26 August 2024 ~ 10 min

Author of the article

Mykyta, marketing manager at VAU Agency

In today's world, an effective marketing funnel is a key element of a successful business in both offline and online environments.

It helps not only to attract customers but also to turn them into loyal customers who repeatedly turn to your brand. In this article, we'll look at how to build an effective marketing funnel using real-life examples of well-known brands, as well as relevant strategies for Instagram.

A marketing funnel is a model that describes the path of a potential customer from the first contact with your brand to making a purchase and on to loyalty and repeat purchases. The funnel consists of several stages that typically include:

• Awareness: Attracting the attention of a potential customer.
• Interest: Generating interest in a product or service.
• Consideration: Consideration.
• Action: Making a purchase.
• Loyalty: Turning a customer into a loyal customer.

Using specific examples, I will show how each stage of the funnel helps to attract customers and turn them into regular customers.

Restaurant ads focus on the atmosphere, cuisine, location, and concept:

• Attention: In targeted advertising, show attractive photos/videos of dishes, interior, and events. Record a video invitation to visit your establishment, offer promotions, discounts, gifts.

• Interest: Fill the page with content that arouses interest in visiting the restaurant: guests, cuisine, dishes, interior, atmosphere, events, location, promotions.

• Consideration: Gather an audience of those who have visited the profile and interacted with it for retargeting. Launch a new creative with a call to book a table in direct mail or by phone.

• Action: Use retargeting by offering visitors special discounts or compliments from the chef when booking.

• Loyalty: Offer customers to become a member of a loyalty program with bonuses for each visit when they come back.

McDonald's, for example, has a mobile app where customers can save and use vouchers.

First of all, a clothing store should showcase its assortment and prices:

• Attention: Launch targeted ads on Instagram and Facebook to drive visits to the store's profile. Use professional photos of products, influencers, and fashion images.

• Interest: In the profile, showcase new collections, assortment, top items, images in brand clothing, promotions, etc.

• Consideration: Gather an audience of those who have interacted with the content or visited the profile and launch retargeting with a focus on popular products and reviews.

• Action: Use advertising for site visitors to convert them - offer them a promotional code or free shipping on their first order.

• Loyalty: After the purchase, enroll customers in a loyalty program, give them discounts on subsequent orders or exclusive access to new collections.

Zara applies a similar strategy, using Instagram to attract customers and retargeting to complete purchases through its website.

Buying real estate is a costly and time-consuming process, so the path to it should be gradual:

• Tip: Launch targeted ads on Facebook and Google to draw attention to new buildings or secondary market offers. Use visually appealing photos and videos that demonstrate the benefits of housing.

• Interest: Create content that helps potential buyers choose an apartment: video reviews, 3D tours, information about the neighborhood's infrastructure.

• Consideration: Gather an audience of those who interacted with the ad and launch retargeting with an offer of a free consultation or participation in an open house.

• Action: Use retargeting for those who left contacts or visited the facility, offering special purchase conditions, such as a discount or installment plan.

• Loyalty: After the transaction is completed, keep in touch with the client by offering additional services (repairs, furnishing) or recommendations for friends.

LUN successfully uses such a funnel, attracting buyers through detailed reviews of properties on its website and social media.

The automotive business also consists of complex funnels, the main feature of which is the test drive:

• Attention: Run ads on YouTube and Instagram showing new car models, their functionality, and features. You can also use cooperation with bloggers-auto experts.

• Interest: Use landing pages with detailed information about the car, technical specifications, video reviews, and customer feedback.

• Consideration: Retarget visitors to the landing page with an offer to take a test drive or get a personal consultation at the nearest car dealership.

• Action: Launching a retargeting campaign for those who signed up for a test drive, offering special purchase or financing terms.

• Loyalty: After the car is purchased, keep in touch through loyalty programs, offer maintenance or discounts on accessories.

All well-known brands such as Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, and others use similar funnels to attract potential customers through test drives.

Psychologist services often require a high level of trust in a person, so the funnel should be focused on building relationships with clients:

• Tip: Run ads on Instagram and Facebook to draw attention to psychological services. Use informative content that raises important mental health issues.

• Interest: Post useful tips, articles, and videos on your page to help clients understand the importance of working with a psychologist.

• Consideration: Retarget those who have interacted with your content with an offer of a free first consultation or stress test.

• Action: Use retargeting on those who signed up for a consultation by offering special conditions for further sessions or package deals.

• Loyalty: After a few sessions, invite clients to a loyalty program or offer discounts on group sessions or trainings.

In psychology, the first session plays a very important role, because after it, the client will understand whether he or she is comfortable with this person and whether he or she wants to continue cooperation.

Building an effective marketing funnel is the key to success for both offline and online businesses.

Use best practices, adapt them to your audience, and don't forget the importance of customer loyalty. Successful examples of well-known brands show that the funnel is not just a theory, but a powerful tool for achieving business goals.