{"id":66347,"date":"2021-07-19T12:29:23","date_gmt":"2021-07-19T16:29:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/?p=66347"},"modified":"2024-01-23T13:44:37","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T18:44:37","slug":"digital-marketing-funnel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/digital-marketing-funnel\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a Digital Marketing Funnel?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel-1024x538.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-66352 skip_lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel-1024x538.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel-768x403.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel-560x294.jpg 560w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/canva-digital-marketing-funnel.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>digital marketing funnel<\/strong> is a modern, online strategy for gaining and retaining clients for your business. The four steps to the digital marketing funnel are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Awareness<\/li><li>Discovery (first part of lead generation)<\/li><li>Consideration (second part of lead generation)<\/li><li>Conversion<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It is based on the older <em>Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action <\/em>(AIDA) funnel and general marketing journey: <em>awareness, nurture, convert, and delight<\/em>. It shares resemblance with other website marketing funnels including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Hourglass<\/strong> &#8211; a more detailed variation with strong emphasis on customer relationship management, attractive for larger businesses with lots of manpower<\/li><li><strong>Looping<\/strong> &#8211; more agile for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), sometimes combined with Avinash Kaushik\u2019s \u201cSee-Think-Do-Care\u201d framework<\/li><li><strong>Micro-moments<\/strong> &#8211; quickly answering \u201cI want to know, do, buy, or go \u2018X\u2019\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Below we\u2019ll cover more about how to build a digital marketing funnel, complete with examples and common mistakes to avoid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel-1024x538.jpg\" alt=\"Digital Marketing Funnel\" class=\"wp-image-66348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel-1024x538.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel-768x403.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel-560x294.jpg 560w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel.jpg\">Digital Marketing Funnel<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/digital-marketing-funnel.jpg\" class=\"wp-block-file__button\" download>Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><a href=\"#why\">Why Is Digital Marketing Funnel Important<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#target\">Your Target Consumer Market<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#stages\">4 Digital Marketing Funnel Stages<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#top\">Top of Funnel<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#mofu\">Middle of the Funnel<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#bottom\">Bottom of the Funnel<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#crm\">Customer Relationships and Retention<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#common\">Common Funnel Mistakes<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"why\">Why Is Digital Marketing Funnel Important<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the common journey to making a purchase in today&#8217;s world:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"article_list wp-block-list\"><li>Realize the problem<\/li><li>Search for a solution<\/li><li>Compare the best options<\/li><li>Decide and make a purchase<\/li><li>Evaluate the purchase and whether to remain with the same brand<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>This newer digital funnel has a wide range of benefits over the older strategy:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Considers differing behavior among users<\/li><li>Focused on learning your needs and preferences<\/li><li>Helps employees understand the intent of their work and how to best communicate with their targets demographic<\/li><li>Versatile enough to acknowledge that not everyone starts at the top of the funnel<\/li><li>You\u2019ll better understand leads\u2019 needs<\/li><li>Mobile devices and virtual reality (VR) offer innovative ways to advertise<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"target\">Your Target Consumer Market<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Before you develop your digital marketing funnel, you need to figure out your target market:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Primary demographic region and language<\/li><li>Experience in related field<\/li><li>Ethnicity \/ race<\/li><li>Marital status<\/li><li>Sex \/ gender<\/li><li>Age group<\/li><li>Income<\/li><li>Many more depending on your product<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You might need to target different personas for different stages. Example: if you\u2019re making kids toys, the child becomes <em>aware<\/em> but the parent has to convert (purchase the product).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You may have levels of targets &#8211; primary, secondary who may benefit from your products, and others who aren\u2019t looking to purchase but might share your content among their social circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Web analytics software tracks how people reach and navigate your website, sign up to email lists, and more. Matomo and Google Analytics are the most popular options and easy to integrate with WordPress and other popular content management systems (CMSs).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"stages\">4 Digital Marketing Funnel Stages<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>For each stage, we\u2019ll explain users\u2019 mindset, marketing methods to explore, and content ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"top\">Top of Funnel<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>awareness<\/strong> phase is considered the top of the funnel (TOFU). Potential customers are aware of the issue, but unsure of the best solution for them. Marketing efforts to reach people at this position should focus primarily on driving traffic to your business with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/seo-for-beginners\/\">search engine optimization (SEO)<\/a> and a strong community reputation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>SEO isn\u2019t just about being on the first page for relevant search engine queries. Make it easy for someone to find what they need quickly. This requires research on keywords and keyphrases relevant to your services and industry with tools including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Trends.Google.com<\/li><li>Semrush.com<\/li><li>Ahrefs.com<\/li><li>Moz.com<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Staying with the toy example, \u201ctoy store\u201d and \u201ctoys for kids\u201d would be hard to rank for but not something more specific like \u201cSTEM toys.