Behind every successful marketing and sales organization is a well-tuned revenue funnel. A revenue funnel is designed to save businesses from random acts of marketing or fly by the seat of their pant sales. This workshop will help attendees define and create a revenue blueprint that drives prospects from the top of the funnel all the way to customers. Even if you already have a defined revenue funnel, this session helped you further optimize the buyer’s journey through using data to create marketing and sales touches to drive success. Revenue funnels ensure that marketing and sales are talking to the right person, with the right message at the right time.

1. Right Person, Right Time, Right Touch
Building and Optimizing Your
Marketing & Sales Funnel for Revenue Success

2. About the Presenter Mollie
Bodensteiner
Background | Experience
• Marketing Technology/Analytics Leader
• FunnelWise
• Marketo
• Submittal Exchange
• Wellmark
Connect
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/molliebodensteiner/
Email: Mollie.bodensteiner@gmail.com

3. Agenda
• What is a Revenue Funnel?
• Defining Your Audience
• Building the Funnel
• Mapping Marketing to Buyers’
Journey
• Measuring Success
• Operationalizing the Funnel

4. What is a
Revenue Funnel?

5. Revenue Funnel
Definition: The business process
your organization uses to
generate, transition & nurture
prospects from marketing through
sales on the journey to becoming
a customer.

6. Why Are Funnels Important?
Align marketing & sales efforts
• Create a smooth journey for prospects
• Remove internal obstacles
Predict revenue
• Project how many closed-won deals
• Forecast future revenue
• Make smarter decisions about investments
Platform for future sucess
• Repeatable, scalable & measurable
• Find & fix issues
• Direct path to growth
?

7. A revenue funnel is designed
to save you from random acts
of marketing or fly by the seat
of your pants sales.

8. Speaking the Language
Top of Funnel (TOFU)
Marketing's responsibility

9. Speaking the Language
Bottom of Funnel (BOFU)
Sales' responsibility

10. Speaking the Language
Middle of Funnel (MOFU)
Shared responsibility

11. Speaking the Language
MOFU
TOFU
BOFU
Building awareness about
the problem you address
Educate on how to
choose a solution
Explain why your
solution is the best

12. Right
Person
It costs 5 times
as much to
attract a new
customer, than
to keep an
existing one
Invesp

13. Identifying the Right Person
What is a Customer Profile?
The firmographic/demographic, behavioral, environmental
attributes of companies that are the best fit for your
product/services.
What is a Persona?
Generalized representation of ideal customer.
Why it’s Important?
• Focus resources on right leads
• Faster sales cycle (higher conversions)
• Extend Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
• Ranking & Scoring

14. Building Ideal Customer Profiles/Personas
1. Gather Data
• Find strong customers
• Patterns
2. Describe Customer
• Demographic/Firmographics/Technographics
• Culture/Organization/Background
• Behavior/Buying Signals
3. Interview Customers
• Experience with product/service
• Why did they purchase
• Pain points/problems solved
• Complaints
4. Identify Characteristics
• Common treads
• Motivators/Challenges
• Mindset
• Talk to Sales/Customer Success
• Source of information

15. B2B Ideal Customer Profile Example
ACME Company
Technographics
• Has WordPress CMS
• Using HubSpot or Marketo
• Uses Salesforce as CRM
Firmographics
• Between 50-100 employees
• Has internal sales team
• United States or Canada HQ
• Annual Recurring Revenue
(ARR) of at least $5M
Industries
• Technology
• Retail
• Software
• Business Services
Challenges
• Lack of inbound
traffic/resources
• High bounce rates from website
• Fast buying cycle, need to
capture sooner

