A sales funnel is an automated system designed to maximize the lifetime value of a customer by automatically “funneling” them toward buying more of your products over time. If you are not using sales funnels, you are leaving SERIOUS money on the table! Most business models are in the “one-off” sales mode. In other words, they are always selling one version of whatever their product is to as many customers as they can afford to reach.
The secret of the sales funnel is that it literally multiplies every single dollar of advertising for every sale you make. This happens by taking every single lead you get and gently pushing them up a planned money pyramid—putting more money in your pocket. And with today’s technology, all of this can be automated in a way that takes very little time to maintain. Of course it does take substantial time to set up.
Here are the main parts of a sales funnel.
1) The lead magnet. This is simply a bribe in exchange for their contact information. What we want is for a potential customer to raise a hand and say, “I may be interested in what you are providing.”
2) The tripwire sale. This is a small sale where you start to demonstrate your expertise and hint at how much more is available to them. The goal is to turn the prospect into a customer.
The bad news is that the hardest sale to get is the first one. Everyone is scared that they will be taken advantage of.
The good news is that once they see that you over deliver on your promise, it is easy to get them to buy more products. The trip wire sale is designed to make this happen in a low-risk way for your prospects.
3) The core sale. This is the main product that you sell that delivers on your promise. In fact you should over deliver! This isn’t the end, but rather the beginning of what can be a very profitable relationship. You are doing the work once and selling it indefinitely.
4) Profit maximizer sales. This is where the profits really are! This includes upsells, high-end coaching, software sales, and just about anything else related to your niche.
5) The customer return path. This gently pulls any prospect who didn’t move up to the next level. Most sales don’t happen on the first contact. A well-designed customer return path re-sells to any prospect/customer who doesn’t purchase the next level in the funnel.
6) Movement into the next sales funnel. Use any additional products you may have or develop.
This article just scratches the surface. Read our recommended blog article about Digital Marketer’s blog for much, much more information (www.digitalmarketer.com/blog/).