Not every good story is told in a linear fashion, and not every good strategy follows a linear sequence of steps. Adaptability is an important skill in marketing: sometimes, you need to rewrite the game plan in response to the unexpected. The buyer journey is a frequently discussed concept, but not every buyer follows the same path.
A digital marketing funnel is a visual representation of the steps a web user commonly takes to go from prospect to customer. Typically you’ll find this represented by an upside-down triangle sectioned into different stages of the process, a sequence that reads something like awareness, interest, consideration/desire, action/purchase.
But in the exciting digital world, two different strategies are competing for prominence: linear vs. non-linear marketing. While the linear approach is time-tested, reliable and traditional, the non-linear method is dynamic, adaptable and unpredictable.
Which one is best for your brand? Finding which approach you prefer allows you to set up your digital marketing funnel to seamlessly transition potential customers from one stage to the next. It gives you a framework in which to organise your customer touchpoints, personalise your messaging and establish the right user experience (UX) strategies.
If you’re not sure which kind of digital marketing funnel is the one for you or even what your options involve, Anchor can help. As a hybrid creative marketing agency, we provide creative services, solutions, and plenty of strategies to help purpose-driven businesses grow.
Linear Marketing Funnel
The linear marketing funnel is the standard and most closely resembles the famous ‘upside-down pyramid’ design. There are typically six key stages of the linear marketing funnel:
Awareness: Potential customers have a need that want fulfilled and first become aware of a product or service through advertising, social media, or word-of-mouth.
Discovery: They actively seek more information, explore websites, read reviews, and learn about the different options on offer.
Evaluation: Customers compare different options, weighing the benefits and features to make an informed decision.
Engagement: Interaction increases, often involving direct communication with sales teams, attending webinars, or trying free samples.
Sales: Customers make a purchase, converting their interest into action.
Loyalty: Post-purchase efforts focus on retaining customers through excellent service, follow-up communication, and loyalty programs, ensuring long-term satisfaction and repeat business.
All of these stages provide opportunities to guide the buyer through the funnel with various marketing techniques. For example, the consideration stage is the perfect time to send more information about a product.
Benefits
The traditional marketing funnel has the benefit of being time-tested and reliable. Having evolved from St. Elmo Lewis’s AIDA (“Attention, Interest, Desire, Action’) marketing model from 1898, it has more than a century of success behind it. Despite the articles decrying it as outdated, it still provides a valuable framework for a digital marketing funnel, and it can still win you results. It provides a clear and structured pathway and a streamlined strategy. It’s also an approach that makes it easy to identify bottlenecks and areas that need improvement.
Drawbacks
For many customers, the decision-making process is a unique and complex one. The traditional approach may not be dynamic enough to reflect this reality and meet these prospects where they are. It may struggle to adapt to changes in the market or consumer behaviour, and potential leads that don’t slot neatly into clearly defined stages may be overlooked. The linear approach is one that works for many products and services, but it won’t be the best approach for everyone.
Non-Linear Marketing Funnel
A non-linear funnel approach doesn’t have the same formulaic sequence of steps, instead reflecting the many roads customers can take to their purchasing destination. Non-linear funnels are fluid and malleable and are becoming increasingly popular in the digital age. A non-linear funnel recognises that a potential customer may need more information before making a purchase or might want to “try before they buy”. Customers can jump into, exit out of or turn back to different stages in the digital marketing funnel at any point in time. This is a more difficult trajectory to visually represent. However, some marketers portray it as a revolving wheel with the customer at the centre of it all and some as a series of non-sequential steps connected at different points.
Benefits
Non-linear funnels are flexible and responsive to the customer’s needs. Their absence of rigidity can lead to higher engagement levels as customers discover your product at their own pace with no pressure. The non-linear marketing funnel reflects the fact that each customer is on their own unique journey. Some marketing professionals believe the traditional marketing funnel doesn’t work for the customer journey anymore.
Drawbacks
Non-linear funnels can be difficult to analyse and to optimise. It can be harder to trace certain conversions to the right touchpoints in order to determine what works and what you need to optimise. Creating personalised experiences for each customer can be a lot of work and require more talent and resources. Finally, it might not work for everyone. Some customers may end up confused about which step to take next and end up dropping out of the funnel entirely.
Tips for Optimising Your Customers’ Journey
No matter which kind of funnel you choose and what sort of buyer journey you provide, here are some tips for optimising your digital marketing funnel during the process:
Curate content to interest your target demographic
Instead of creating generic content in an effort to appeal to everyone, focus on the questions your ideal customers are asking and how you can meet their needs.
Monitor the metrics
Keeping track of comments, shares, pages on the site, and other marketing metrics will show you how your audience is engaging with your existing content and what they want to see more of.
Leverage reviews
Positive reviews from existing customers and third parties can motivate new customers to take action, regardless of their stage of the funnel.
Use special discounts and limited-time offers
This can motivate potential buyers who are on the fence to take the next step.
Offer a demo or trial version
People want a taste of what they’re paying for before they commit. Offering a first-hand experience or a brief demonstration can help people feel more confident that they’re getting what they're paying for.
Map Your Customer’s Journey and Optimise Each Stage with Anchor
As a full-service creative marketing agency, Anchor takes a hybrid approach to sales funnels. Above all, we emphasise the approach most likely to work. Our marketing strategy draws on the most effective techniques from both linear and non-linear sales funnels and uses them in the way that best suits your business needs. Our approach includes acquisition and retention planning because providing customers with a quality product and an excellent customer service experience means a steady stream of repeat business.
Using a multifaceted approach that tends to every aspect of the customer experience, we lay out a research-informed strategy to get you where you want to be. This strategy includes both traditional principles that remain effective and dynamic approaches based on shifting consumer behaviour.
Before guiding customers through the sales funnel, you need to anchor your campaign with a real strategy—and we do. We offer workshop facilitation between your team and ours, brand strategy and positioning, market research, and more to create an action plan that maximises your marketing resources.
For a digital marketing funnel that keeps customers satisfied and sets you up for success, drop us a line.
