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7 essential components of a b2b marketing funnel

A marketing funnel is one of the most important tools in any B2B marketer’s toolbox because it provides a systematic way to turn prospects into customers. One of the challenges we face (yes, I count too ?) is that B2B funnels run a little differently than the standard B2C process.

Sales cycles are longer, more detailed and require much more nurturing with specific information to get to a yes.

Let’s cover some of the most essential components of your B2B marketing funnel so you can create consistent and ongoing revenue streams for your business without losing your mind.

  1. A TARGET MARKET

You should definitely know your target market before you can create the marketing funnel that will get leads in their pipeline.

Your ideal client is not always easy to identify, but it’s important to choose one early so you have a clear idea of the pain points, the challenges and opportunities you have with your customer.

And DO NOT TELL ME that everyone is your target market. First of all, it’s not accurate.

And even if you did want to sell to literally every business in the world, you wouldn’t work with everyone at that company; so you can at the very least ID the important roles you’re targeting within a biz.

Remember: the more you niche, the more you sell.

2. A COMPELLING MESSAGE

Your message is mega important to your key customers: demonstrate your unique selling points and give users a reason to act.

This is what convinces your target market that you are the right resource for them. A good message is used for all your content, from sales pages and emails to ads and organic social media.

A B2B message MUST HAVE key differentiators, a solid elevator pitch and a friendly but confident tone (nobody likes a mega-corporate vibe).

3. HIGH-VALUE CONTENT

The difference between content for B2B and B2C is the level of information. B2B businesses need to share concrete examples of ROI and value at each stage of the game.

This means bringing metrics, quality testimonials and case studies in early and often. Some of the best types of content for B2B businesses include:

-Whitepapers

-eBooks (detailed)

-Webinars

-Live presentations

All of these assets should be designed and built with the goal of moving users down the funnel and should start with general information + value and slowly add in sales components as you move further down the funnel.

  1. NURTURING

B2B sales, especially for high-ticket items, typically involve a longer sales cycle and that means nurturing. Soooo if you want to land the whale or bag the Swede (where my Gilmore Girls fans at??), you’d better be prepared to nurture. That means: 

-Email sequences (different ones for different stages in the buyer’s journey)

-Direct messages

-Text messages (please, please, please don’t over-do this. 

This is where you start adding in a bit more salesy info. You can use this stage as an opportunity to share some of your best-case studies, success stories, etc. Just make sure to keep it a) valuable and b) relevant.

5. SALES

A sales process is easy for B2C. You marry your content delivery, your website and your payment and BOOM. You’re in business. It’s a little different for B2B.

Until you’re Russel Brunson, don’t expect people to find you online and start wiring you $50,000. (PS if this is Russel Brunson, good work!)

So your sales process probably includes a 1:1 call with your sales team (or you), a webinar, a live event or networking. Funnels help you get to that point, and you take it over.

This is also a great time to automate your calendar to take all the friction out of the process and get that calendar FULLLL.

6. PROMOTION 

A funnel with no people is just a bunch of ones and zeros. It’s the customers in the funnels that make a difference.

The way to get users into your funnel in a B2B setting is simple: help them do their job better.

It’s tricky to target B2B sometimes. Here are some of the best methods I’ve found:

-Google Ads

-Social Ads

-Organic social

-A daily (or weekly) production, like a live show, a podcast or series on YouTube

-Direct messaging in Sales Navigator

-Presentations to groups (live and Zoom-based)

-Guesting on other’s blogs, events, podcasts and shows

Whatever you choose, you should be prepared to develop a mix of paid, organic and production promotion.

7. ANALYTICS

One of the coolest aspects of marketing funnels is that the automation lends itself very nicely to analytics, and that’s important.

What we water grows, so measuring funnel analytics is incredibly important. 

A marketing funnel + analytics = magic. A funnel is essentially a bunch of levers from stranger to customer, and analytics help you know which lever to adjust to get better and better results every single time.

Just stay away from those vanity metrics and look at what matters like bounce rate, visitors, conversion and leads generated.

LONG STORY SHORT (TOO LATE!)

These components together create the process of turning your target market into customers.

They all work together to create a cohesive process to be successful and make consistent revenue for your business.

If you want help with any one or more of these seven components of an effective B2B marketing funnel, click the link below to get started now!

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