Discover bottom‑of‑funnel strategies to close deals and increase conversions. From personalized outreach to social proof, learn how to seal the deal.
If you want to put your business in a position to grow, you probably have a sales or marketing funnel that you use regularly.
The goal is to move your business prospects to the bottom of the funnel, where you can convert them into paying customers. Not everyone will become a customer, and you only see the payoff if you get someone to convert at the bottom.
That is why you need to focus on your bottom-of-the-funnel marketing strategy and your lower-funnel marketing tactics. What tactics are you going to use to maximize your conversion rate at the bottom of your marketing funnel?
Learn more about the lower end of your marketing funnel, and be sure to put a few of these bottom-of-funnel marketing examples to work for your business.
The bottom of the marketing funnel is the location where your prospective customers, or leads, become paying customers.
A marketing or sales funnel is divided into different stages that represent the customer journey of the prospect as they become a paying customer. If the next step a prospective customer has is to become a paying customer, you know they are at the bottom of the marketing funnel.
During the customer journey, your job will be to create marketing content that will convince them to learn more about your products and services. Then, once they reach the bottom of the marketing funnel, you may have to shift your marketing content or strategy slightly to convince them to finally make a purchase.
There are several characteristics that will define customers who reach the bottom of your sales or marketing funnel.
First, they will have a clear and demonstrated need for the products and services you offer. Perhaps, during your communications with them so far, they have shared some significant pain points that you can use to increase your chances of earning a conversion.
Second, customers at this point of the sales or marketing funnel should also be communicating with you somewhat regularly. While they might not necessarily be responding to all of your emails and text messages, they will probably be visiting the website regularly.
Finally, they might have even put some of their items in a virtual shopping cart already, but they may not have checked out just yet. If you see evidence of this behavior, you know you have a customer at the bottom of your marketing funnel.
Once you know you have some prospects at the bottom of your sales or marketing funnel, it is time to think carefully about your bottom-of-the-funnel marketing strategy.
There are a few lower-funnel marketing tactics that you might want to try, and some of the most important bottom-of-funnel marketing examples include:
One of the most successful strategies that you might want to try at the bottom of marketing funnels is called retargeting ads. These are ads that will display products and services offered by your company to users who have already demonstrated an interest in them.
If someone visits your website, you should be able to track the products and services they look at. This history will demonstrate a specific interest in those products and services, so you should use retargeting ads to show them those products or services again to see if you can get a conversion.
You may also want to use email marketing at the bottom of the marketing funnel.
One of the most popular marketing channels, email marketing can be a great way to guide the customer journey, and you can even send targeted emails based on the interests and behaviors of your potential customers.
Keep in mind that you want to use an email campaign that has been catered to their specific location in the buying journey. You don't want to send the same email to someone at the top and bottom of the marketing funnel, so think carefully about how you can use emails to earn a conversion at the bottom of the funnel.
If you want to improve your customer experience strategy, you need to provide personalized offers. When someone gets to the bottom of the sales or marketing funnel, you need to incentivize them to take action, and one of the best ways to do so is to send them an offer that has catered to their interests.
For example, you may want to offer personalized discounts or promotions. Have you seen someone looking at a few specific products and services? Consider offering that potential customer a discount if they bundle all of the items together and purchase them. This could be a great way to earn a new conversion.
Sometimes, potential customers at the bottom of the sales or marketing funnel are waiting for social proof. They know that your products and services can offer a variety of benefits, but have people actually experienced those benefits in the past? You may want to go through a case study or share a testimonial from other customers.
Do not forget that you need to provide exceptional customer service as well. One of the most important tools you should have at your disposal is live chat. Today, current and prospective customers expect to be able to interact with your sales team using live chat.
Live chat is preferable because the person speaking to your customer service team doesn't have to worry about trying to understand someone over the phone and they can multitask while interacting with your customer service team. Make sure you offer live chat as one of your customer support options.
Sometimes, the best way to provide your prospective customer with proof of the quality of your customers and services is to provide a free trial. You need to give people at the bottom of your sales or marketing funnel a taste of what you have to offer, and a free trial could be the best way to do so.
You need to decide whether you want to provide a potential customer with access to all key features or just a few of them. You probably don't want to give the entire product package away, but you need to provide them with enough features to get a true taste of your products and services.
Customer success stories can be powerful tools because a potential customer is more likely to believe a prior customer than a page on the website. You can provide potential customers with stories that show the positive experience that people have had in the past. If you can provide them with a link to a video where someone discusses their personal experiences with your products and services, that would be even better.
Sometimes, you need to convince a customer to take action now. Consider providing an offer that is time-limited. Impress them that there are only a few products and services left, and you may convince them to make a purchase right now.
Some of the most important best practices you should follow include:
Make sure you are familiar with your customer’s pain points. Why do you think they are interested in your products and services? Focus on those points specifically with your marketing practices, and you should be able to increase your conversion rate.
You cannot take the same approach to all of your customers, as each person is different. That is why you need to customize your marketing campaigns to match the specific needs of your customers. You should vary the content you share with your customers based on their position in the marketing funnel and the way they have interacted with your company so far.
Customers have higher expectations than they have ever had in the past, and when they need something, they expect you to be there for them. Be responsive and available, and make sure you respond to their questions as quickly as you can. The faster you respond, the more likely you will earn a conversion.
If customers have concerns about your products and services, do not be defensive. Try to do everything you can to answer their concerns and respond to your objections quickly, and do not hesitate to offer an alternative if you feel a specific product or service would be better in a specific situation.
As much as possible, keep the conversation focused on the benefits of the products and services that you offer.
Why do you think the customer should purchase your products and services? How can they benefit their specific situations? While you might be tempted to focus on your business or the customer, focus on the positive side of your products and services, and you should be able to earn a conversion.
By refining your marketing funnel and strategy, you can significantly increase lead generation. Then, as you move potential customers down the sales funnel, you need to turn those leads into paying customers. That is why you need to focus on the strategy you use at the bottom of your sales and marketing funnels.
Mailchimp has a variety of tools and services that you can customize to meet the specific needs of your customers. You can focus on their pain points and maximize your conversion rate, so take a closer look at your opportunities today.