Hey guys, welcome back.   I don’t know about you, but I’ve been super busy.  My goal was to record a podcast for each week, but I’ve fallen a little behind.   I’m in the middle of building out my funnels and creating a marketing flow for my products.  I got a little side tracked and my time was eaten up by summer activities with the kids.   At first I felt a little overwhelmed, like I wasn’t keeping to my commitment.   But then I had to realize that my first priority is my family.  I had to let go of the plan and just go with it.   And that’s very hard for an engineer!  So, here I am working on things as I record the podcast.   I guess that’s good though.  I can be real and you can walk with me.  

Today, I thought I’d walk through a little funnelology 101.   Is it ok to get a little technical today?  There are specific pieces to a funnel, and I didn’t know how all of them fit at first.   We are in the middle of our blueprint for building a better MLM vehicle if you are following along, which is all about the funnels.  

It’s kinda like this.  You may know what a rocket is.  You may have seen one in real life or online, but do you know how it works?  Did you know there are different types of rockets?  Some use solid rocket fuel, and some use liquid rocket fuel.   And, unlike a jet engine, a rocket engine must carry the oxygen with it in the form of an oxidizer.  In order to get the fuel to burn, it needs oxygen.  There isn’t enough oxygen I the air to burn the fuel at the rate needed for a rocket to liftoff.  Plus, there is no air in space.  For solid rocket fuel the oxidizer is mixed with the solid fuel.  That’s why its very dangerous.  Once it is lit, it doesn’t go out.  For a liquid rocket engine, the oxidizer is in a different tank that is mixed with the fuel at the point of ignition.  

Before I geek out on rocket engines, I’ll stop myself.  What I’m saying is this.  You may know what a funnel is, and have experienced them, but there is a method to the madness.  Those that get it right end up with wildly profitable marketing campaigns.  Those that don’t spend a ton of money on ads with not much return of investment.  

So, let’s start with the basics. 

What is a sales funnel?

A sales funnel is a step by step process that moves a prospect through a series of offers to identify those that are willing to spend more, engage more, and be open to accepting future offers.  When we move online this turns into a series of web pages.  A prospect can click to move on to the next thing, or close the browser.   It can be done automatically and be used to find those that are willing to buy before you put forth significant effort to sell them. 

Ok, so let’s break down a funnel.   This is 101, so we’ll keep it general.  Also, let’s assume we are getting traffic to the funnel.  Getting your targeting right is key to getting the right eyeballs on the funnel, but let’s talk about that in a future podcast.  For now, let’s assume that we are getting good prospects to the funnel.

First, you have a landing page.  This is the page that starts the funnel.  It is not your homepage to the website.  A landing page has 1 function, 1 action.   It is used to engage a prospect.  It is a call to action for 1 thing, and that is for the prospect to start a journey with you.  If you have too many choices or too much going on, it will distract, and you will lose people.   Usually the goal of a landing page to capture information, most likely an email address.   In order to do that, we provide something of value.   Basically, an email address has a value.   It is not free, so you have to barter.   Many offer some sort of digital product.  An ebook, or an interesting blog post is a popular one.  Some offer a free something that you can get for just the shipping cost.  You can use a fun quiz, or the promise of an informative video series.  Whatever it is, we call it a lead magnet.    The people that put their email address in the landing page are leads.  If you’ve heard the term lead generation, this is the result.   A lead is a person that is mildly interested in what you have to offer.   They have agreed to share some information about themselves in exchange for some type of value you are offering.  For you, a lead magnet can’t cost much, but it has to be valuable to that lead.  That’s why many use digital products.  It may take you time to write a book or record videos, but you can use it over and over without added cost.  

Once the prospect has become a lead, the marketing starts.   The email address is sent to an email autoresponder, and the lead is sent to the next step in the funnel.  

