Is Your Sales Funnel Made for Modern Buyers?

When was the last time you took a critical look at your sales funnel? Many sellers think that their funnel is good enough. But they are struggling with closing sales in their expected time frame. This signals a breakdown in their funnel management and review process.

Only 30% of today’s B‑to‑B buyers say it’s getting easier to get new business, SalesFuel found. And only 35% say closing is a superpower. Clearly, reps have a lot of opportunity to boost how they are moving prospects toward a sale and ultimately closing.

If you find that your close rates aren’t where you want them, a faulty funnel may be to blame. It may be time to revisit best practices around sales funnels and how to give yours a refresh.

Sales funnels: What are they and how should they work?

To know how to improve a sales funnel, it’s essential to have an actual understanding of how a healthy sales funnel functions and why it’s important.

First, how well do you know what a healthy funnel should be? And how does it need to align with today’s buyers?

“At its very basic level, a sales funnel is the step-​by-​step purchase journey prospects take,” explains Tim Londergan, SalesFuel.

“It takes buyers from first learning about your company to becoming paying, loyal customers.”

But modern buyers are different, requiring a shift in how the sales funnel looks today.

Writing for HighSpot, Stuart Gammon points out that the old sales funnel was linear, with sellers guiding buyers step by step toward a predictable purchase.

But today, buyers drive their own journey through extensive research, a non-​linear buying process and nontraditional timelines. This makes the traditional, one-​size-​fits-​all approach less effective.

Instead, various stages of the sales funnel must align with buyer behavior in order to be effective.

Stages

Gammon notes that sellers must understand how each stage supports the buyer’s journey to a deal, as well as their current expectations and needs at each level.

Awareness stage

This stage is when buyers recognize an issue and seek out ways that help them understand their challenges and possible approaches. Buyers are doing deep research before even meeting with a vendor, so sellers must be easily found online.

This is where social proof, such as testimonials and case studies, as well as active social network profiles will shine. And as Gammon notes, the goal here is to educate – not sell.

Interest stage

At this point, prospects show intent through repeated engagement. Use your own research to add value to every engagement, as well as personalize each outreach.

Consideration stage

Buyers actively compare solutions and need targeted content that clearly demonstrates your value, differentiation and potential ROI.

“Content that answers specific questions for the target audience is best,” Gammon adds.

“Collateral that helps buyers project ROI, learn about integration ease or see examples of industry use cases that are similar to theirs are optimal assets to deliver to prospects.”

Evaluation stage

Prospects expect personalized demos, proof points and tailored conversations that build trust and directly address their specific goals and concerns.

Take a look at these tips to make sure that every demo and presentation is optimized to align with what the prospect needs to know in order to buy.

Activation stage

Sales teams re-​engage stalled or hesitant prospects with timely, relevant, and personalized insights. Stalled sales are common, so make sure you’re aware of the best techniques to move things forward. SalesFuel shares some guidance to help sellers overcome these roadblocks.

Purchase stage

Buyers prepare to commit and need clear, responsive communication that confirms pricing, onboarding, implementation, and long-​term support. Sellers must know what it takes to get past the final stretch and over the finish line.

And as Londergan reminds sellers, personalized attention is, as always, a must.

“One closing strategy does not fit all situations,” he writes. So, sellers must be ready to adapt their strategy in the final parts of the sales funnel to win over a prospect.

Consider regular “check-​ups”

The evolution of the sales funnel is far from over. As business and buyers change, so will each funnel stage and its specific needs. Conducting consistent “check-​ups” (especially mid-​year) ensures you’re ready to deliver at each stage to keep the buyer moving.

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