16. B2B Ideal Customer Profile Example
ACME Company | Target Personas
VP of Sales Director of Demand GenVP of Marketing

17. B2B Ideal Customer Profile Example
Background/Demographics
• VP of Marketing (currently in
role for 1 year)
• Worked marketing for SaaS
companies for last 15 years
• Married with two kids (15 & 12)
• Skews Female
• Age 45
• Household Income: $170,000
Marketing Persona
Jenny Jones • Increase marketing sourced
revenue
• Empower team’s capabilities
• Grow team
• Support sales
Goals
• Time/Resources
• Staying on top of trends/new
technology while being VP
• Receiving buy-in from
other peers
• Being replaced by more
innovative marketer
• Missed goals
• Proving ROI/Purchasing
right solutions
Challenges/Fears
Characteristics
• Technology savvy
• Does not respond to phone
calls or mass emails
• Reads industry blogs
• Posts on LinkedIn daily
• Builds relationships in person
• Easy integration and management
• Cost effective
• Proven ROI
• Cross-functional training
Our Value

18. B2C Persona Example
Mary Smith
Age: 28
Occupation: 5th Grade Teacher
Marital Status: Married
Household Income: $89,000
Location: Kansas City, MO
Family: Expecting first child in
four months
Education: Bachelor’s Degree
in Education
Goals: Support and safety of family
& friends
Values: Family, friends, students
Fears/Challenges: Buyer’s
remorse, overwhelmed with options
Objections: Cost, safety ratings,
convertibility
Role in Purchase: Decision maker
Source of Information: Facebook,
Amazon reviews, family-focused
blogs with product reviews
“I want what is best for my family”

19. B2B Persona Example
Blog.Alexa.

20. B2B Persona Example
Blog.Alexa.

21. B2C Persona Example
Blog.Alexa.

22. B2C Persona Example
Blog.Alexa.

23. BUILD YOUR PROFILES
Who Is Your Ideal Customer?
What Are Their Needs?
Why Are You The Best Fit?

24. Right
Time
A generic
revenue
funnel is
wrong
for any
company.

25. Building a Funnel Blueprint
What is a Funnel Blueprint?
Written definitions of the stages in your
revenue funnel
What is a Stage?
• Segmentations of people who are at
the same level of understanding and
engagement with your product
• Varies for each stage: TOFU,
MOFU and BOFU

26. Qualities of an Effective Blueprint
Address Consensus
• Involved with process, must agree
Comprehensive
• Address all possible situations a prospect
could encounter in your “buyer’s journey”
Outline Who Owns What
• TOFU, BOFU – Straightforward
• MOFU – Critical Stage for Handoff
Address Stage-Hopping
• Must address all type of movement
• Prospects move backward, skip, fall out

27. The Funnel Evolution
Image Source: customerjourneymarketer.com

28. Building a Revenue Funnel
1. Map the Customer Journey
• Understand the steps customers take
2. Map the Marketing/Sales Stages
• Align the marketing/sales process to the
customer journey
3. Define Criteria for Stages
• Entry & exit criteria
• Non-linear movement
• Ownership of stages
4. Document/Agreement
5. Implement & Test
6. Communicate
7. Track & Monitor Performance
8. Review & Revise

29. The Funnel: B2C vs. B2B – Mapping the Journey
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
SEARCH FOR
INFORMATION
BUYER EXAMINES
PRODUCT & REVIEWS
BUYER SHARES RESEARCH WITH
STAKEHOLDERS
BUYER COMPLETES DEMO
BUYER GETS CONTRACT
SIGNED CONTRACT
BusinesstoBusiness
SEARCH FOR
INFORMATION
LEARN ABOUT
PRODUCTS
READ REVIEWS AND
COMPARE PRODUCTS
PUTS PRODUCT IN CART
REVIEWS CART AND CHECKS OUT
SALE COMPLETE
BusinesstoConsumer