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"572\" alt=\"SEMRush Toy Store Search\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-66349\" data-id=\"66349\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store-1024x572.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store-560x313.png 560w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-toy-store.png 1489w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">SEMRush research for &#8220;Toy Store&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"760\" alt=\"SEMRush Kids Toys Search\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-66350\" data-id=\"66350\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys-1024x760.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys-1024x760.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys-300x223.png 300w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys-768x570.png 768w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys-560x416.png 560w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-kids-toys.png 1454w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">SEMRush research for &#8220;Kids Toys&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"758\" alt=\"SEMRush STEM Toys Search\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-66351\" data-id=\"66351\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys-1024x758.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys-1024x758.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys-768x568.png 768w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys-560x414.png 560w, https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/semrush-stem-toys.png 1458w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">SEMRush research for &#8220;STEM Toys&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>To improve your chances of being found through organic searches in Google, YouTube, etc., work these SEO keyphrases into your:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Website metadata (schema and XML sitemap)<\/li><li>Product landing pages<\/li><li>Written and video metadata<\/li><li>Social media activity<\/li><li>Google Ads campaigns and other search engine marketing (SEM) efforts<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"alert alert-info\">Adding your business address and phone number to your contact, about, or quote page can help locals find your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Brand reputation spreads by word of mouth. Almost everyone uses online reviews and social media for decision making. To make this more advantageous for you and get the most out of SEO, improve your brand awareness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Research relevant forums and blogs within your industry. Assign willing team members genuinely interested in them to participate often. Resulting conversations can grant opportunities to educate others about solutions to problems using your products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Take social media management seriously. It is hard work. That\u2019s why there are dedicated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/social-media-manager\/\">social media manager<\/a> positions requiring experience with Hootsuite and platform-specific analytics. Being active on social media, and review platforms (for customers and former employees), shows interaction and improves your SEO ranking. Don\u2019t forget the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and TrustPilot pages. And don\u2019t run from negative feedback. Try to decipher constructive criticism to improve your services. This shows you listen to your customers and are changing for the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/affiliate-marketing\/\">Affiliate marketing<\/a> pays brand ambassadors to introduce your business (with backlinks) to users who might never realize your existence otherwise. Reputable applications for affiliate programs include Impact.com and Brandbassador.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sponsoring events and donating to local non-profit organizations build brand awareness and help you build meaningful relationships. It doesn\u2019t have to be money. Time and free assistance go a long way. You can offer internships to local colleges or old equipment you don\u2019t need. It might spark enough interest for a press release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Content supporting top of funnel efforts should answer \u201cwhat is\u201d questions to educate inexperienced users and gain the respect of experienced users. This can take many forms:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cWhat is\u201d blogs and videos with high-ranking SEO keyphrases<\/li><li>Infographics for easy sharing<\/li><li>Q&amp;A Zoom sessions<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"alert alert-info\">WordPress users should check out Rank Math SEO. For Drupal users, there\u2019s Real-time SEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the end, they learn of your business and visit your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"mofu\">Middle of the Funnel<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>discovery<\/strong> stage is the first half of the middle of the funnel (MOFU). It is also referred to as initial <em>lead generation<\/em>. The potential customer has found your business is now doing one of three things:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Reading your product pages and informational blogs to gauge your expertise<\/li><li>Researching external reviews about your services, customer service, and recent cyber intrusions<\/li><li>Checking your social media and active LinkedIn employees for \u201csocial proof\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, your goal is to help them better understand the best solution for their problem &#8211; hopefully you. Work product comparisons, or \u201cwhy us\u201d content, against competitors into your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/the-best-marketing-calendar-tools\/\">content calendar<\/a>. Personalized content with titles like \u201copen source software STEM toys for kids\u201d can increase conversion intent by <a href=\"https:\/\/marketinginsidergroup.com\/content-marketing\/content-marketing-personalization-imperative\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">78%<\/a>. Note anything competitors may be doing better to help improve your business.