A full-funnel revenue process defines buyer engagement stages across marketing and sales. It specifies the volumes, metrics, activities, and roles and responsibilities between marketing and sales. We design full-funnel marketing and sales processes across different segments including “funnel math” models to align metrics.
Demand Funnel
In the Demand Funnel, Marketing and Sales collaborate to attract, engage and nurture buyers to a qualified, sales-ready status.
TAM / ACTIVE TAM
The Target Addressable Market (TAM) is a “pre-stage” of the Demand Funnel. The TAM is the market segment being pursued. You can measure TAM and also estimate active TAM to build a target audience for buyer engagement. The Active TAM is the segment of the TAM in an active buying cycle.
Elements to consider include:
Our target campaign audience is in our target market / Active TAM
TAM Size #, $ and share are understood
Engagement segments are defined
Campaign Architectures align with the TAM Personas and DMU
ATTRACT / CONFRONT
The Attract Stage (Buyer Confronts their issue) is focused on ensuring that your target audience is aware of your brand. The buyer is in the Awareness process and your are seeking ways across media to attract them to your business. Many of these tactics use digital marketing:
- PR, Social and Earned Media
- Inbound / Organic Search
- Education Content / White papers
- Advertising (PPC, Display, Media)
- Trade Shows /Speaking
- ABM Awareness Campaigns
- Outbound Sales Prospection
A key metric to consider is: Website Visitor – A visitor is an interaction on the website at the top of the funnel. Sources include organic traffic, referrals, email, paid media and direct. Visitors confirm Awareness from marketing activities. Typically 1-2% of visitors convert to the “Engaged” stage. Retargeting strategies help drive this number up.
Other factors to consider include:
- Site Visitors meet expectations
- # & % Account Contacts Engaged
- CPM rates measured
- Sources of visits align with plan
- CTR Conversion meet expectations
- # Blog Subscribers meet expectations
- Time on site / important pages / dwell time
- # Social mentions, shares, influencers engaged
- Degree of positive sentiment, likes
- # MQIs (Downloads/ Conversions)
- # Sales touches and responses
EDUCATE / LEARN
The Educate Stage (buyer is in the Learn stage) is where you have identified the lead or contact and are actively educating with the prospect over a mix of marketing and sales channels. A key metric is MQI – Marketing Qualified Interaction (sometimes referred to as a “Lead”). An MQI is not a qualified lead, but is interacting with your brand – “making an inquiry”.
A suspect becomes an active member of the marketing database after they download content, respond to an email offer or similar. While not yet a qualified lead, they are a focus for further lead nurture and development. Typically only 5-10% of MQIs become Qualified MQLs, but this will vary by industry and your funnel model. The key difference between a MQI and a MQL is that they have not yet expressed a desire to engage in a sales conversation or have not yet reached a lead score threshold that confirms them as qualified .
A Subscriber may opt in to receive information from you (as in blog posts) when they register for your blog or newsletter. They are not usually identified as a lead at this stage. For example, 5% of Subscribers may become qualified leads or MQLs. Percentages will vary.
ENGAGE / SELECT
In the Engage Stage (buyer is in Select), the sales team in collaboration with Marketing actively engage and nurture the prospect and further qualify and position offerings.
A [Marketing] Qualified Lead has reached a level of qualification by marketing or by sales. A lead may be generated in the Demand Funnel by either marketing or by sales. Through the Engage nurture process, leads are developed until they are sales ready. A Qualified Lead, often called a MQL – or Marketing Qualified Lead is a lead that has reached a set of objective behaviors and/ or has a set of firmographic dimensions (e.g. a lead grade / score). These thresholds are based on agreed business rules, are delivered to the sales team for follow-up.
90+% of MQLs typically become SALs (Sales Accepted Leads) and enter the active sales process and the Sales Pipeline.
When a prospect reaches the Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) status, they enter the sales pipeline and are a forecastable opportunity.
Sales Funnel
The Sales Funnel is the forcestable revenue pipeline, Sales account teams orchestrate sales opportunities, and close deals.
OPPORTUNITY
A Sales Lead is developed by sales people as well as by Marketing. When a sales rep accepts a lead from Marketing for follow-up, it is a SAL (Sales Accepted Lead). Typically 90%+ of qualified leads from Demand Generation are accepted as sales ready as they have reached a Lead Score and Lead Grade threshold.
Lead Score via:
- Visit to important pages visited (Pricing Page, Solution Page)
- Key Downloads
- Configurator
- Talk to sales
Leads are also developed via Outbound Sales Scheduling / Appointments
QUALIFIED
A [Sales] Qualified Opportunity is firmly in the Sales Pipeline and part of the active forecast.
They are looking for outside help and view us as a viable provider and we have a high-level understanding of the business case and motivation to act.
A Qualified Opportunity (sometimes referred to as a SQL (Sales Qualified Lead) – is a prospect with an opportunity determined by sales / sales management as qualified using agreed qualification rules such as BANT, Scotsman, or the Revenue Architects FACT Qualification model. While, relatively early in the sales cycle and not yet fully qualified, these warrant a very active sales focus. They are typically 20-60% likely to close.
LIKELY
When a deal reaches the Likely o stage, we have a high confidence that they will close, but there is more work to be done!
We have submitted a proposal andare on a short list. We have established credibility and access with the DMU/ economic buyer. We have reviewed a 1-page proposal with our client coach; It was positive. We have day-to-day interaction with the DMU. The Likely deal is about 75% likely to close.
HIGHLY LIKELY
Highly Likely is the final stage before we close and the typical forecast yield is 95%.
Our proposal is received with positive feedback – no significant contingencies have been identified. The terms & conditions are known and acceptable to decision makers or otherwise mitigated. A schedule, start date or implementation plan is in place and agreed.
COMMITTED
The opportunity or deal is closed successfully at 100%.
When the contract is signed and the invoice is sent, we have a closed deal. If it is not closed, it may be downgraded, returned to marketing for nurture, maintained for further sales nurture, archived or ultimately marked as either lost or dead.
Customer Funnel
Account teams ensure value is delivered to retain and realize revenue and build account plans to deepen and expand relationships.
MANAGED
Account teams actively maintain, deliver and upsell, cross-sell existing clients. These relationships will kick off new opportunities that will enter the pipeline as Opportunities or Qualified.
In this stage, a range of professional account management activities will be engaged that also include digital experience for account engagement.