How to build a free sales funnel for small businesses
Any business owner knows the frustration of trying to get someone to notice what you're doing, only to have them disappear before they buy anything from you. There are only so many times you can be energetic when promoting yourself before getting the word out loses its impact.
It is the lack of an actual step-by-step plan to show the interested people how to get from discovering what you're doing to actually spending money that means so much of your marketing goes nowhere.
This is where the sales funnel comes in to help you. A sales funnel is basically the path someone takes from the first time they hear about you to when they actually spend money with you. By setting up and structuring the process, you can ensure people naturally move through your funnel towards buying from you.
This also allows for greater efficiency in your work; it lets you automate certain parts of your business, freeing up your time and energy for strategic planning.
A lot of small business owners think the type of system described above is going to be costly to set up and use, and likely requires specialized computer knowledge, as it requires complex coding.
However, you can set up a highly effective automated sales funnel without spending any money on software to manage it. All you need to do is piece together a few free services to save time and money. This method will free up your business to run without you on it 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
This guide will show you precisely what you need to do to set up a free sales funnel for your small business. We will examine the stages of a sales funnel and introduce you to the best free services available. Finally, we will provide you with a step-by-step plan to get your sales funnel up and running.
Understanding the stages of a sales funnel
Before you can even start to set up your funnel, you first have to grasp the psychology behind it. A typical sales funnel is composed of four distinct stages, and the most commonly used model to explain these four steps is AIDA (Awareness, Interest, Decision and Action).
Awareness: Getting discovered
This first step of your funnel takes place right at the top. Your main aim here is to make potential customers aware that you exist. A consumer cannot buy from you if they don’t know that your business has what they are looking for.
In the awareness stage, a potential consumer is either facing a specific problem or want, and they are looking for an answer. Your duty is to present your solution in front of them while they are looking. This might come in the form of a social media update, a Google search, or even a friend's recommendation. The aim of the awareness stage is not about hard selling, but getting yourself out there in a positive way and sparking people's interest.
Interest: Captivating with value
Once you’ve made a person aware that your business exists, you need to lead them to the interest stage. At this stage of the funnel, the person is aware of their want or problem, and is actively looking for solutions, weighing up the various options on offer. They might decide to visit your website, or even to look at the information you’ve posted, read a blog article, or watch a video you have produced.
What is crucial for this stage of the funnel is to offer the consumer value; this usually involves a business offering up a free “lead magnet” (an e-book, a discount, a useful checklist, etc.) in exchange for the visitor's email address, so you can stay in contact with the consumer.
Decision: Wooing to buy
Once you have obtained the prospect’s email, it’s time to move them towards the decision stage. A prospect in the decision stage of the funnel is considering buying from you, but they may still have reservations.
This stage of the funnel involves gaining their trust and proving that you are the right business for them, and this may come in the form of sending a series of beneficial emails, sharing success stories from other customers, offering a consultation free of charge or providing a limited-time discount. By following these tips, you are encouraging the prospect to choose you above all other competition.
Action: Finalizing the sale
The action stage is the final part of the bottom of your sales funnel. A potential consumer in this stage of the funnel is ready to make the purchase, and it is essential that you make this as easy as possible.
This stage involves having a call-to-action, a smooth checkout process and secure payment systems. This action completes the buying experience for the consumer and encourages them to buy from you again.
Free tools that you can use to set up each stage of your sales funnel
You don't need a large marketing budget in order to move customers through the various stages of a sales funnel. There are a plethora of free tools available that you can use in order to ensure that every step of your marketing funnel is set up to perfection. Here are the best free tools you can use.
Awareness stage tools
To draw people's attention and promote your business effectively without breaking the bank on advertisement expenses:
Google My Business
For businesses that operate locally: Google Business Profile is essential in making sure that you show up in local search results and on Google Maps when people search for a business that provides your services nearby.
Basic SEO tools
It's about more than just using keywords. It is crucial that people find you online when searching for what you do, and there are numerous free tools to assist you. Google Keyword Planner will help you discover what keywords potential customers are using in their searches.
Content creation platforms
Whether it is text-based articles or informative, useful guides, these platforms will give your audience value in the awareness stage and establish you as a thought leader. The most common ones are Medium and WordPress.com, where you can blog completely free of charge.
If writing isn't your strong suit, you can create fantastic e-books and downloadable guides by using the free tools available on Canva. You could even produce informative and engaging videos on YouTube to engage potential clients.
Interest stage tools
Once you’ve captured a visitor's interest and got their contact information, these tools are vital for keeping them hooked and engaging with them:
Email marketing services
Email is one of the top converting sales methods out there. A service like ConvertKit (which has recently rebranded as Kit) provides a free account that enables you to reach as many as 10,000 subscribers!
If you're building your list for the first time as a solopreneur, this service is a real gift. Other alternatives include Mailchimp, which offers the core automation tools and many user-friendly templates for those of you who are not so tech-savvy.
