#87 Build Community With Your Funnel
Before we dive in let's define what a funnel is:
A funnel is designed to attract, nurture, and convert leads into customers. It takes a prospect customer from a top-of-funnel experience, like social media content or an ad, to a conversion event where they have an opportunity to purchase your product.
In super plain logistical terms it can look something like this:
They view social media content with call to action
They opt-in for the free thing (guide, mini-course, template)
They receive emails that help build on the idea from the free thing
They are invited to a conversion event like an on-demand webinar, or they're sent something like a loom video
They are sent a series of sales emails with an opportunity to purchase with urgency (discount, bonuses, time limit, etc.)
A funnel is a lot more effective than sharing cold traffic straight to a sales page – you have an opportunity to nurture them, teach them, build awareness, and then ask them to buy at the right moment.
If you have low conversion on your sales pages, not using a proper funnel could very well be your problem.
Your funnel is often the first touchpoint beyond top-of-funnel social media that your community member will experience with you. It's SO important that it is an incredible experience so that you build trust.
Funnels typically fall to marketing as a responsibility, but here are four things you need to get right from my perspective as a product strategist:
Don't make them regret giving you their email. This will immediately break trust. My friend Jay Clouse has shared one of my favorite lessons about email. For each email he writes he asks "will this pass the regret test?". We want to make sure they're not going to regret opening the email. That means even though you're selling at some point, you still need to provide value.
Focus on helping your community WIN. If they download a free thing from you, don't assume that it should be fluffy or without helpful substance. Think of this freebie as step 1 of their journey in your product. How can you help them get a win that is going to set them up for success when they buy your product?
Don't make the conversation one-sided. Encourage your community to connect with you by replying to your emails, coming to a call with you if appropriate, or shooting you a DM on social. A funnel is a tool to help you carry leads to sales, but it's also an opportunity to connect with your community and build relationships.
Set honest expectations for what the product experience will be once they purchase. In fact, I recommend setting the bar slightly lower than what they'll expect. When you do that, you get to blow them out of the water on experience. That will results in more testimonials and customer referrals. Keep the offer itself simple and share only what they need to make a purchasing decision.
The Funnel Method
Many of you have "met" my friend Cheyenne Buttrey, who I love to refer to as my marketer-partner-in-crime. I've shared stories with her, and she guest wrote this issue on the must-have copy in a sales page.
Cheyenne has just opened doors to her brand new program, The Funnel Method, where she is going to take us step by step in building out an evergreen funnel so we can get off the launch hamster wheel.
I personally witnessed Cheyenne build 3 high converting funnels at bossbabe while she was Head of Marketing and I was Head of Product – it is her genius zone.
The Funnel Method is a 10-week group coaching program with copywriting template packs designed to help you structure + write your evergreen funnel so you can *finally* launch your funnel in 2025.
I have been dying to get my hands on Cheyenne's framework and templates, and so you better believe I'm taking this program and will be present in every live call.
Want to come build your funnel with me and learn from Cheyenne?
We kick off on November 20 – writing is the perfect thing to do over the quieter months ahead.
I asked her if I could share a discount with my newsletter subscribers and she said YES. Use code "BPD" at checkout for $100 off!
Cheyenne is pricing this program at $497 because it's the first round, but she could easily charge thousands for this. Working with her 1:1 to create your entire funnel is a 5-figure investment. See you in there??
Don't forget to save $100 with code "BPD"