thefunnel

I was asked why I decided to call this blog “thefunnel”? Briefly. I think the traditional linear marketing funnel (awareness through loyalty) is a good metaphor for us in marketing to remember that customers can be in any place in the funnel, which will have an impact on all elements of communication. It is also a reminder that there’s always the next step in the funnel and at the end of the funnel for us in marketing the ultimate objective is to achieve some kind of outcome: sales, a more loyal customer, a customer that can be re-marketed to, a new name etc. . In addition it’s a reminder that the traditional linear funnel is obsolete, and that understanding the customers decision process is much more challenging today than it used to be, due the web, social media, choice, interaction between on-line and off-line experiences, fragmentation of media and pull marketing in general. The “traditional” funnel doesn’t work for all business models and for complex sales products or services, it might look very different than to some B-2-C consumables, but some kind of a “funnel” is always present no matter what shape, form or length in might take. So the questions every marketer should be able to answer are: What is the shape of your funnel? Is it the right shape for your business? Where in the funnel do prospect fall off and why? What is the cost of prospects in the various stages of your funnel?