Today’s technological innovations, digitized environment, mobile computing and the dependence on social media challenges the business world to bring in changes to their marketing strategies. The traditional marketing strategies which included teams working towards individual customers now needs to work on the customer networks to develop their marketing funnel.
Being one of the earliest and widely adopted theories of marketing, the “marketing funnel” is a model based on the psychological state of mind of the customer and included-
- Awareness of the product or the category
- consideration for purchase
- preference
- action or actual purchase
- Loyalty
With the funnel’s shape narrowing down to last stages indicating a good lead generation but fewer sales closures. The marketing funnel being a system that helps enterprises track the stages the consumers travel through to a buying decision, also helps them to understand the changes required in their strategies to ensure positive response from their customers.
Enterprises since ages have been using the traditional tools such as TV advertisements, direct mails and reward points to take their customers through the marketing funnel. Nevertheless, with consumers being more techno savvy their normal communication channels involve social media networking through smartphones, tablets and new aged devices. Today, instead of broadcast messages, it is the diversity of digital content available through various networking sites that has had an impact on the purchasing behavior of the consumers. Hence modern day marketing funnel need to include a sixth factor- advocacy as the most ardent and engaged customers not only are loyal, but also acts as brand advocates to spread positive messages and testimony about the products.
Technology have influenced the buyers journey by facilitating options to conduct their own market research, compare features and benefits of competitive products rather than relying on the marketing activities to guide them through the funnel stages. This showcases that despite the fact that marketing plays a major role in lead generation, it becomes imperative for today’s enterprises to be update on their websites and other social media with product information and reviews. Since all leads generated may not be sales ready, use of marketing automation software that will help them differentiate between hot and cold leads.
Further, with most of the enterprises of the B2C and B2B markets entering the e-commerce business mode, the online lead generation drives will help the enterprises in increasing the revenue flow. The marketing automationplatform from the leading solution providers along with effective stages of lead nurturing with marketing collaterals will aid purchase decisions.
With marketing automation solutions well placed in the website marketing funnel, the lead nurturing tactics facilitates a meaningful dialog between the marketer and the prospect customer through the entire sales cycle. Further tactful segregation of marketing activities will brings about a major difference to the B2B marketplace ensuring loyal customers.
Read more on – Lead Generation, Lead Nurturing
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