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A quality marketing funnel is a key to automating a steady flow of qualified leads.

This comprehensive guide will show you how. We’ll show you how to create a powerful marketing channel.

• Marketing funnels: (+ examples)
• The five stages of a marketing channel (+ the AIDA funnel).
• How to make each stage in your funnel
• Qualifying leads for your funnel

It’s easier said than done, right?

You don’t need any help, but you want to create simple marketing funnels that meet your needs.

What is a Marketing Funnel?

A marketing funnel, also known as a purchase funnel, is a plan that a company uses to guide potential customers through the process of becoming paying customers.

This includes paid ads, social media, and SEO.

Although the concept of marketing funnels is straightforward, they can be complex due to a variety of reasons.

• There are many marketing channels you can choose from, such as SEO and paid ads.

• Customers may have different pain points. A doctor may need a survey tool, while a teacher may require one.

• Each customer is different. Some customers are aware of your brand but look for alternatives. Others don’t know there are solutions.

These variables make it easy to see how creating a marketing channel can quickly become complicated.

Even if you have never actually created a marketing funnel, chances are you already know it.

The reality is that many businesses have multiple channels. A business may capture people via blog posts or through influencer marketing, paid ads, or any other channel.

While I will discuss the best channel to target, for now, don’t assume that there’s only one way to attract new prospects.

What is a Marketing Funnel?

A marketing funnel, or purchase funnel, could be someone who takes the buyer journey via:

• Blog Post > Email List > Conversion
• Podcast Ad > Blog Post > Conversion
• Facebook Ad > Landing page > Conversion
• Influencer Social Post > Landing page > Conversion

You have a marketing funnel if someone is buying your product or service online.

Keep this in mind: While your marketing model may seem very simple and clear on paper, it’s not always so in real life. As people go through your marketing funnel, there are often regressions or jumps.

In the below marketing funnel, Customer A and Customer C came in via content marketing. However, their customer journeys were very different and they experienced the purchase funnel differently.

This is why Kobe Digital has created an Omnichannel Marketing Plan. Because you never know where your potential customers might be. Your funnel can be extended even after a customer makes a purchase.

You now know the basics of a funnel and how it works. Now you want to learn how to create one that is both effective and efficient for your business.

After creating a marketing channel that generates enough leads for our business to sustain seven-figure revenues, I want to share this marketing funnel framework. It will work regardless of industry and resources.

What is a Marketing Funnel? (Stages of the Funnel).

You’re familiar with the basics of a funnel if you have ever used one at the gas station to pour oil into the car’s oil tank and not all over it.

The stages of a marketing funnel are the broad section at the top (Top of Funnel), which pulls in many people; the narrower portion in the middle (Middle of Funnel); and finally the smaller section at the bottom (Bottom of Funnel), which is populated with serious buyers.

It is important to see a purchase or marketing funnel from the perspective of the customer. This will save you time and reduce the amount of guesswork.

Let’s now look at the different stages of the marketing funnel customers encounter.

Stage 1 – Problem/Need Recognition (TOFU).

Recognizing you have a problem can be the first step in the buying process.

You don’t need to know if you have a problem before you buy a solution. Gum disease may be something you have, but it is unlikely that you will notice or feel any unusual symptoms in your mouth.

However, if your furnace suddenly stops working in winter, you will know right away and move quickly to the next step (information research) in the purchasing process. Although you may spend some time researching, your problem will be resolved quickly.

Education for other products and services may be more important. A pharmaceutical drug purchase might be an example. A person might recognize a “problem” but it may persist for a while before they act and find a solution.

Stage 2 – Information Search

Recognizing a problem is the first step in the funnel. This triggers the search for more information, which potentially leads to the second stage.

The size and scope of purchase will impact the information-gathering strategies. For example, recognizing that you are hungry might lead to a Yelp search for local restaurants. To decide which company to hire to install an in-ground pool at home, you will need to do some research online, call around, read customer reviews, visit showrooms and talk with salespeople.