30. The Funnel: B2C vs. B2B – Mapping the Journey
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
WEB CONVERSIONS
ARE LOW
RESEARCHES HOW TO
INCREASE CONVERSIONS
RESEARCHES POSSIBLE
VENDOR SOLUTIONS
SEES DEMO OF
POSSIBLE VENDORS
REVIEWS CONTRACT,
NEGOTIATES PRICE
SIGNS CONTRACT
LiveChat
FINDS OUT
EXPECTING
LEARNS ABOUT CAR
SEAT PROVIDERS
READS PRODUCT
REVIEWS & SAFTEY
TESTS, WORD OF MOUTH
NARROWS SELECTION
TO TWO CAR SEATS
PLACES FINAL DECISION IN CART
AND REVIEWS
SUBMITS ORDER
CarSeat

31. The Funnel: Inbound vs. Outbound
Outbound
LIST OF
PROSPECTS
PROMOTE CONTENT, BUILD
RELATIONSHIPS
GROW TRAFFIC,
SCORE PROSPECTS
CONNECT DIRECTLY WHEN
SCORE IS HIGH ENOUGH
IDENTIFY PAIN POINTS,
DESCRIBE VALUE OF SOLUTION
SIGNED CONTRACT
CREATE
CONTENT
SEND MASS EMAILS
TRACK INTERACTIONS,
SCORE PROSPECTS
CONNECT DIRECTLY WHEN
SCORE IS HIGH ENOUGH
IDENTIFY PAIN POINTS,
DESCRIBE VALUE OF SOLUTION
SIGNED CONTRACT
Inbound
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase

32. The Funnel: Map to Marketing/Sales Stages
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
IDENTITY IS KNOWN,
NO ENGAGEMENT
HAS POSTIVITELY
ENGAGED
EXPLICIT INTEREST, SCORING,
MEETS QUALIFICATION CRITERIA
DEEMED QUALIFIED BY SALES,
MEETS BANT, DEMO COMPLETED
REQUESTS CONTRACT
SIGNS CONTRACT
Definition
KNOWN
ENGAGED
MARKETING QUALIFIED
SALES
ACCEPTED/QUALIFIED
OPPORTUNITY
CUSTOMER
Marketing/SalesStage

33. Example: Stage Criteria for Consideration Stage
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
Owner: Marketing/Business Development
Business Definition
Entry: A potential customer expresses interest
in your product/service and fits your
qualification criteria
Exit: The sales team verifies the interest level
and qualifies the potential customer making it
an “opportunity” and a value is applied to the
future sale
Technical Definition
Determine when using automation platforms
such as Salesforce or HubSpot and Marketo

34. Revenue Hour Glass
• Adoption
• Onboarding
• Implementation
• Retention
• Usage
• Success
• Expansion
• Up-Sell
• Cross-Sell
• Advocacy
• Referrals
• Evangelism
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
Consideration
Intent
AdoptionAdoption
Advocacy
Expansion
Retention

35. Revenue Funnel – Leakage Stages
Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase
Consideration
Intent
AdoptionAdoption
Advocacy
Expansion
Retention
• Recycle
• No BANT
• Nurture
• Disqualified
• Will Never Buy
• Closed Lost
• Lost Reason
• Nurture
• Previous Customer
• Churned Reason
• Nurture
Recycle
Closed Lost
Previous
Customer
Disqualified

36. Stage Name Owner
Entry
Business Definition
Entry
Technical Definition
Exit
Business Definition
Exit
Technical Definition
Known Marketing Known prospect identified, no
engagement, acquired through list
import, event, sales research
Status changes to Known
(Automated)
Prospect takes an action
increasing behavior score
from 0
Status changes to Engaged
(Automated)
Engaged Marketing Prospect has engaged with company on
web, social, email, etc.
Behavior score is greater than 1
(Automated)
Prospect reaches scoring
threshold or moves into
sales stages
Status changes to Marketing
Qualified (Automated)
Marketing
Qualified
Marketing
BDR
Prospect reaches qualified
engagement level
Meets scoring threshold of 100 or
completes high value engagement
(Automated)
Prospect is deemed
qualified by BDR and has a
follow up scheduled
Status changes to Sales
Accepted by BDR (Manual)
Sales Accepted BDR/Sales Prospect has been accepted by BDR
and scheduled follow up
BDR changes status to Sales
Accepted (Manual)
Prospect has scheduled
demo with Sales
Demo is scheduled, changes
status to Sales Qualified
(Automated)
Sales Qualified Sales Prospect has scheduled a demo with
Sales and BDR introduces prospect to
Sales Rep via warm transfer
Status changes to Sales Qualified
upon Demo Scheduled
(Automated)
Prospect agrees to
continue conversation post
demo completion
Opportunity is created by
Sales Rep (Manual) – Status
is changed to Opportunity
(Automated)
Opportunity Sales Opportunity is created by Sales Rep,
BANT is revaluated, amount is assigned
to deal
Opportunity is created (Manual) Contract is signed by
prospect
Opportunity is moved to
Closed Won Stage (Manual)
Customer Clients Contract is executed, prospect is now a
client
Status is changed to Client
(Automated)
Client does not renew
contract
Status is changed to
Previous Client (Automated)
Example: Revenue Funnel Blueprint

