What is Lead Funnel?

Summary

The lead funnel, also known as the sales funnel, is a metaphorical representation of the buyer’s journey, and spans from the initial awareness of a product to the final purchase decision. It is divided into varying stages according to different approaches, each stage with its own set of recommended marketing and sales strategies.

How does the lead funnel work?

The lead funnel is a staple marketing technique that works by classifying leads according to their stage in the buying process, with each stage requiring different strategies to encourage conversions. This strategy helps marketers deliver relevant messaging and experiences that accurately answer to a lead's needs, challenges, preferences, and objections to a purchase.

Traditionally, the lead funnel is split into three stages: top of funnel (TOFU), middle of funnel (MOFU), and bottom of funnel (BOFU).

• TOFU is usually focused on driving brand awareness, alongside other strategies to position your brand as a potential solution to your leads' pain points.
• MOFU, usually regarded as the consideration stage, focuses on building trust and addressing objections.
• Finally, BOFU positions your solution as the best fit for the prospect by addressing remaining concerns and providing proof of results (in the form of testimonials, case studies, reports, and more).

What is the purpose of the lead funnel?

When following the lead funnel process, marketers are better able to address the evolving needs of leads throughout their buyer’s journey. When utilising the lead funnel model, companies can improve their lead conversion rates by adopting adequate marketing and sales efforts for each stage of the buyer’s journey. This, in turn, will result in an increased return on investment (ROI).