Conversion Funnel Analysis:
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A conversion funnel helps position the right content in the right stages to attract the
ideal audience to convert
As many as 90% of organizations use content in their marketing efforts, websites
included; however, very few truly understand how to use content to funnel the user
through the website.
To build an effective user journey on your website and guide visitors to a desired
goal, a.k.a. conversion, you need to understand the phases an average lead goes
through before converting.
This is also known as the conversion funnel.
What Is A Conversion Funnel?
A conversion funnel guides site visitors step-by-step through content marketing – from the
landing page to the page where the conversion (a purchase, subscription etc.) is completed.
The purpose of this funnel is to engage visitors with compelling, relevant and valuable
content, presented in several stages that all have specific purposes yet are interconnected.
It’s called a funnel because it resembles its shape – the pool of potential customers is largest
at the top (the beginning of the journey at the landing page, which is usually home page)
while the amount of potential customers shrinks as they progress to the next stages.
It is comprised of several stages, with each one indicating your customers’ level of brand
awareness, interest, and willingness to buy — along with the gradual steps and undertakings
you can take to lead users further down. Here’s a quick breakdown of the different stages
and what they mean:
1. Attention/Awareness: At this stage, your users become aware they have a problem
and first discover your brand. This might be through word of mouth, a google search,
a blog post, a display ad, an email – you name it!
2. Interest: Now, your users are more interested in what you have to say. Share how
can your brand help them solve their problem?.
3. Desire: This is where you need to turn on the charm and sell your visitors the
benefits of your products and services. You want to drive home how your company is
different (and better) than your competitors, pushing your users further down the
funnel.
4. Action: Your users have all the information they need and are ready to pull the
trigger, whether they’re checking out to buy a shirt in their cart, applying for a loan,
signing a contract, or taking whatever action your company defines as a conversion.
What is Good UX in Conversion Funnel
Optimization?
Now that we know what a conversion funnel is, the next thing to cover is how to apply good
UX practices that relate to each stage in the conversion funnel. The following spells out the
ways brands can enhance their UX per each stage of the conversion funnel to optimize it
and garner greater conversions.
1. Awareness: The user is just learning about your business, your product, and maybe
even your industry. Most brands focus their efforts on engaging people on the
platforms where they already spend time. Content should draw their attention and
spark some interest — if nothing else, the goal is to plant a seed of brand recognition
in the user’s thoughts.
Here are a few ways to educating potential customers on your brand and make it
easier for new users to find you:
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PPC ads
Social media campaigns
SEO
2. Interest: Once a user decides they’d like to learn more about your company or
product, they’ll start to engage. That might mean trading their email for a free asset,
signing up for a newsletter, or following a social media channel. The lead is
generating questions and learning about how your product addresses a need in their
life.
Other useful content for stimulating user interest are:
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Guides
Videos
Interviews
A resources page to keep everything together in one place
3. Decision: In marketing terms, a lead converts to a prospect once they are seriously
considering making a purchase. But in most cases, they’ll need a little more
information first. In this level of the sales funnel, you’re providing testimonials, case
studies, product demos, free trials of your product and other things — basically,
you’re highlighting what makes your product great and why the user should look no
further for a solution to their problem.
This can be done by:
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employing more targeted social ads that lead to pages with CTAs
Highlighting how your product can alleviate specific problems
Offering sales/promotions
4. Action: It’s worth knowing that the buyer’s journey could take a single day or several
months. Either way, the end-goal is a purchase decision. This stage of the funnel
often consists of special sale offerings, tutorials, and user onboarding content. The
goal here is to turn a new customer into a brand advocate.
Example:
Mailchimp:
One of the most widely used e-mail marketing utilities, Mailchimp, made it easier for its
services to go viral when they added the line “Powered by Mailchimp” at the end of every
email sent via its service, which helped spread the word about the brand.
Mailchimp’s home page conversion funnel follows all the basic steps covered in this article.
First, there’s the information of a website building novelty service, followed by musings
backed with social proof on why Mailchimp is THE solution for eCommerce, startups and
mobile and web apps.
What comes next is a selection of blog posts, case studies and tips to provide knowledge
value to users.
The conversion funnel wrap-up is completed with a very effective CTA promising two
things: ease of use and service free of charge.
The interactive pricing page for calculating a prospect’s price is also quite unique. When you
put in how many subscribers you have, it will instantly quote you the exact price. The
simplicity of the pricing is also good. It’s really based on how many email subscribers you
have.
The aspirational marketing stands out on the homepage. Mailchimp really doesn’t talk at all
about sending emails. It’s more about getting you in the door to use the product.
They actually barely mention the fact that email marketing with their services can grow your
business. They don’t focus on results like getting more sales or leads.