Very often we’re told that in a typical funnel it goes in this order
discovery >>>> nurture>>> conversion>>>sale.
And sure, it happens when you get the right content in front of the right people…but we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
Very often I’ve seen folks completely baffled, analysing the shit out of their funnels thinking they just need to optimize their funnel and create more conversion-focused content- whatever that means. Now don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely a time and place for that.
And honestly asking for the sale more often definitely helps, because a lot of folks rarely ask for the sale enough, but the truth still remains- the buying process isn’t always linear.
So what do we do about it?
We account for it in how we design our funnels and customer journeys.
Think less straight line and more of a web.
Think about it, you’ve gone down a blog, YouTube or Reddit rabbit hole before, haven’t you? You started off looking for one thing and got totally lost…and 3 hours later, you catch yourself! Wait, where did the time go?!
You want the same thing to happen to the folks in your audience, but with your content. You want them to get lost down the rabbit hole that’s your world.
And when it comes to making a purchase, can we also agree that although online buying is generally more convenient than purchasing things offline, buying behavior hasn’t really changed, has it?
There are some folks who know exactly what they want and go straight to the purchase and that’s great!
But other folks would go to the store and browse around or window shop and take pictures and make notes and comparison shop and THEN make a purchase.
The same behaviours folks exhibit offline also happen online.
What’s more, people get distracted, people forget what they were originally doing, and people shop around without any intention of ever buying.
And that’s ok.
Your true fans and invested folks will buy when they are ready.
But back to my point, how do we account in our funnels and customer journeys for non-linear buying behaviour?
You do it by having a content ecosystem.
And that’s why I keep talking so much about leveraging your content through email marketing.
It’s not just about having people discover you, you have to keep their attention and interest and nurture the relationship to the point where they become so invested that their desire turns into action.
So, take them down the rabbit hole that’s your world by creating numerous content touchpoints so that you move folks from curious onlookers to invested buyers and the way you do that is by ensuring that your content shows up in front of the right people consistently and using a strategy to consistently show those same people your content over and over and over, so that they become familiar with your products and services.
Then you filter for those who are ready to take action vs those who aren’t.
If they indicate they’re ready to take action and make a purchase, wonderful! If they don’t, then continue providing valuable content and nurturing the relationship.
And as time goes on your efforts are compounded and generating consistent sales becomes easier because your content is gaining more and more traction and an ever-increasing number of people are moving through your customer journey and taking action.
It’s that simple.
And it also doesn’t mean you need to go off creating a bunch of new content.
Chances are, you probably already have a ton of great content that needs to get more of the right eyes on it.
So if you need support figuring out how to use your existing content to create a content ecosystem aka your very own rabbit hole and leverage it through email marketing, I invite you to check out my Content to Customer Roadmap.
This is a 90 minute session where you learn where you’re letting attention, interest and customers fall through the cracks. We’ll work together to leverage your content and create a customer journey that keeps your audience engaged and the customers coming in, consistently.
Here’s what we’ll be evaluating during our time together:
Your list building magnet and content strategy: here we identify what kind of content you need to put out and what platforms to double down on to get quality leads into your email list.
Your customer journey: we’ll review your current customer journey and identify where along the path you’re losing interest, revenue and customers and how you can close those gaps.
Your email sequences and campaigns: here we identify how you can improve your messaging, email content and sales copy in a way that positions you as an authority, creates intimacy and leverages buyer psychology in order to move folks from curious to invested so that they’re primed to buy.
Get the details and sign up by clicking here.