MODULE 1CHAPTER 4 HOW TO PLAN YOUR MARKETING FUNNEL1.0 INTRODUCTION2.0 OBJECTIVES3.0 MAIN CONTENT3.1 What is Marketing Funnel?3.2 Awareness3.3 Consideration3.4 Conversion3.5 Loyalty3.6 Advocacy4.0 CONCLUSION5.0 SUMMARY6.0 ASSIGNMENT1.0 INTRODUCTIONThe next thing that naturally follows Market Research is the process of setting up your Marketing Funnel. This chapter will focus on how to do just that.2.0 OBJECTIVES- To highlight what a strategic marketing funnel is- To demonstrate how to tactically set it up- To encourage each student to set her own in her chosen market niche.3.0 MAIN CONTENTBefore we go in to discuss how to plan your Marketing Funnel, there is a need to define it.3.1 What is a marketing funnel?It is an overall plan to channel new prospects into your business with the aim of developing a relationship, a sale, repeat sales and finally turning them to become not only your clients, but also your raving Fans for life.It has also been defined by other authorities as a simple marketing system that you set up to collect email addresses of your prospects in such a way that you can market to them automatically.There are two types namely: a lead-driven and a sales-driven marketing funnel.After securing a purchase from your prospect, the former puts the customer in your list, your control for further marketing while the later puts them in the affiliate merchants’ control, gone forever out of your hands.For beginners I recommend lead-driven marketing funnel as it is very useful for affiliate marketing, but sales-driven marketing funnel is good if you have your own product as a merchant in ClickBank etc. where other affiliate are selling for you. At the end you get the money and the list for further marketing.When you are setting up your lead-driven marketing funnel, you need 2 things namely: a free offer and an autoresponder. I will deliberate on them in other parts of this eCourse.However, strategically, a marketing Funnel is usually depicted as an inverted pyramid (or funnel), with 5 connected parts:
The top broad inverted base =>
The middle small part =>
The smaller underneath vertex =>
The smallest tip that opens into the funnel channel =>
The channel.
The inverted Pyramid (or Funnel) portions described above can then be labelled in that order as listed:
Awareness
Consideration
Conversion
Loyalty
Advocacy
3.2 AwarenessThe top broad zenith (in the inverted pyramid) represents all the ways you attempt to create awareness for your brand, product or website; to attract and lead the people to your website. This include over 5-10 free and paid ways that you will regularly use to attract prospects to your website and finally to your products.Top and easiest among them are the Social Media – Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google+, Squidoo Lens, Classified Ads, Press Releases, HubPages, Answer Sites, Forum, etc.There are simple ways of placing ads on those sites – those kind of ads you often see on sites like Facebook and Yahoo Answers, etc.The major aim is to create public/market awareness of your brand, products and services.3.3 ConsiderationThe middle portion called consideration. It is where you offer to them valuable goods and services as baits and pecks to get them involved in doing business with you.The goal here is to make a calculated attempt to convince them to join your list.Thus, whatever you are offering must be very relevant to your market niche, but quite different from what you are putting up for sale.If you are selling Affiliate products, the vendor will more often than not provide you with products that will serve as Free Offers which you can use here as baits to get people into your lists. If they don’t, you can create them by yourself using free but relevant downloads or free products from other sources.3.4 ConversionThe bottom portion represents the period that you have successfully convince them to join your list. This is called conversion.Two things may happen immediately they have join your list. They will either buy your product or fail to do so.As a savvy marketer, you must know that the game is not yet over till (and even after) they have bought from you.The next thing is to get them on your educational series by sending to them lessons on the relevant niche. More often than not, they will later end up buying from you (if they did not, initially).Thus, for most prospects, they need some kind of education on what they are about to get involved.Email series of at least 7 lessons can help the prospect pass over this stage to become a customer.3.5 LoyaltyLoyalty is when your customer shows up repeatedly to buy your related products in connection with the initial purchase.3.6 AdvocacyIf you did the above groundwork well, your customers by now will be recommending your products and services to other customers – his friends, relations, acquaintances, etc. It is a sign of Loyalty and what every Marketer that knows his Onions should be aiming at.This is the ultimate level of Internet Marketing!Planning your marketing funnel:Tactically, here is a simple and straightforward way to plan your marketing funnel.From top to bottom Marketing Funnel typically contains:
Freebies
Sign up
One Time Offers (OTOs) often at a very minimal initial prices
Free eCourse
Sales Promotion
Membership Site Offer or
Another OTO, all at reduced initial prices
These positions may vary slightly depending on your goal for setting up the marketing funnel
4.0 CONCLUSIONIt is only when you set up a marketing funnel for your niche market that you have really start business – online business. Otherwise, Internet Marketing is just your hobby and not yet a Business for you.5.0 SUMMARYThe conduct of this aspect of business is also influenced by the approach of the marketer, some prefers a Soft Approach while others use the Hard Approach to Marketing.I will return to this topic with more details when I will be discussing on setting up the Autoresponder Messages.What do you think you should do next after this?Did I heard you say: Domain Name Registration and Hosting?You are absolutely right, and that is what I will be talking about in the next chapter.6.0 ASSIGNMENTCan you plan and set up your own funnel in your chosen market niche before you go unto the next eCourse?