TrustRadius reports that 33% more buyers spent time researching products before purchasing in 2021 than they did last year. This suggests that the research stage is getting more detailed. People aren’t looking to find promotional content at this stage; they want to learn more about possible solutions.

Stage 3 – Evaluation of Alternatives

After customers have identified a solution, it is time to compare the options that you or your ad have discussed. The type of purchase will determine how long this stage takes. It might seem as easy as choosing a restaurant by saying, “Well, this is Chinese food. Not Mexican tonight.”

Let’s say that the customer is looking at marketing automation programs to improve their sales funnel. These programs may require monthly investments of up to $1,500 so they will likely be subject to a more thorough and careful evaluation. To get an idea of how each system works, they might request free trials or online demonstrations from each company.

Your customers will be looking at potential service providers if you are running an accounting company. They may need to have resources such as pricing guides, so they can determine the average rates and how to assess the range of services available (e.g. Which accountant to choose? An agency or a solo one? How to choose an accountant.

It is important to note that prospects at this stage are more likely to purchase customers who have done initial research. If you are limited in resources, it doesn’t mean you need to begin at the top of your funnel. You can instead target only the bottom prospects of your funnel to maximize conversions with minimal effort.

Stage 4 – Purchase decision (BOFU).

The final stage of the three previous stages is the purchase decision. After identifying a problem, researching the options, and deciding which option is best for them, the potential customer is ready to open their wallets.

This stage is where optimizing the website for conversions (CRO) is an excellent way of increasing sales.

It is possible to offer risk-free trials and a money-back guarantee, as well as other offers, that will make it easy for customers to purchase your product or service.

Stage 5 – Post Purchase Behavior

Another thing. It doesn’t end with a purchase. It is equally important to consider what happens after the sale.

Your new customers will be more inclined to refer you to their friends and colleagues if they are treated with respect, given personal attention, and provided with all the resources and information they need to use your product effectively. They are more likely to recommend your product to friends and colleagues if they feel confident.

However, customers who are disappointed after purchasing products from you will be more likely to ask for refunds, leave negative reviews or recommend your company to others.

You don’t have much content to create that will help you facilitate a positive post-purchase experience. Post-purchase behavior will be easy if you have a great product that solves problems.

There are a few things you can do to facilitate better after-purchase behavior. You could, for example, create FAQ content to make it easier to contact customer support and solicit feedback about the buying process.

AIDA: Another way to remember the stages of content creation

AIDA is an acronym that helps you remember the stages of a sales funnel and matches them to content creation.

The results of the AIDA acronym or traditional sales funnel stages are the same regardless of whether you prefer them.

After a period of discernment, customers enter the sales funnel. They can choose to move on to another solution or to purchase from you. The final stage of the sales funnel is the purchase.

While most people start at the top of the funnel, not all do. While some people will be able to enter the funnel at the top, others may enter at the bottom. However, the process is the same regardless of where they are in the sales funnel.

How to build a marketing funnel for your content

Now that you understand how people make decisions it is time to build your marketing funnel.

As we have mentioned, one of the most important points in a marketing plan is deciding which channels you want to include.

The reality is that not all companies have the resources or the time to manage all these channels (podcasting and paid search, social media platforms, newsletters, ebooks, etc.). effectively.

Although we will discuss each stage, it may be more efficient to start at the bottom and work your way up. Those at the bottom are more likely to purchase.

Stage 1 Channels-Problem/Need Recognition (TOFU).

Although your customer may be aware of the problem, they may not be actively seeking a solution.

Let’s take, for example, the cooling vests you sell to outdoor workers in summer. Although they might find being hot annoying, your target audience may not know that there are solutions.

They might also be compelled to do further research if they hear or see an advertisement for cooling vests.

This stage of the process is best captured by outbound marketing and advertising. These are the most effective channels to attract people at this stage of the process.

