Dreams come possible with effective planning and organizing. You may start a business and create a website to showcase your services and products. If the results are not favorable then you must change your strategies. Make sure you identify the reason for which the customers are losing interest in your product. Do necessary modifications to your product by the feedback given by customers and examine if the issue is resolved. The marketing funnel will provide you with all the data and tools required for the process. 

What is the marketing funnel?

The marketing funnel originated in the year 1910. An American philosopher named John Dewey introduced the concept of the marketing funnel. It includes five stages that the customers undergo before, after, and during the purchase of a product or service. 

The illustration that is used to understand the procedure of converting leads into customers is called the marketing funnel. The depiction should be from the perspective of sales and marketing. The idea of this marketing funnel is to enable marketers to grab as many leads as possible. 

You can gradually boost prospective customers through their buying decision and then narrow these customers in each phase of the funnel. All the leads would be converted into loyal customers. A marketer needs to convert as many leads as possible into customers. 

The consumer decision process will comprise the following steps. 

• Recognizing the need or the problem.
• Data research.
• Analyzing the alternatives.
• Buying decisions.
• Post-purchase attitude.

Gradually, this concept developed into the marketing funnel. It focuses on various phases from the instant the candidate gets to know about a product or service to the instant they make a purchase. 

How does the marketing funnel work?

The stages in the marketing funnel may vary from company to company. The funnel approach process may differ based on the industry and the customer. The stages usually include,

• Engagement: A prospect might see your Ad, hear from a friend, or view any social media post.
• Attraction: Customers might believe you can solve an issue and want to discover more. 
• Intent: The prospective customer has done their analysis and is ready to convert.
• Move: The prospective customer makes a move by purchasing your product or is ready to take any action you want them to take.

Advantage of the marketing funnel

The success of a business does not alone depend on the product or service you offer. The way you market and showcase your product to the customers determines the success of the business. The color scheme and the layout of the website, and the product packaging also play an important role in the journey of the customer through the marketing funnel. 

Maintaining a clear picture of the customer's journey enables you to recognize any blocks that curb their advancement through the marketing funnel. With this information, you can make the necessary modifications to eradicate these obstacles and enhance the rate of conversion. It can be done by designing a user-friendly website, promoting the product or service on various channels, and creating a social media campaign. This is how the marketing funnel is beneficial. 

What is a B2B marketing funnel?

The gradual process of attracting appropriate customers to your website and turning them into leads, consumers, and brand promoters is called a B2B marketing funnel. It can be done by delivering well-researched and relevant content at every phase of the funnel. The content should be an answer to the frequently asked questions by your audience and places your brand as a command in your niche. 

A B2B marketing funnel takes a long time but is more endurable, unlike direct marketing which involves selling a service or product immediately. It classifies your customers into various categories and enables you to build customized messaging based on the stage of the prospect in the consumer's journey. The journey of the buyer overviews the stages a specific B2B consumer goes through before buying a product or a service.

What is a B2C marketing funnel?

A B2C marketing funnel is the opposite of a B2B marketing funnel. In this model, consumers are the end-users of the services or products offered by a business. The organizations that directly sell to customers are called B2C companies. 

There are certain types of B2C models that companies use.

Difference between marketing funnel and sales funnel

The strategy that directs a prospective consumer from the marketing phase to the conversion state is called a sales funnel. On the contrary, the process of transforming a prospective or lead into a customer is called the marketing funnel. 

The sales funnel focuses on selling more services and products. On the other hand, the marketing funnel focuses on enhancing the brand image and brand recognition. The sales funnel aims to maintain the interest of the consumer whereas the goal of the marketing funnel is to create an interest among the customers. Both the funnel uses are almost similar despite minor differences. However, the marketing funnel and sales funnel must work together to draw the customers and maintain them. 

Importance of marketing strategy

An extensive plan composed specifically to accomplish the marketing objectives of a business is called a marketing strategy. It is formulated after conducting detailed marketing research. A marketing strategy helps a business to focus on its inadequate resources on the best opportunities to boost sales. 

• Marketing strategy helps in formulating services and products that have the potential of acquiring the best returns. 
• It helps in identifying the areas that impact the business growth and aids in devising a plan to meet the customer requirements.
• A marketing strategy enables you to fix the right price for the services and products from the data collected during the marketing research. 
• It promotes effective coordination of the organization.
• A marketing strategy enables the company to make the best of the resources to deliver a sales message to the target market. 
• It helps to allocate the budget for running the advertising campaign and also helps in determining the income generated by the ad plan.

Tools that help to increase conversions through the marketing funnel

Recording the customer sessions to perceive the journey of the customers.

Heatmaps enable you to understand the behavior of the customers

Conducting surveys to get the feedback of the customers. 

The endnote

Customers are the cornerstone of any business. Designing any product or service based on their interests will bring you success in your field. The marketing funnel is the way where a user understands your business and becomes a loyal customer in the end. 

There is no specific funnel that suits all the business models. Marketing funnels may differ with the types of businesses and goals. The perfect way to create a marketing funnel is by beginning with your goal and working backward. Integrating quantitative and qualitative insights with the tools will aid you in devising a funnel that answers the requirements of your customers in turn increases the conversion rate. Thus, build a successful marketing funnel and optimize it to improve sales.