A sales funnel is like an iceberg. What you see is the smallest part. With an iceberg you only see a small part of the iceberg above the surface of the water. Most of the iceberg is below the water. Boats have to be careful around icebergs because the biggest part is under the water and isn’t seen.
The biggest part of the sales funnel isn’t seen either. The hot lead and opportunities that everyone wants are the smallest part of a sales funnel. Often the “hot” category is 1% to 3% of a funnel. Most of a funnel is made up of cold and warm leads and opportunities. Cold leads will make up 70% to 80% of a sales funnel over time.
It doesn’t make sense to only work the hot leads and opportunities and leave the cold and warm leads to expire. Today’s cold and warm leads, when cultivated, turn into the hot opportunities of tomorrow.
Our secret is we play on the whole iceberg!
Yes! We want hot leads and hot opportunities. Everyone does! However, we work the entire funnel and waste nothing. We understand the value of working the whole funnel. We generate leads and cultivate them to opportunities. This creates a valuable ASSET for the company. The process can be repeated again and again, generating new revenue throughout the entire process.
1. Gap Analysis 
For each client we review the setup and performance of the CRM and identify key gaps that may be constraining the funnel. We provide a report to the client and make recommendations to improve the funnel.
2. Sales Presentation
For each client we review the company?s written sales presentation and identify gaps and weaknesses. We make recommendations to improve the presentation and make it compatible with a CRM.
3. Regular Funnel Review
Regularly we review the performance of the sales funnel. We pull reports and review performance. We report the findings to the client and make recommendations and suggestions about changes and improvements.
4. Sales Funnel Formula
As the strategy sessions progress we start building your Sales Funnel Formula. We identify the key components of the process that are working and put the elements together to develop the formula. Over time the formula gets more and more precise.
5. CRM Tools
As we get to know your CRM performance and your people we?ll make recommendations about tools you could be using to make a difference. It may be a new report or feature in the software or it could be a plugin. You want to get the most out of your CRM.
6. Sales Cycle Growth
We monitor the growth of the funnel by tracking sales cycles. We identify constraints and make recommendations to eliminate them.
7. Lead Generation
If new leads are a major constraint we are able to provide lead generation services to put fresh leads into the funnel.
8. Sales Recommendations
We can make recommendations specific to sales performance. When analyzing the funnel sometimes we see sales performance issues that can be improved. We?ll make recommendations when we see them.
9. Suggestions
Ask us a question and we?ll make suggestions. We get back to you quickly and provide comments and suggestions. Whatever the topic we?ll reply.
1. What is a Sales Funnel Formula?
A sales funnel formula is a set of exact strategies and tactics used to build a sales funnel and generate predictable revenue. A sales funnel is a collection of sales cycles generated from leads, prospects and customers.
- Marketing of some sort gets leads, prospects and customers into the funnel.
- To move from cold, warm and hot, many sales strategies and tactics are used.
- Closing strategies and techniques follow to create new transactions and bring in revenue.
- Distribution and customer service go to work to solve problems and create more opportunities.
Each of the strategies and tactics used repeatedly and successfully at each sales stage are collected and crafted into a reproducible formula that can be taught and used. It’s the company’s intellectual property. It’s a valuable asset that’s used to generate future revenues.
2. How does the process work?
Our first step is a strategy call. We talk on the phone and discuss your marketing, sales, revenues and plans. We learn about your product or service. Next, we identify gaps in your current funnel and prioritize them. We want to do first things first and make progress as quickly as possible. We develop a plan based on the gap analysis. You sign off on the plan. Based on the plan we meet once a week and talk about action items and issues. We implement the plan accordingly. Weekly strategy sessions are used to keep everything moving forward. If needed, we generate leads to fill the funnel.
3. What if our company doesn’t have a funnel?
If a company is operational and bringing in revenue it has a funnel. It’s a matter of scope and how informal and undefined the funnel is. Early stage funnels are often lack reach and depth. Part of the exercise is putting structure to things. You’ll need new strategies and processes. It’s a growth period that yields a lot of benefit.
4. Do we use a CRM? (Customer Relationship Manager)
Yes, its best if you have a CRM in place. We need reports from the CRM to do our work. We need to run metrics to tell us how things are progressing. We use the reports to make critical decisions. A CRM provides a database for information and it becomes invaluable to sales funnel performance. If you are already using a CRM that makes things easier.
5. Do we get all of our sales people involved?
It’s best if all of your sales people are involved. If a whole sales team is involved then everyone can get the benefit of the exercise. The more people we have to learn from the better.
5. Do we commit to a contract?
We sign a non-disclosure agreement to protect each other’s proprietary information. We have a letter of understanding that spells out the goals, strategies and actions we’re going to take to reach your Sales Funnel Formula. Everything is month-to-month and you can cancel anytime with 30 days notice.