Sales Funnel Stages Explained for the Newbie

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Sales Funnel Stages Explained for the Newbie

Are you new to Internet Marketing?  Trying to find your feet as all of these strange terms float menacingly around you?  Fear not, my friend!  Rob to the rescue!

I have just released a guide to the mysterious dimension known as the Sales Funnel.  You may have never heard this term before, but I’ll bet that if you’ve bought a single marketing product that you have been through at least one of these in your time online.  Never fear.  I am here to walk you through this and show you how you can benefit from  having a Sales Funnel of your very own.

A funnel of my own, Rob?  I don’t even know what it is!

Fair enough.  Let me walk you quickly through the sales funnel stages and perhaps you will see something you’ve experienced quite recently.

Step 1 – The Landing Page

This is also sometimes called a “squeeze” page.  This is where the initial offer is made to grab your attention.  Have you ever gotten a flyer from a local car dealership announcing a contest to win gift cards or vacation packages?  Same concept.  It’s the hook that grabs your attention and draws you in.

Step 2 – The Front-End Offer

Here’s what they’ve got on offer.  Did you go into that car dealership looking for a free trip to the Bahamas?  Did you come out of that dealership with a car you didn’t know you wanted?  Car dealerships sell cars.  If they’re giving away trips to the Bahamas, they’re probably selling luxury cars.  The funnel is dependent on a consistent hook.  Online, that hook is a particular theme or topic.  If they’re showing a tutorial on improving your golf swing to get your attention, they’d better stay on the golf course for the rest of the sales pitch or you will probably get confused and wander off.

Step 3 – The One Time Offer or Upsell

Say, do you want fries with that burger?  Say, would you like the one year warranty on that iPad?  Say, would you like a groom’s cake at your wedding? They’re all the rage.  See what’s happening here?  The funnel is beginning to narrow.  They had you at the burger, but how about some fries to go with it?  Well, frankly you can get fries pretty much whenever you want so that’s hardly a One Time Offer.  However, if you don’t get that Shamrock Shake with your meal, you might very well have to wait until next year to get one!  Now, there’s some urgency.  There’s some scarcity.  There’s a reason to want to get the special Father’s Day platter at the local diner. Why? Because they only offer it on Father’s Day!   Granted, sometimes they don’t restrict this step to a one-time only offer.  If this is generally available, like the fries or the warranty, it can be called an upsell.  They’re trying to sell you some more stuff.  Buying golf clubs?  How about a bag to put them in?  The bag may be somewhat costly, but imagine how awkward it will be walking around the golf course with a bunch of loose clubs.

Step 4 – The Downsell

Okay, maybe you have a golf bag already.  How about some gloves?  Some balls with your college logo?  Some sunglasses?  If the upsell was just too much for your budget, the funnel is designed to accommodate a tighter budget.  Instead of the two year warranty, how about one year for half the price?  You want to protect your iPad, right?  What if you dropped it?

Step 5 – The Thank You

Whatever you have decided to buy, this is where you check out.  Sometimes in an internet sales funnel, you’ll see links to bonuses to thank you for your purchase.  How about that Chinese buffet?  When the waiter brings you the check, he’s got some fortune cookies to go with it.  When you check out at the department store or grocers, you enter that little cattle chute with the conveyor belt and all those little low ticket goodies that you might just be tempted to add to the stack on the conveyor.  Flip over your receipt.  Are there coupons or ads on the back?  Well, thank you for shopping here!  Come back soon and here’s $5 off of your next purchase of $50 or more.  Isn’t that great? You just got $5 for free!  All you have to do is spend another $50 in the store to score it.  Thank you very much!

That’s the funnel in a nutshell.  So, how do you get yours?  How do you get to be the guy with the fries?  Check out my guide “Rob Knowlan’s Internet Marketing Trifecta For Newbies” at Freegiftr.com for further details.

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