• Podcast advertising
• Billboards
• Marketing to Influencers
• Paid Ads (Facebook, YouTube, Google, etc.)
• Radio ads
• TV advertisements
• Attending live events

These channels can also double as “brand awareness” channels, as you can see. While some of these channels are more likely to result in direct conversions (such as paid ads or influencer marketing), the majority won’t.

This is interruption marketing, as the listener/viewer may not be actively looking for a solution. Instead, they are hoping that their message will resonate with a problem.

Here are some examples of marketing campaigns at this stage

• You can sell SaaS products and then pay for advertising on a podcast that has a SaaS audience.

• Partner with an influencer and sell beauty products

• You can sell plastic surgery services, and you pay for radio ads to spread it to your area.

Action Tip: Find out where and how long your competitors have been advertising. They may have been advertising on the same platform for a while.

The stage that is closest to purchase intent is called Purchase Intent. Optimize your website for Stage 4, Stage 3, Stage 2, Stage 2, and Stage 1.

Stage 2 Channels – Information Search (MOFU).

Once your customers are open to finding the solution to their problems, it is time to provide the information they need.

You should have included a CTA at the end of Stage 1 to point people to this stage or another stage.

You can direct them to the sales page for simple products that only require minimal information. We’ll assume that the product is complex and will need some education. However, this will allow us to show you every step of the funnel. It helps to build trust with your audience by addressing the pain point clearly in your blog post.

These are the channels that you will likely be using in this instance:

• Content marketing (Blog posts, YouTube videos, etc.)
• SEO
• Social media

Blog posts are the best place to begin for most brands. It is competitive but there are still opportunities for improvement. And unlike other channels, results can compound over time.

The keywords at this stage will however draw an elementary audience.

If you’re an SEO agency, then the keywords people are most likely to search for are:

• What is SEO?
• “How to optimize my website for Google”
• “What is Keyword Research?”
• What is link building?

Many people are keen to do SEO on their own. It may not be necessary to hire an agency.

These funnel keywords at the top are also difficult to rank for. Therefore, unless you’ve already completed all the steps in the funnel, I don’t recommend trying to rank immediately for the top keywords.

Search for keywords that refer to ‘Striking Distance

Keywords in the ‘Striking Distance’ category are keywords that are currently in positions 11-20. You can improve your content by using content optimization techniques. This will most likely lead to it appearing on page one in the SERPs.

These can be found by simply browsing your Search Console data, and sorting queries by position.

Once you have identified the target pages you wish to upgrade, you will be able to use the Tools Content Editor to make edits/upgrades.

However, there are other examples that you might consider if blogging is not for you (e.g., if your business is in an extremely competitive field like auto insurance).

Examples of Content for This Stage

• Write content to target broad keywords and top-of-the-funnel (TOFU).

• You can create a YouTube channel that is focused on how-tos, what-is, and other early education topics

• Create social media content that informs your customers about the basic problems associated with your product/service

Action Tip: Identify the first thing that people search for when they recognize they have a problem and create content to address that need.

The stage of purchase intent is still far away from the point of purchase intent. Optimize your website for Stages 3 and 4.

Stage 3 Channels – Evaluation of Alternatives (MOFU).

Your customers will know there is a solution for their problem at this stage of your marketing funnel. The next stage, if they continue down this funnel; most customers will just bounce at this point until their pain becomes severe enough to take action), is to look into different solutions.

From the earlier stage where people were merely educated about the pain and actively considering solutions, the purchase intent is dramatically higher.

Here are some marketing channels that you might consider:

• BOFU content marketing (competitor alternatives posts, competitor vs competitor posts, etc.)

• Writing case studies about the most successful users of the product

• Campaign for more reviews

• Retargeting ads

• Optimizing pricing pages

Your message should not be about educating your audience about the pain point, but rather about explaining why your solution is the best.

Showcase any features or pricing models that are unique to your solution and make it stand out from the rest.

