’s important to do your research and understand the needs of your target audience. Once you know what they’re struggling with, you can create content that addresses their needs.
You can also use this information to create targeted campaigns and ads. Imagine someone searching for “weight loss tips.”
If you’re a fitness company, you could create an ad with the headline, “Lose Weight Fast with These Tips.” The ad could then link to a blog post or video that provides weight loss tips.
This is an example of being responsive to the needs of your audience.
3. Create a Good First Impression
There are no second chances to make a first impression. That’s why it’s important to ensure your marketing channels make a good first impression.
This includes your website, social media platforms, and email campaigns. Your website should be easy to navigate and have a modern design.
It should also include persuasive copy that tells visitors what you do and how you can help them. Your social media platforms need to be updated regularly with fresh content.
In addition, your email campaigns should be well-designed and personalized. How many seconds do you spend looking at a website before deciding whether you want to stay?
After reading the first sentence of an email, do you decide to delete it or keep reading? Chances are, you make these decisions in a matter of seconds. That’s why first impressions are so important.
You must ensure your marketing channels make the best possible impression on prospects.
4. Focus on Educating Your Audience
I spend a lot of my time on websites, and I have realized that there is a lot of misinformation and flat-out lies on the internet.
Therefore, when creating content, you must focus on educating your audience. Provide them with accurate information that they can use to improve their lives or businesses.
You can also use this opportunity to position yourself as an expert in your industry. You’ll build trust and credibility with your audience by providing valuable information.
In addition to creating blog posts and videos, you can also use infographics and ebooks to educate your audience.
These are both great ways to get people into your sales funnel. Infographics are especially effective because they’re easy to consume and share.
On the other hand, ebooks are a great way to build an email list. Assess and Optimize the Funnel At the top of the funnel (TOFU) are people who are just becoming aware of your brand.
Most of the time, you need to keep readjusting your strategies to get people into the funnel. It’s essential to regularly assess and optimize your sales funnel.
This will help you identify areas where you’re losing prospects and make necessary changes. To assess your funnel, start by tracking your website traffic and leads over time.
You can also track how many people convert into customers. Once you have this data, you can start identifying patterns and making changes to your funnel.
For example, if your website traffic is increasing, but your leads are decreasing, you know you need to work on your website’s conversion rate.
You might start by fine-tuning your target audience or creating more compelling copy.
Remember, spending a lot of resources on generating traffic is pointless if you’re not converting that traffic into leads and customers.
Therefore, trimming the fat and optimizing your funnel should be the top priority.
5. Align Marketing and Sales Objectives
Before the sales team can close a deal, the marketing team needs to generate high-quality leads. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen.
In many organizations, there’s a disconnect between the marketing and sales departments. To avoid this issue, it’s important to align your marketing and sales objectives.
This way, everyone is working towards the same goal. For example, if your goal is to increase revenue by 20%, your marketing team should focus on generating high-quality leads.
Meanwhile, your sales team should focus on closing those leads. By aligning your objectives, you can ensure everyone is working together to achieve the same goal.
You should define sales accepted leads (SAL), so everyone understands what a qualified lead looks like. This will help your marketing team generate leads that your sales team can close.
Apart from that, it is essential to have a plan for each segment of leads. Your marketing and sales team will work together more efficiently if you can clearly define the necessary criteria.
6. Target Interested Audience
One common mistake marketers make is trying to sell to everyone. Instead of trying to appeal to everyone, focus on targeting the relevant audience.
This will make it easier to create content and close deals. To do this, you need to understand your target audience.
- What are their needs and pain points?
- What type of content do they consume?
- Where do they hang out online?
- How can you reach them?
Once you identify your prospects, you can start creating content that appeals to them. You can also use this information to build relationships with potential customers.
For example, if you know they’re active on social media, connect with them there. You’ll attract more people to your funnel by targeting an interested audience.
Use these methods to get people into your sales funnel and increase your chances of closing a deal.
Remember, focusing on creating quality content and building relationships with potential customers is vital.
If you do this, you’ll increase the number of people who enter your funnel and the likelihood of closing a deal.
Methods and Channels to Use to Get People into Your Sales Funnel
Strategies can only work if they have the proper tools and platforms for execution. Some methods that can help get people into your sales funnel include:
- Creating referral programs
- Paid ads
- Bonuses, promotions, and discounts
- Organic traffic
- Social media
1. Creating Referral Programs
It might seem like a cliche, but birds of a feather truly do flock together. If person A likes your product, they probably know people who are like themselves.
Once you convince one person, they’re likely to recommend you to their peers. This is the idea that referral programs are based on.
You incentivize existing customers to bring their friends into your sales funnel. The most important thing about referral programs is ensuring a clear value proposition for the customer and their referral.
The customer should get something out of it, or they won’t bother. At the same time, the referral should also be getting something valuable, or they won’t sign up.
Referrals reduce the cost of customer acquisition and increase the lifetime value of a customer. Therefore, they should be a crucial part of your strategy to get people into your sales funnel.
2. Paid Ads
The ability to target specific audiences makes paid ads one of the most effective ways to get people into your sales funnel. You can target potential customers based on their location, age, interests, and more.
This ensures that your ad is seen by people who are actually interested in what you’re selling.
Paid ads also allow you to retarget prospects who have visited your website but haven’t taken action. You can increase the chances of getting these prospects into your sales funnel by retargeting them.
3. Bonuses, Promotions, and Discounts
Everybody loves a good deal. Offering bonuses and promotions can entice potential customers to enter your sales funnel.
However, as noted earlier, you should first focus on solving your prospects’ needs and pain points. Once you’ve established trust, you can offer bonuses and promotions to sweeten the deal.
This could be in the form of a discount, free shipping, or a gift with purchase. You can increase the chances of getting potential customers into your sales funnel by offering an attractive incentive.
4. Organic Traffic
Organic traffic is the holy grail of sales funnels. This is traffic that you don’t have to pay for. It’s important to note that organic traffic takes time to build.
You can’t just launch a website and expect people to find it. You must create high-quality content, optimize your website for SEO, and build relationships with potential customers.
If you do this, you’ll see organic traffic start to enter your sales funnel.
5. Social Media
The fact that over 4.5 billion people use social media makes it a powerful tool to get people into your sales funnel.
You can use social media to create awareness, build relationships, and drive traffic to your website.
One of the most effective ways to use social media is to create content that educates, entertains, or both. This will help you build relationships with potential customers and get them into your sales funnel.
Final Thoughts
Attracting people into your sales funnel doesn’t have to be complicated.
By creating quality content, focusing on the needs of your audience, and building relationships, you can organically draw people into your sales funnel.
You can also use paid ads and bonuses to sweeten the deal and entice potential customers. The most important thing is to focus on providing value and solving your prospects’ needs.
If you do this, you’ll be well on your way to success. Remember, the first step is always understanding your audience.
So make sure you take the time to get to know them and what they need before you start creating content or running ads.
With a little effort, you can quickly fill your sales funnel with high-quality prospects.