Lead magnet creation tools
To ensure your audience willingly hand over their email addresses, you need to provide them with something valuable. Tools such as Canva can help you create visually appealing and effective lead magnets in the form of e-books and guides. However, for simple e-books, Google Docs and a basic design template would be sufficient as well.
Website & landing page builders
You must provide a space online for visitors to land when clicking on one of your ads. The Carrd.co landing page builder offers a free tier allowing you to build up to three simple, high-conversion, one-page sites. Google Sites is another good free alternative.
Engaging content hosting platforms
Those of you who intend to create content for a podcast will need an effective platform for podcast hosting, which many provide with a free tier. A great free platform that you can try is Spotify for Podcasters.
Decision stage tools
These are essential for managing leads, building trust, and allowing you to directly communicate with customers during the decision stage:
Free CRM software
Tracking customer interactions and data throughout the customer journey is a must. HubSpot CRM is a leading free CRM tool and allows 2,000 emails per month while also providing you with a good amount of free contact and deal management space. Zoho CRM also gives you a solid amount of free functionality for solopreneurs and small businesses.
Free consultation tools
Sometimes it is vital to establish direct communication with the customer before a sale is made, especially if the product or service you are providing is complex or high-ticket. Platforms such as Google Meet or even the free tier of Zoom provide video conferencing capabilities which will be sufficient for those hosting individual or group consultation sessions.
Simple product/service pages
Action stage tools
Finalize sales with reliable payment processors and learn from your successes by using analytics:
Payment processors
When you need to start collecting payments, you'll want to ensure your payment processors are robust and simple to use. Credit card payment processor services like Stripe and PayPal are both widely used, are free to set up, and will charge a small percentage fee per transaction.
Analytics tools
Analyzing and understanding customer behavior on your website is essential for funnel optimization. Google Analytics is a fully integrated and enterprise-grade service that allows you to get an in-depth analysis of your website traffic, user behavior and sales data at no cost.
Customer feedback surveys
After a purchase, it's always a good idea to gauge how the customer found their experience. You can collect honest and constructive criticism from your customers using a free online survey maker, such as Google Forms or SurveyMonkey.
Your Free Sales Funnel: Step-by-Step Guide
So now that you have all of your tools set, it's time to piece everything together. Use this 5-step process to launch your free sales funnel and start generating leads:
Step 1: Identify Your Target Audience and Their Pain Points
Your funnel is supposed to speak to a very specific person. Write down exactly who you are trying to reach on a piece of paper, and identify their biggest daily frustration. What problem is this person trying to solve, or a problem that has recently surfaced?
Identifying their pain points will allow you to communicate in a way that will deeply resonate, and that will make your business the best possible solution to their problem.
Step 2: Identify Your Lead Magnet
Based on your audience's pain points, identify one small specific thing you can offer to them to solve that problem. For example, “5-Step Guide to Cleaning Your Home,” “10% off your first order,” “free 15 minute consultation.”
Use a simple Canva document or Google Doc to create your lead magnet quickly. Make it as simple as possible-your goal is just to provide value immediately.
Step 3: Build Your Landing Page
In order to build a landing page, I'm going to suggest you use either Carrd.co (which is free for the very basics), or Mailchimp (which has free built-in landing page templates). On your landing page, you want this page to have ONE goal only- to convert your visitor into an email subscriber.
Create a killer headline, make a brief description of the benefits that people will get, and add a simple opt-in box where they can submit their email address. Remove everything else from your landing page.
Step 4: Set Up Your Email Sequence
When a person submits their email, the lead magnet must be automatically delivered, and they should also receive an automated email sequence from you. In Mailchimp or ConvertKit, you can create free automated email sequences.
Email 1 (Instantly): The lead magnet is delivered, and they receive their first welcome email.
Email 3 (4 days later): You send an email that offers credibility, perhaps a customer success story or a case study from someone who has bought your product.
Email 4 (6 days later): You introduce your paid product or service as a natural next step, and encourage the sale with a strong call-to-action to purchase.
Step 5: Drive Traffic to Your Landing Page
Finally, it's time to get some people flowing through the top of your funnel. Put the link to your landing page in your Instagram bio, your LinkedIn profile, your Google Business Profile, and begin to create content daily that offers value by solving your audience's pain points, always finishing your post by sending readers to click the link in your bio for the free offer. Over time, if you're consistently driving traffic, the automated system will begin to work for you.
Next Steps in Sales Funnel Success
Start small. Identify the lead magnet you'll offer today, and the landing page tomorrow. Write your email sequence by the end of the week. And then begin to scale your business, add on software when revenue permits, and continue watching your new sales funnel work for you.
A sales funnel doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. In fact, you don't need more than the free tools I've laid out in order to automate a powerful system that will work for you behind the scenes 24/7. You will get to spend more time serving the customers you already have that love your work, instead of chasing those who do not.