Examples of Content for This Stage

Let’s assume you market for FreshBooks. This is what you might do:

• Write content that demonstrates purchase intent using keywords such as “best accounting software for small business”

• Bid for keywords from competitors such as “Quickbooks”. 

• Retarget people who have already visited the pricing page by creating retargeting ads

• Link to the pricing page and optimize it by linking internally.

• Send surveys to customers, and ask loyal customers to leave reviews

Action Tip: This stage targets a higher-quality audience and is therefore often the most expensive to optimize. Before you move up the funnel, make sure to exhaust all of these steps.

Purchase Intent: This stage is extremely high in terms of purchase intent. Start here if you are short on resources and optimize this stage more than anything else.

Stage 4 Channels – Purchase Decision (BOFU).

You’ve done approximately 99% of the work by this point. To convert the prospect into a paying client, you simply need to make buying easy.

You can use various CRO tactics to accomplish this.

These are just a few of the conversion rate optimization strategies you can use:

• You can also get a 30-day guarantee of your money back 
• Offer a trial for free (or $1 to prove your intent)
• Offer a pay-by-performance pricing model
• Chat with customer support for any last-minute objections
• You can even add an FAQ section to address last-minute objections
• Review your purchase page

A heat map such as CrazyEgg can be used to show where users are scrolling on your site and give insight into how to remove roadblocks.

Action Tip: Either read our guide to CRO or hire a CRO expert. To determine which version converts best, you might also consider trying different versions of your pricing/sales page.

Purchase intent: These people are willing to buy and want assurances about the value they will receive. This should be your priority after stage 3. Usually, people won’t object if you get to stage 3.

Qualifying Leads for Your Sales Funnel: SQLs and MQLs

Now you have a great campaign.

This will allow you to use your salespeople more effectively by only bringing prospects into the sale process when they are qualified potential customers.

Not everyone who completes the funnel’s first stages will be a good match. A prospect may complete stages 1 through 3, but not have the financial resources to purchase the product.

A lead maybe passionate about the product but not the decision-maker within his or her company. Although content can help educate potential customers and help them move through the various stages of the funnel, it is important to understand these concepts.

• Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs)

• Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs)

What are Marketing Qualified Leads?

Marketing qualified leads (MQLs) are prospective customers who have demonstrated engagement at a level that leads to the conclusion that there is real potential for sales.

This assessment will be different depending on the available resources and the length of the sales cycle.

One might conclude that anyone who fills out an online demo request form is an MQL. One company might place a higher bar for MQL qualification by requiring that you view specific pages and interact with certain forms. You may also need to open a certain amount of emails. We recommend that you use a marketing tool to automate this type of analysis.

Once the MQL is identified, it can then be passed to the sales team for further follow-up.

What is a Sales Qualified Leader (SQL)?

A salesperson qualifies a prospect and considers it likely that it will eventually lead to an opportunity. This is called a sales-qualified lead (SQL).

It’s up for your business, like MQLs.

Salespeople evaluate the prospect’s interest and suitability to decide whether they are a good fit. The prospect’s interest is how interested they are in your solution. The fit refers to the degree that the lead is compatible with your company’s definition of an ideal customer (e.g. role in the company, industry, and budget).

The analysis yields four possible primary combinations

• Low interest/low match – These leads are not likely to move quickly and don’t fit your company’s criteria. This type of lead is common in low-level employees who are looking for solutions out of curiosity and not a pressing need.

• Low interest/high fit – These MQLs can be people who are looking for a solution but may not choose yours. This type of MQL could arise if, for instance, you are selling a cloud-based program but the prospect prefers a desktop solution.

• Low interest/high match – These leads are likely to be very similar to your target customer but they’re not actively looking for solutions. It may be worthwhile to pursue them even if they are not a good match right away. This will help you build brand awareness and pay off in the future when their needs become apparent.

