Digital marketing funnels are difficult and complicated – right?
Yes and no.
Of course, some funnels can be hugely complicated, with more routes than Spaghetti Junction and requiring the brainpower of a NASA scientist.
But not all.
In fact, I’m going to show you three digital marketing funnels here that are so simple, you can create them today, just by following some easy steps.
But first, let’s look at the obvious question:
“What is a digital marketing funnel?”
I’m glad you asked. Here’s Google’s best answer:
A digital marketing funnel is basically a cocktail of tactics and techniques that can help a business: Get more targeted exposure that only grows with time. Gather better quality leads that can be converted with ease. Nurture prospects/customers well so they share their experience with others
Hmm… no wonder people get confused.
Let’s simplify things:
A digital marketing funnel is a mechanism to move your online audience along a journey with you and your agency via an easy action that benefits them.
Let’s break it down even further:
Mechanism: could be the call to action at the end of a blog, or a button on a Facebook advert.
Online audience: website visitors, email subscribers or social followers.
Easy action: a Like, comment or click.
Benefit: this could be the satisfaction they get from answering a comment on Facebook, or a free resource they receive in exchange for their contact details.
So now you know what a digital marketing funnel actually is, you’re probably wondering:
“Why do I need a digital marketing funnel?”
Because they’re a low-cost and effective way to get your phone ringing, your email pinging, and get you through the doors of those homes you really want to list.
If you’re relying on word-of-mouth to build your agency, it’ll take you far longer, and with a much higher degree of unpredictability, than if you use methods you can control to generate leads. Direct mail, social media and content marketing are all consistent ways of building almost any business, so if you want to produce a robust income and create an agency you can one day sell, you need to use proven lead generation tactics that work for independent agents right now. Including digital marketing funnels.
In fact, direct mail, social media and content marketing are all excellent complements to digital funnels, so I’m going to explain in easy steps here how to create a funnel for each one.
Easy Digital Marketing Funnel Number One: The Direct Mail Funnel
This is a great funnel to use with a direct mail campaign, because you know where they live, plus with this funnel, you’ll have their name email address; a powerful combination.
Step 1: Pick a topic for your direct mail campaign and funnel. Something specific like ‘downsizing’ or ‘home styling’.
Step 2: Write a checklist for your chosen topic. Don’t make it too long or complicated; 10 steps are plenty – you don’t need 101.
Step 3: Get your checklist designed, or do it yourself in Word or PowerPoint. Add attractive photos and your branding with contact details.
Step 4: Save as a pdf or ask your designer to.
Step 5: Write your direct mail letter, on your chosen topic. Make it informative and interesting.
Step 6: Offer your checklist by email. Make it your personal email and add your photo – you’ll get a higher conversion.
That’s it. As long as you’re sending out your direct mail in batches of tens or hundreds, not thousands, you’ll easily be able to cope with the requests that land in your inbox. Then all you need to do is to turn those enquiries into conversations.
Easy Digital Marketing Funnel Number Two: The Facebook Cover Funnel
How to use your Facebook cover image to generate new visitors to each blogpost you create. This funnel is super-easy and because it’s so rare to see an agent using it, your Facebook page will be head and shoulders above the competition, within minutes.
The best-converting blogposts (or any online information) are the ones that offer a ‘content upgrade’. This is simply an additional piece of content that complements what your blog visitor has just read. As before, a checklist can work well here, or why not try a video? That way, your reader becomes a viewer, and they’ll get a taste of your personality, and if your video is full of great information, they’ll also appreciate the tips and advice you share.
Step 1: Choose your most popular blog post on your website. Or if you don’t have one, write it.
Step 2: Create a video – on your phone is fine – expanding on the same topic as your blogpost, or demonstrating it in some way. For example, if your blogpost is on ‘presenting your home for sale’ then have your video feature you on location, demonstrating visually what you’ve just explained in words. Keep it short – 3-5 minutes is plenty.
Step 3: Include a call to action in your video to get in touch but make it specific. For example, “If you’d like to know if your kitchen is ready for photography and viewings, we can help!”
Step 4: Upload your video to Facebook or YouTube. Even better, create a Facebook Live video, which will help it get much greater reach on Facebook.
Step 5: Add or include a paragraph in your blogpost inviting your readers to watch the video. Voila!
So as you can see with this funnel, the first call to action is for your reader to watch the video, and the second is for them to get in touch. The more touchpoints you have with your audience, the more likely they are to take the next action. Combine this content marketing funnel with one or both of the other two, and you have an even stronger funnel!
And the beauty of a well-crafted funnel is that it survives the test of time. You can simply set it and forget it, and every now and again, boost it with a Facebook advert. But that’s a topic for another post….
Bye for now!
Sam
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I’m Sam Ashdown and I help independent estate agents grow their businesses to create a solid six-figure personal income, or a saleable asset, or both.
Together with my co-director Phil Jones, I own and run AshdownJones, the Lake District Estate Agent, and Firewave – World-Class Lead Generation for Estate Agents.
To join our free Facebook group where we share a ton of insights, tips and tactics, click here.
To find out more about Firewave, click here.
To arrange a call back with one of our team, email us here or call us on 015394 40892.
