Sales Funnels for Beginners: How to Create a Sales Funnel That Converts

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Have you been hearing the term “sales funnels” but have no idea what it means?


We’re going to explain what sales funnels are and why you need them.

1. Sales Funnels

Sales funnels are an essential part of running an online business.


It’s what sets your business apart from a website, and it’s what you need to earn money.


We’re going to explore exactly how sales funnels work, and how and where to create one.

1.1. What is a Sales Funnel?

Sales funnel

A sales funnel is the function that turns visitors into customers.


The visual of a funnel represents all the potential customers that visit your site, and how many actually make a purchase.


The further they go into the funnel, the more committed they are to purchasing.


That’s what a sales funnel is about, and it could be for both online or physical businesses.


Part of a sales funnel encourages visitors to take action, by doing things like purchasing or subscribing. Hopefully, they become returning customers.


It’s important for businesses to use a sales funnel so they can keep track of their customers and sales.


This also saves you time because you won’t be doing it manually.


These factors make a business grow faster.


We’re going to examine the phases of a sales funnel so you can see exactly how it works.

1.2. The 4 Stages of a Sales Funnel

4 Stages of a Sales Funnel

As we mentioned earlier, the goal is to turn visitors into paying customers.


They start off as visitors, once they take the next step and sign up to receive your emails or notices, they become a lead.


At this point, you can communicate and market to your leads outside of your site.


Email or text is an example of this.


Next, you entice them to come back to your site through special offers, and finally, they become a customer.


Here are the 4 basic stages of a sales funnel in more detail:

1.2.1. Awareness

This is the very beginning.


People discover your business.


This happens mostly through social media, word of mouth, or research.


Sometimes people happen to click on a link or post of yours that entices them to make a purchase there and then!


Other times, they might take note of your business and come back at a later stage.


Either way, this is when your business gets exposure.


This is the time to lure prospective visitors to your site.

1.2.2. Interest

During this stage, prospects are aiming to find something.


That could be a product, a solution to a problem, or research.


This is when they really look at your content.


They study your prices and think about what you are offering.


It’s usually the time when visitors follow you on social media or subscribe to your email list.


This when they become a lead.

1.2.3. Decision

Leads come back to your site after doing their research.


You are now one of their main options, and they’re considering your offers.


This is the time to give them a deal they can’t refuse.


Offer them coupons, discounts, or throw in a bonus product.


Remind them of your offer through email marketing.


The lead has, for the most part, made a decision that they want to accept your offer.


They just need to take the final step.

1.2.4. Action

During this stage, the lead becomes a customer and you get conversions.


They make a purchase, buy a service, or sign up for a subscription.


Now that you’ve gained a customer, you continue to reach out to them after their purchase.


Thank them, ask for their feedback, and let them know you’re available for assistance.


Your goal is to keep them coming back.

1.3. Example of a Sales Funnel

  • Awareness: Create a Facebook or Instagram ad that takes visitors to your landing page.
  • Interest: When they land on your page, offer them a coupon or a free product in exchange for their email address.
  • Decision: Market to your leads through email, and remind them of your product.
  • Action: Add an offer that will be hard to turn down. Keep marketing to them to gain returning customers.

Now that we’ve established how a sales funnel works, let’s discover how to create one for your business.

2. Create a Successful Sales Funnel in 5 Easy Steps

2.1. Know Your Audience

You’re marketing to a specific group, so it’s important to know your audience’s behavior and patterns.


You’ve got to monitor the traffic on your site.


Notice what links visitors are clicking on, and how long they spend on certain pages.


This will give you a better idea of how you need to market to them.


Another way of doing this is to interact with your customers.


Talk to them on social media (in comment sections of your ads, or in a Facebook group created for your customers).


What better way to understand your customers’ needs than by having a conversation?

2.2. Get Their Attention

You want to entice prospective customers to your page.


This is when you’ve got to utilize your platforms on social media.


Post, post, post!


Post different types of content, like videos or stories, to keep people interested.