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"alert alert-success\">Case studies and eBooks both make for great downloadable content and marketing benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your \u201cwhat is\u201d and \u201cwhy us\u201d content should include a section or conclusion that encourages them to come back to your website &#8211; a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/what-is-cta-call-to-action-examples\/\">call to action (CTA)<\/a>. You can even do this in video descriptions. Mailing lists are a low-cost, high return on investment (ROI) with tools such as Mailchimp or phpList. Once you have someone\u2019s email address, you can use your mailing list software to tailor campaigns based on:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Where they signed up<\/li><li>Links they click from emails<\/li><li>Product pre-orders<\/li><li>Abandoned shopping cart reminders<\/li><li>User agent and browser cookies<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"alert alert-info\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/support\/email\/strengthen-overall-email-authentication\/\">Strengthen email security<\/a> to prevent your emails from being marked as spam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some users prefer RSS feeds, a method that allows users to stay updated on and read your latest content without visiting your website. Some CMSs include this feature by default. It\u2019s value varies between business types. In general, it is more helpful than not for maintaining prospects who won\u2019t subscribe to your mailing list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To keep users on your website longer, add links to related articles at the bottom of each article. The Jetpack WordPress plugin does this natively. It doesn\u2019t have to be that sophisticated. It can be a conclusion stating \u201cread more about&#8230;\u201d with a link at the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even simpler for \u201cwhy us\u201d and comparisons content, you can end the article with a link to contact you for a quote. Or embed a contact form requesting necessary info for a proper estimate. This applies to events, too. For videos, you can add the info in the description or as a pop-up during the video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They\u2019re considering you once they subscribe to your mailing list or come back to your site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>consideration<\/strong> stage is the last half of the MOFU. You\u2019ve received inquiries and they\u2019re consuming more of your content. They now want to see how your services work &#8211; <em>how to <\/em>use them. At this stage you need \u201chow to\u201d content addressing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Maintaining products<\/li><li>Achieving tasks with your products<\/li><li>Integrating products with third party services<\/li><li>Scenarios that require multiple products<\/li><li>Recommendations for getting the most out of your services<\/li><li>Advice for related news<\/li><li>When to upgrade\/downgrade services<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Cybersecurity has become more important to the general public due to ongoing high-profile cyber intrusions. When users are on the fence, sway them in your favor with best practices for showing you care about customer\u2019s privacy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>SSL certificates on all domains and subdomains<\/li><li>General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) info easy to find and clearly defined in terms of service<\/li><li>Certifications related to your industry<ul><li>Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance for online payments<\/li><li>Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for medical services<\/li><li>CompTIA or Cisco certifications for IT support<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Rankings on popular review sites for your industry<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Websites that list businesses with these credentials may route users directly into this funnel stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"alert alert-info\">Web accessibility for Section 508 compliance is important for organizations connected to the US government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A potentially high risk \/ high reward tactic: take a public stance on social and political trends:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>100% operated in your demographic region<\/li><li>Using only free open source software (FOSS)<\/li><li>Prioritizing mental health and wellness among employees<\/li><li>Hiring and supporting military veterans<\/li><li>Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Just be sure that you can back up whatever claims you make. Otherwise, this can backfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once they\u2019ve seen enough of how your product works and what your company values, it is time to make a purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"bottom\">Bottom of the Funnel<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>conversation<\/strong> stage is the bottom of the digital marketing funnel (BOFU). You\u2019ve convinced them to purchase from your email campaign (which generates more sales than other methods) or indirectly from your middle funnel work. They\u2019ve seen how you compare to competitors and why you\u2019re the best option to resolve their issue. Now they\u2019re working through your shopping cart process or finalizing the contract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Timing is crucial here. Don\u2019t rush someone at this point. Transaction finalization can vary depending on customizations, costs, urgency to resolve the issue, and more. Your focus here is minimizing roadblocks so they can finish the process when ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The shopping cart process should be easy to navigate. Clearly define what is done at each step. If working internationally, present the latest conversion rate. Minimize clicks needed throughout the process by only requesting info required to complete the transaction. Leave other info that can help you learn more about them to the profile settings afterwards:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Birthday for special discounts<\/li><li>Primary interests for future email campaigns<\/li><li>Referral to better understand what\/who helped them convert<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Present a way for clients to make contract drafts easy to annotate with comments. You