As a small business owner, a startup, or a freelancer, you must have thought about utilizing the power of social media marketing funnels for brand building and performance marketing. It is an undeniable fact that, if done rightly, small businesses can profit a lot from the funnel strategy for their social media campaigns.Â
However, creating and deploying high-converting social media funnels is quite challenging. Therefore, social media marketers use tools such as marketing automation software for smoothly creating high-performing social media funnels that win new customers. Businesses can easily gain a competitive advantage by channelizing the funnel strategies into their social media marketing campaigns. If you are not sure about what exactly they are? or How to implement and manage them? No worries. This article elaborates everything you need to build high-performing social media marketing funnels that work for your business.
How to Create Social Media Marketing Funnels Effectively?
Funnel is a powerful analogy in marketing. It is a vivid representation of the customers’ buying journey. Starting from a broad range of brands (depicted by the funnel’s wide top), the customers are directed towards the final choice for making a purchase (depicted by the narrow bottom). From lead capture to final purchase and subsequent relationship building with customers, funnels are helpful in creating more revenue for your business and steadily increasing your customer base.Â
With high-end developments in marketing tech, funnels have become more sophisticated and inclusive of various customer touchpoints (Website, Social Media, Ad Networks, etc.).Â
In this respect, the social media marketing funnel is a category of marketing funnels staged at the social media networks of a business. The most popular and accepted social media marketing funnel has four phases- Awareness, Consideration, Decision, and Advocacy. Â When small businesses step out to build high-converting social media marketing funnels, they need to create, streamline, and optimize each level of the funnel.Â
Let us discuss each level and its constituents in detail:Â
# AwarenessÂ
Your prospects are viewing multiple options to buy at this level, and they still don’t have awareness about your brand. This is where you inform the leads about your brand through exemplary content that solves their issues. Social media content sharing that works at this stage is:Â
BlogsÂ
Information-rich blogs that explain a problem and its solution in a step-by-step method can be the best content form at the awareness stage. Create blog articles that resonate with the audience and provide them with immediate solutions.Â
For instance, a company that provides themes for WordPress knows the problems that a customer faces while setting up a WordPress website. So, the company creates blogs and resources such as -‘ Why should you choose a light theme for the WordPress site? Or 10 things to know before buying a WordPress theme, Or Top 10 WordPress Themes to Choose in 2021. The company posts a short tutorial video about setting up a theme on Youtube.Â
Such content serves the customer’s needs and provides a quick solution to a problem that can affect a customer’s buying decision. In short, you need the right content to reach the leads when they are looking for solutions to their problems.Â
Educational and Information Videos
Educational and Informational videos teach your audience about a specific topic. It should be a solution to existing issues that the potential prospects are facing. You can post such videos on your social media channels to engage leads, prove your expertise to prospects and keep customers informed.Â
The brands placing a priority on educating their prospects and customers through educational and informational videos can wisely capture a massive part of the market. By giving your audience the information that they need, you are helping them come to you. It is known as the inbound marketing approach. It builds awareness and trust in your brand’s authority.
#pro tip: Post the video on Youtube and share the links on your social media channels.Â
Humor and Satire
Using Humour in marketing is a great way to circulate your message. It has led to the generation of a new marketing tactic-memes marketing. It grabs the attention of the people, and you will get the opportunity to display your products or services.  Humour has the power to build trust and ultimately increase the connection between your audience and brand. Humour and satire have high engagement rates. Â
Inspirational Content
Inspirational video content is a highly engaging content form at the awareness stage. These videos inspire the customer towards a specific phenomenon that ultimately molds the buying decision. It also helps to generate good traffic on your website, as people come again and again to see those videos. You can also create related inspirational quotes and share them on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, etc.Â
For instance, most brands that sell protein products make gym motivation videos. Such digital campaigns on social media inspire fitness freaks to continue their passion or motivate people to go to the gym or start a workout. Ultimately, they remember the brand when they need to buy a protein powder.Â
Paid Ads:
While the above content form can build a strong awareness of your brand, you can target specific prospects via Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, LinkedIn Ads, etc. Such advertising campaigns on social media serve all levels of the marketing funnel.Â
# Consideration
At this stage, the prospect is evaluating various options and needs to be fed more specific information that differentiates your stature from your competitors. At this stage, you can create and share the following types of content on your social channels.Â
Guides
Detailed guides to a specific issue that sets you apart from the competition and showcases your USPs is what you can deliver at this stage.Â
Testimonials and Reviews