37. Revenue Funnel Mistakes
• Idea that the customer journey
is linear
• Not addressing that customers
can enter at any stage
• Lack of focus after closed-won
• Lack of granularity
• Not holistic view of journey
• Not accounting external
influences
Customer Journey Marketer

38. BUILD YOUR BLUEPRINT
What Steps Do Your Customers Take?
How Do You Track Internally?
Who Owns Each Stage?

39. More than
80%of companies have changed at least one business process
in the past three years to better interact with customer.
Avande

40. Without
strategy,
content is just
stuff. The
world has
enough stuff.
Right
Touch
Market Mox

41. Engagement Matters
1. Messaging
• Relevant
• Personalized
2. Medium
• Appropriate
• Timely
3. Behavior Based
• Coincidental
• Purposeful
4. Performance
• Produce results
• Meets objectives
Marketo

42. 67%of the buying process happens digitally
Sirius Decisions

43. Buyer Signal
• Prospect is experiencing and expressing
symptoms of a problem or opportunity and
is actively researching solutions
Goal
• Educate prospect on single need/pain
point they want to address, without a
sales tie-in
Tactics
• Generate traffic
• Spread awareness
• Educate prospects
• Cultivate brand buzz
Top of Funnel: The Laws of Attraction

44. Buyer Signal
• Prospect has clearly defined their
problem and is committed to better
understanding available solutions
Goal
• Continue to educate, but start the
process of positioning your company as
the solution for the prospect’s needs
Tactics
• Build credibility
• Solutions to use-case challenges
• Demonstrate thought leadership
Middle of Funnel: The Qualification

45. Fit
• Meet specific criteria
for target market
• Appropriate
demographic attributes
(job title, industry,
company size,
interest)
Middle of Funnel: Defining Qualification
Interest
• Demonstration of
seriously considering
the solution
• Engaged across
multiple channels
• Requested to be
contacted

46. Qualified Prospect:
A prospect with a great
fit and high level of
interest.
Nurture
Interest
Immediate
Follow up
Avoid
Take
Orders
INTEREST
FIT
Middle of Funnel: Defining Qualification

47. The first viable vendor to reach a decision maker
and set the buying vision has a
74%average close ratio.
Forrester

48. Buyer Signal
• Prospect has decided on their solution
strategy and is ready to make final
purchasing decision
Goal
• Convert prospect into paying customer
Tactics
• Validate BANT (budget, authority,
need and timing)
• One-on-one engagement
• Create urgency (discount code)
• Product descriptions
• Value propositions
Bottom of Funnel: The Acquisition

49. Buyer Signal
• Became of paying customer
Goal
• Retention of customer, growth of advocacy
Tactics
• Special Offers
• Communication
• Responsive support and outreach
• Effective UX
• Help documentation
• Customer appreciation
Beyond the Funnel: The Relationship