Remember to always link your site to your content.


You can also sell ads if you’re willing to spend some extra cash.


Another way to lure in customers is by creating buyer personas.


By finding out what some of your customers’ needs are, you can create personas that your customers could relate to.

2.3. Landing Pages

This is where your prospects will end up when they click on your link or ad.


You’re trying to turn visitors into leads, so you should appeal to them without being pushy.


Offer them a free product, like a book, informative video, or a ticket to a webinar, in exchange for their email address.


This is how you’ll communicate with them in the future, to market your product.

2.4. Email Marketing

This is how you’re going to turn your leads into paying customers.


You can create an email campaign over a few weeks.


Provide fresh, interesting content every week to give them details about your business and what you can do for them.


Towards the end is the point that you make a great offer, and they consider purchasing from you.


Hopefully, this is when they become paying customers.

2.5. Optimize Your Sales Funnel

You’ll need to make sure your sales funnel is successful.


Here’s how you can optimize it:

  • Conversion rates: How people go from leads to customers. Do they sign up to your email list via a link? Do they make a purchase after you provide an offer?
  • A/B or split testing: Show two versions of the same web page to different sets of visitors at the same time. Then see which one gets more conversions.
  • Study each stage of the sales funnel: Does your content on social media attract customers? Do you have recurring customers?

Don’t forget to always show appreciation to your existing customers.


Keep interacting with them, thank them, offer discounts and coupons.


By keeping track of your sales funnel, you’ll know what works and what doesn’t.


This is what helps you keep your business running successfully.

3. Sales Funnel Software

The easiest way to create a sales funnel is by using software that can do it for you.


Typically, you would need a software for email marketing, and one to create a landing page, and one to monitor your sales.


That’s going to be a lot of different programs and cost you a lot of money.


Thankfully, there are software platforms that can do the entire process for you.


Instead of having 5 software programs, you only need one.

3.1. Systeme.io - starts at $27/month

Systeme.io logo

Systeme.io logo

Systeme.io is a platform that encompasses all your business’ needs in one place.


Build your sales funnel and landing page, and manage your email marketing too!


You can also host evergreen webinars, launch a blog, or build an online course.


Your entire business can be automated through systeme.io, giving you time to focus your attention where it’s needed.


If you’re thinking that all these features are going to cost an arm and a leg, don’t panic!


They’re one of the most affordable all-in-one software programs.

  • For $27/month, you can get unlimited sales funnels, unlimited emails, and marketing automation.
  • For $47/month, you can get more features like evergreen webinars, coupon codes, and A/B testing.

3.2. GetResponse - starts at $15/month

GetResponse logo

GetResponse logo

GetResponse is a sales funnel tool that offers templates and advanced analytic features.


They also provide landing page builders, integration features, and webinars.


One of their focuses is on email marketing and automation.

  • $15/month is definitely affordable, but it only offers 1 sales funnel.
  • For $49/month, you can get 5 sales funnels and the webinar feature.
  • For $99/month, you can get unlimited sales funnels.

3.3. Leadpages - starts at $37/month

Leadpages logo

Leadpages logo

Leadpages focuses on building landing pages to optimize sales.


They also provide email marketing and templates.


Templates make it easy to create landing pages and your emails are taken care of with LeadLinks, the email marketing tool.


Leadpages has numerous integrations with other software.


For beginners, Leadpages is a good way to get started, especially with their landing page templates.


They’re also reasonably priced.

  • For $37/month, you get landing pages and unlimited traffic and leads.
  • Upgrade to $79/month for more features, like A/B testing.

Affordable platforms like these give businesses the opportunity to become successful without spending too much money at once.

4. What Next?

Now that you know what a sales funnel is and how to create one, where do you go from here?


Developing your sales funnel is the first step.


Monitoring it and making changes as you go along will guide you through improving your business.


Sales funnels are imperative for creating a successful business.


Spend time developing yours, and follow the necessary steps to optimize them.

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