Before we get to the next step, let’s talk about email.   Email or messaging, should start a conversation with the lead.  The first email usually delivers the lead magnet and promises future value.   An email autoresponder is a program that does this automatically.  You set up a series of emails that are sent to the lead in a specific order at a specific time.   For example, a lead may get the first email right away, then get a email the next few days at the same time each day.   It’s best to tell a story through email in order to engage the lead.   Every email should leave the lead wanted to read the next one, while also point them back to the funnel.  There are a few marketers that have called this a soap opera email sequence.    Every soap opera ends in a cliffhanger to make you keep watching the next day.   YOu need to create a soap opera of your story and play it out over 3-5 days for the lead.   And remember, this is all being done automatically.  Each email will help the lead get to know you a little better and point them back to the funnel.  

So, let’s get back to the funnel.   The second page of a funnel is most likely the next level of your value ladder.  I’ve talked about it in past podcasts, but a value ladder is series of products or services that have increasing value as you move up.   This first step may be free, but the next may be a $20 product.  The next could be a $100, then finally your big one at $1000.    A lead transitions into a customer, the value you offer is increasing as well as the price tag.   You MLM product may be the top of the ladder.  Or, joining your team.   So, we can’t just hit them with that on the second page.  That would be like proposing on the first date.  No, You need something extra.  This is where your MLM company will not help you out.  This is your responsibility.  You want to create a product that people are willing to pay for.   For a simple MLM product funnel, this may be a sample of the main product with a pdf to maximize results.   In a recruiting funnel, this could be an online course in funnel automation.  

Whatever it is, you want to find the people that are willing to buy something from you and get rid of the tire kickers.    And here’s the thing.  You don’t do this to make money!  You want to make money off this product to pay for your advertising.  This is what they call a self-liquidating offer.  If it costs $2 to get a lead, and every 5 leads buy this small product you have to price it at $10 to recoup your costs. Even if you break even like this, that means you can run your ad without worrying about running out of money.  And, if you expose enough people to your funnel, you will get ones that move further and further alone the value ladder.    

There are a lot of things you can do at this point.  So let me define a few terms.  

Bump offer.   The bump offer is a little extra something you throw in at the time of purchase.  Think of the gum in the grocery checkout lane.   For just a dollar, you can add a pack of gum or candy bar to your purchase. 

Upsell:   Once a product is purchased, you can offer something of greater value and price.  For example, you buy 1 of something, then are offered to by 2 more for a deal.  

Downsell:  Once a product is purchased, you can offer something of lesser value and price.   For example, you just bought the $100 item, then you are offered a $10 to make it work better.  

These terms are very common items in a funnel, but lets keep it simple.  Let’s say you have transitioned a prospect to lead, then to customer via your lead magnet and SLO.   Now you want to sell them on your MLM product.   You could use a bridge page.  This is a page that we have to use in a funnel when we don’t control the cart or website where the actually product is sold.  It can be as simple as this.   You have a video explaining how to order with a link to your company replicated website.   But, here’s the trick.  You still want to offer some sort of value.  Think, why would something buy from me vs using another distributors link?   The bridge page should also outline what a new customer will get in addition to the product if they purchase through you.  What incentive can you offer your new customer.   If you’ve done it right, and told your story though email and through the funnel, a new customers will like you. They will want to be part of your crew.  You can offer an accountability group on FB, or some type of exclusive thing for only your customers.  I’ve mulled over offering contests for vacations, or discounts on future product purchases.  

Now that we’ve walked through the funnel, one more thing remains.

Fulfillment:  This is the way you get the product to the customer.  For us, the MLM company takes care of the cart and product, but what about your SLO that you offered.  How are you going to deliver on that?  If it takes you a ton of time and added cost to mail out samples, it may not be worth it. 

But it doesn’t stop there.  A high percentage of the leads will not buy.   You have to continue to market to them.  You have to continue sending emails or messages and trying to engage.  You first offer may not work, but you may be able to direct them to a different funnel and it may resonate better.   Even though most leads don’t purchase, they are still valuable.  They are now free traffic to send places. 

I’m sure I’ve missed something, but hopefully I succeed at giving you a birds eye view of funnels.   There are some great books out there that can go into more detail.  If you go to rocketscieneMLM.com, I’ll post some book suggestions.   You can also grab that blueprint I’ve been talking about.   That’s it for now.  Thanks!