Showcasing testimonials and positive reviews on social media help in creating an authentic zone for your brand. Your audience is more likely to consider you as a buying alternative if someone else (who has used your services and products) is recommending you.Â
Case Studies
Case studies project you as the go-to person for industry. Case studies are perceived as highly trustable documentary evidence of a brand’s strength, credibility, and competencies.Â
Demo Videos/How-to videosÂ
Demo videos eliminate the skepticism that may still be present in the lead’s mind. By demonstrating the product’s actual working, its features, benefits, live-action, etc., you can convince the leads to consider your brand.Â
White Papers/ Ebooks
Informed customers are more likely to research thoroughly before investing in any product or service. The links of White papers, ebooks, and research articles shared on social media will provide a new perspective on the problem a customer is facing and will open a door for your brand to serve the customer.Â
# Decision
At this level, the lead is deep inside the funnel and is willing to make a purchase. You should simplify, expedite, incentivize, and smoothen the process for them. You can offer the following content types on social media:Â
Discounts
Social media posts, preferably a single image, with clickable links to buy at a discounted price will work well here.Â
Price Comparisons
Posts that compare prices of different brands and project you the most cost-effective candidate can work in your favor.Â
Promotions
Promotional codes and coupons that offer the best price if bought within a timeline can provide the required push to the customer.Â
Free Trials
Your customers may have selected you as their dream buy; however, they are still unsure and are procrastinating the final buy. A free trial offer post on social media can easily convert the lead into the customers who use your services. Later, you can offer them paid plans for better features and upgrades.Â
# Advocacy
Advocacy is the favorable inclination, a behavioral disposition; a customer has towards a brand. You can up the game by constantly providing a territory where your customers advocate your products, pitch for your services, and recommend your brand to friends, relatives, and the social community. Advocacy is the last stage of the social media marketing funnel but not the least important one. Through constant engagement on social media, you have to make sure your buyers are retained and will buy from you again.Â
Brand Community
You can create a social media page for your audience, share engaging content, useful tips, provide exclusive access to valuable content, promote loyalty discounts, etc.Â
Personalized Offers
Using the DM features of various social media platforms, you can send personalized offers, customized product offers, special coupons, gifts, etc., and make your customers feel special.Â
Featured Reviews
Some of your happy customers can be asked to review your products, and the same can be posted on social media pages.Â
SurveyÂ
For engaging customers in meaningful discourses, you can start surveys, polls on the social media pages and interact with them via live videos features.Â
 perspective on the problem a customer is facing and will open a door for your brand to serve the customer.
Aligning Funnels with Customer Decision Journey
The customer buying decision-making process is a separate and standalone activity. It exists without the funnel. Therefore, the purpose and value of funnels depend on their capacity to influence the buying decision of customers. In short, you should align your social media funnels with the customer decision journey.Â
Small businesses can plan the content, marketing campaign, online strategy, social media posts, etc., based on the customer’s buying phase.Â
Below are some points to remember:
- Make clear goals about your business and the potential customers it wants to reach.Â
- Analyze your customer’s demographics, dreams, aspirations, budget capabilities, challenges, pain points, preferred social channels, etc.Â
- Find out the current social media trends, popular hashtags, influencers, trending content, viral videos, etc., and armed with such information, create the most relevant content suited to the funnel stage.Â
- Provide freebies to your potential leads on social media such as ebooks, free consultations, workshops, newsletters, etc.Â
- Answer the questions, comments, reviews and also ask relevant questions on your social media channels.Â
- Fix all leaks, entry barriers, loopholes in the funnel that may stall your campaign
- Set up Google Analytics to monitor the audience behavior
Aligning Funnels With Your Objectives:
Without the alignment of objectives and funnels, setting limits and parameters for budget, campaigns, target audience, posts, etc. becomes a difficult task. Understanding the destination enables one to chart the plan accurately and therefore, you should shape the social media funnels based on your business objectives. From finding the most suitable social media platforms to tracking analytics for each objective, one should have a clear roadmap to create highly effective funnels.Â
Conclusion:Â
Understanding how social media marketing funnels work can fetch you a lot of potential leads. The success of funnels largely depends on the content and the timing of your content delivery on social media channels. You can use marketing automation tools to schedule posts, segment the audience, track lead KPIs, and create customized CTAs. Armed with these analytics, and modules you can deliver relevant content to your leads and gain more traction on social media channels.Â
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Author Bio:
James Mordy is a content writer for GoodFirms (a leading Software research company). A voracious reader, an avid researcher, a logophile, and a tech geek, he loves to write about the latest technologies shaping the world. He often articulates the very nuances of the tech world in his blogs. In his free time, he loves to watch movies and analyze global stock markets.Â