could do this with Google Docs or a tutorial for how to comment on PDFs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like each stage above, someone with urgent matters might enter your funnel looking to convert immediately. This is where you\u2019ll reap benefits from content with SEO for searches including your products types combined with words like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Buy<\/li><li>Quote<\/li><li>How much<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/what-is-an-rfp\/\">Request for proposal (RFP)<\/a><\/li><li>Free trial<\/li><li>Demo<\/li><li>Coupon<\/li><li>Contact<\/li><li>Cost<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Your job isn\u2019t finished once you gain a new customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"crm\">Customer Relationships and Retention<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It is five times more expensive to replace a customer than to keep them. Customer testimonials are the best marketing because people trust friends and relatives most. The basics in customer retention:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>24\/7 customer service via phone, chat, or email<\/li><li>New and updated documentation to answer frequently asked questions<\/li><li>Request feedback periodically after the final sale&nbsp;<\/li><li>Send small merchandise with the package for subtle advertising (pen, sticker, etc.)<\/li><li>Occasional freebies to apologize to customers suffering hardship due to internal issues<\/li><li>Separate mailing lists for info, offers,updates campaigns<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The point is to continue communication post-sale, likely with email. Every once in a while, send a personalized email to show appreciation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Discounts or free giveaways for their birthday or after a year as a paid subscriber<\/li><li>Limited edition merch in exchange for a validated Google or Yelp review<\/li><li>Free consultation on other products that can solve other issues<\/li><li>Recommendations per account support history<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/what-is-crm\/\"><strong>Customer relationship management (CRM)<\/strong><\/a> solutions are designed specifically for such tasks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Zendesk<\/li><li>Zoho<\/li><li>Dolibarr<\/li><li>Third party integrations for CMSs<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Content for customers would come from customer feedback, complaints, and trends in frequent requests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The digital marketing funnel in summary:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"article_list wp-block-list\"><li>Preparation &#8211; learn your target audience and their preferred social media sites<\/li><li>Awareness &#8211; research SEO keyphrases to use in product pages and \u201cwhat is\u201d blogs<\/li><li>Push SEO pages through paid ads and affiliate programs<\/li><li>Discovery &#8211; ensure advertised pages and \u201cwhy us\u201d content have a mailing list opt-in with incentives (e.g. free eBook)<\/li><li>Consideration &#8211; create product documentation<\/li><li>Conversion &#8211; subscriber makes a purchase<\/li><li>Build customer relationship<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"common\">Common Funnel Mistakes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t underestimate customer retention. High retention means you focus more on customers and less on lead generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Have a systematic approach to discover why customers are leaving you. Look for patterns of complaints for improvements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t blindly follow any digital marketing funnel example. Goals are different for different organizations at each stage. An online store generally wants to sell products and create fashion trends. A rock band might want to sell out live shows and sell merch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You don\u2019t have to stick to the same goals at one time. Web analytics software can help you run multiple funnels for A\/B testing to learn which works best for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Focus on actual long-term profits, not just quarterly gains or clicks from campaign links. One slow quarter doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re doing anything or that you exceed last year\u2019s numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"jumbotron\" style=\"text-align:center;\">\r\n<p style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong>Reliable Shared Hosting for Growing Businesses<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p>Get the performance your business website demands with NVMe SSD storage, industry-standard cPanel management, and direct access to hosting experts whenever you need assistance.<\/p>\r\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/design.inmotionhosting.com\/assets\/icons\/standard\/check-blue.svg\" alt=\"check mark\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" \/>Free Website Migration &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/design.inmotionhosting.com\/assets\/icons\/standard\/check-blue.svg\" alt=\"check mark\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" \/>24\/7 Human Support &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/design.inmotionhosting.com\/assets\/icons\/standard\/check-blue.svg\" alt=\"check mark\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" \/>100% Money-Back Guarantee<\/p>\r\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-primary btn-lg\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/shared-hosting?mktgp=t&irgwc=1&affiliates=5001860&utm_campaign=Jumbotron&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=cta&utm_term=shared-cta2\">Shared Hosting<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The digital marketing funnel is a modern, online strategy for gaining and retaining clients for your business. The four steps to the digital marketing funnel are: Awareness Discovery (first part of lead generation) Consideration (second part of lead generation) Conversion It is based on the older Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action (AIDA) funnel and general marketing<a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/digital-marketing-funnel\/\"> Read More ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[362,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-marketing","category-seo"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>4 Essential Stages of a Digital Marketing Funnel | InMotion Hosting Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is a Digital Marketing Funnel? 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