Drawing Customers into the Sales Funnel with Direct Mail
What is a sales funnel? How do you draw someone into it using direct mail? The sales funnel is the journey prospects take from first becoming aware of a product to purchasing. For businesses, using the word "funnel" can help visualize attracting, nurturing, and ultimately converting leads into paying customers.
A sales funnel can be short. A sales funnel can be extended. Generally, we associate it with longer, more complex sales. Here's what the process might look like:
1. Lead with the Call to Action
The journey begins with your direct mail piece's call to action (CTA). The purpose of the CTA isn't always to close a sale immediately. Instead, it can be to get potential customers curious enough to take the next step. That might be visiting your website, downloading a resource, or attending a webinar.
2. Enter the Funnel
Once recipients respond to your CTA, they become warm leads. Use content to continue to draw them deeper into the funnel. Entice them with a free trial, for example, or a downloadable white paper. Whatever the specific action you want them to take, the goal is to keep them moving.
3. Use Drip Marketing
As prospects progress further into the funnel, continue with drip marketing. Following your initial mailing, send a series of strategically timed follow-ups, such as product fact sheets, success stories, or testimonials. Each piece of content should address common objections or questions, guiding prospects steadily toward making a purchase decision.
4. Follow Up with a Phone Call
When leads exhibit enough interest, follow up with a phone call. These now "hot leads" are primed for conversion. Since your sales team is focusing on leads that have been pre-qualified, this makes them more efficient and helps increase their conversion rate.
Some sales happen quickly. Others take time to develop. That's why visualizing your sales process as a funnel can be so helpful. This can help you design the right pieces, send the right content, and follow up at the right time so that, ultimately, you can convert those prospects into customers.