• High interest/high match – These MQLs represent the “sweet spot”, people who are actively looking for your solution and are likely to convert to buyers. These leads should be your top priority.

Sales teams that include both senior and junior sales reps may decide to have juniors make initial calls to qualify prospects, before assigning senior reps to only those who are “highly interested/highly fit” for online demonstrations.

It is not important to know the details of each stage. It is important that sales and marketing set these parameters.

This will help you to identify the best marketing campaigns and content that lead to new qualified prospects. It also ensures that your salespeople are effectively using their time.

Based on MQL to SQL conversion rates and feedback from sales, marketing can iterate. If sales are not converting SQLs into purchases, they can examine their processes.

What Marketing Funnel Metrics should I track?

Now you have your funnel created and can now define how your staff will interact with it.

Next, you need to decide which metrics will be used to measure the effectiveness of your funnel. To track the patterns between visitors who click on your ads and those who visit your website, content, and ads, it’s important to use the SQL and MQL data. You can optimize your funnel by gathering more information.

However, a word of caution. You are creating data with every piece of content that you create for each stage of your funnel. Although all of this information is valuable to your sales process in some manner, it can be easy to get lost in the data and metrics tracking. Instead of focusing on the key performance indicator (KPI) that will give you the information you need to make significant improvements.

While you may want to track all of the metrics listed below, or any other metrics that you feel could be useful, it is best to pick 2-5 to focus your attention.

While you can always add more, make sure that you are making the changes you want based on these metrics before you expand your data operations.

• The conversion rate of the sales funnel – This is the most important metric you can focus on if you only have a handful. This metric measures the number of prospects who enter your funnel at any given point, and how many convert to customers. This metric will help you to know if you are on the right track and how you can make future changes to your marketing strategy.

• Entry sources – It is useful to monitor the sources of people entering your funnel. This can give you insight into how to expand your reach and help you plan your marketing campaigns. For example, if you notice that many of your prospects come from one guest blog post that you wrote, you can expand and enhance that post, offer a consultation for free, or find other guest author positions.

• Time on stage – In an ideal world, people would move quickly from one stage to the next. It’s not often possible, so it’s worth assessing if prospects get stuck in any of the stages. You should add content to your website that addresses the specific questions for this stage.

• Exit from the stage – A similar situation is where you see too many people leaving a stage. This indicates that you aren’t answering their questions enough or asking too soon for too much commitment. To give people the information they need or make it easier to convert, add more content (e.g. When downloading an ebook, don’t ask them for their phone number.

• The engagement rate for the content piece – If there are calls of action on several blog posts or other onsite content pieces you will want to track which ones are converting the most customers. You can then replicate your success by sending traffic to those blog posts, updating that content piece, sending paid traffic, sharing it via email, and/or creating additional content pieces. This information can be gathered by tracking engagement rates for each CTA (you can set up Google Analytics goals to track which posts drive the most conversions).

• Opportunity arrival rate – This is the rate at which opportunities are arriving in your funnel. This rate can be tracked and analyzed to determine how your marketing strategy impacts it. You should see a positive increase in opportunities that you can create.

• Close rate – The number of opportunities that lead to sales is called the “win rate” or close rate. For ideas on how to improve your marketing funnel’s success rate, if your close rate is lower than you expected, you can look at the metrics you are tracking. Your content may not be suitable for your target audience, but your sales rep might.

While there are many tools available to track these metrics and others, Google Analytics is the best. It’s free so you can use the funnel-tracking tools to determine if you need more. Then, you can move on to a sales analytics program or complete marketing automation software.

Last words

It is not easy to create a sales and marketing channel using the above process. This is not a project that you can complete in the afternoon. It is something you will want to continue to work on for as long as you own your company.

Although creating a marketing funnel can be difficult, it is one of the few ways you can improve your effectiveness and efficiency when closing deals.

Do you need help creating a high-converting funnel? We have your back! To speak with an expert, call or email us today.