Lead Funnel - What it is and how to build one

What is a lead funnel?

A lead funnel is a process for converting potential customers into paying customers. It starts with collecting leads and ends with converting them into paying customers.

Leads are collected by a variety of methods, such as social media, email marketing, and search engine optimization. Once leads are collected, they are passed to the sales team who will then try to convert them into paying customers.

If a business wants to maximize ROI (return on investment), building an effective lead funnel is the way to go. It should be done in stages, though, and this is what we’re going to show next.

lead funnel stages

Lead funnel stages are the steps that a potential customer goes through in order to become a paying customer. This process is also known as the conversion funnel.

There are 3 major lead funnel stages: Top of the funnel (ToFu), Middle of the funnel (MoFu), Bottom of the funnel (BoFu)

Top of the funnel (ToFu)

TOFU is the first stage of the customer journey and it's where your prospects are introduced to your brand this stage also refers to awareness.

The top of the funnel is where you find your prospects. This is where a company’s marketing and sales team starts their journey to win over the customer.

There are a number of ways to generate awareness for a product or service, but there is no one way that works for everyone.

A company may choose a different approach depending on its target audience and what they are trying to achieve. It can be done through advertising, social media, PR, or events.

Some companies will use content marketing as part of their awareness strategy to help them reach new audiences and increase their brand recognition.

Middle of the funnel (MoFu)

The middle of the funnel is where a prospect or customer is considering the product. The goal of this section is to make them feel comfortable with the product and get them to convert.

The middle of the funnel is a critical stage in any sales process. It's where prospects and customers are considering your product and deciding whether it's something they want to buy, subscribe to, or sign up for.

Your goal in this stage should be to make prospects feel comfortable with your company and its products so that they will want to convert into one of those three things: a customer, subscriber, or sign-up.

Bottom of the funnel (BoFu)

The BoFu is the last step before a customer becomes a paying customer.

At the bottom of the funnel stage, marketers are trying to acquire leads that will eventually become customers or prospects with the intention of converting them into paying customers.

It is important to know that the bottom of the funnel is not just a single step. It is a process rather than a single point in the customer journey.

5 important stages of building the lead funnel

1) Build Your Funnel's Foundation With a Strong Offer

The offer is the bridge between your marketing and sales strategy. Without a solid offer, it is difficult to build a sustainable funnel.

The first step in building your funnel’s foundation with a strong offer is understanding the problem that you are going to solve for the customer.

The second step is identifying what they want or need from you to solve that problem. The third step is developing an irresistible solution that will make them say “yes!”

Offers are the foundation of your funnel. Without an offer, you don’t have a business.

An offer is the most important part of your funnel. It’s what entices people to take that first step and go through your funnel. It’s what convinces them to give you their contact information, download your ebook, or buy your product.

When you think about building a successful sales funnel, it all starts with an offer. You need to know what it is that you want to sell before you build the rest of the funnel around it.

2) Hook Your Visitors with a Captivating Landing Page

Landing pages are the first impression of your brand. They should be attractive and engaging so that visitors will take a second look and eventually convert into prospects.

A well-designed landing page is not just about great visuals, but also about having an effective call-to-action (CTA) button. The CTA should be placed prominently on the page and it should provide a clear direction to the next step in the conversion process.

The most common types of CTAs are:

1) "Learn more" - this button usually takes visitors to a page with more information about your product or service.

2) "Start now" - this button usually takes visitors to an order form or sign up form for your service.

3) "Sign up now"