50. Mapping Content to the Journey
Awareness
• Blog Posts
• Videos
• Newsletters
• SEO/SEM
• Social Media
• Checklists
• Infographics
• Podcasts
• eBooks
Qualification
• Case Studies
• How-to-Guides
• Demo Videos
• Datasheets
• Buying Guides
• Retargeting
• Advanced Content
• Product Resources
• FAQs
Acquisition
• Pricing Page
• Live Demo
• Free Trial
• Coupon/Discount
• Testimonials
• Product Reviews
• References
• Smooth Process
• Consultation
Retention • Special Offers • Great Support • Effective UX/UI

51. BUILD YOUR CONTENT FUNNEL
What Stage Does Current Content Fit?
What Additional Content Do We Need?
Is Content Working?

52. “You can’t
connect the dots
looking forward;
you can only
connect them
looking
backwards.”
- Steve Jobs
Right
Measurement

53. 1. Movement
2. Velocity
3. Conversion Rates
4. Aging
5. Activities
If you are not measuring your funnel
with key metrics, you are not able to
improve your business.
Five Key Funnel Metrics

54. “In God we trust,
all others
must bring data.”
- W. Edwards Deming

55. Net New
Movement
Measures how many records
are entering the funnel, where
they enter (top, middle or
bottom) and if the records are
sequentially progressing or
jumping between funnel stages.
DEFINITION
How many records entered
each stage,
and where did they
come from.

56. Questions it Answers
• Which funnel stages need replenished and when?
• Which records are consistently moving through the funnel?
• Which records have not advanced and need to?
• How many records have entered a recycle or nurture stage?
• How does our record movement compare to last week, month,
quarter or year?
Net New Movement
[(Number of records at end of period - Number of records at start of period) /
Number of records at start of period] x 100
Calculation

57. Conversion
Rates
Measures the successful
forward motion of records
in the funnel.
DEFINITION
What percent of records
moved forward.

58. Questions it Answers
• What is your average conversion rate by stage?
• When do conversion rates plateau in each stage?
• Which records are converting below average and need attention?
• Is there an established pattern or do they fluctuate over time?
• Which sales and marketing activities convert records at the best return?
• Which lead source, sales rep or marketing initiative has the best conversion rates?
Conversion Rates
(Number of records that successfully exit a stage by end of period /
Number of records at start of period) x 100
Calculation

59. Velocity
Measures the rate at which
records move through the
funnel.
How LONG did it take for these
prospects to move forward.
DEFINITION

60. Questions it Answers
• What is needed to speed up records with
slower velocity?
• What resources are needed for records
moving faster than expected?
• Do overall goals or plans need adjusted
due to slower or faster velocity?
• Which lead source, sales rep or product
line has optimal velocity and why?
• Why are some opportunities closing more
quickly than others?
Velocity
Number of days or the duration of time from
when a record enters and exits a stage
Calculation

61. Aging
Measures how long a record
has remained in a particular
stage.
DEFINITION
How long a prospect
remains in a stage.

62. Questions it Answers
• When are records no longer viable and
need removed from the forecast?
• Where are records going stale and
how can they be revived?
• When should records be moved into a
nurture program?
• Are Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
or processes being followed?
Aging
Number of days in stage = Aging
Calculation
Number of days in stage = Aging
Calculation

63. Activities
The marketing and sales efforts
that drive records through the
funnel.
What effort and how many
touches did it take to
move a record.
DEFINITION

64. Questions it Answers
• How many activities were needed to move a record forward?
• How much time passed before an activity occurred once a record
entered a stage?
• Which records aren’t moving and is it related to the number of activities?
• Are activities following Service Level Agreements (SLAs)?
• Are additional budget or resources needed to successfully drive records
through the funnel if activities have not been completed?
Activities
Number of days in stage = Aging
Calculation
Activities are tracked versus calculated. Activities can be tracked by stage as well as by
buyer’s journey. It is important to also track time to first activity.
Calculation

65. Building a
funnel is how
you survive.
Operationalizing
a funnel is how
you win.
Operationalize
the Funnel

66. Operationalizing the Funnel
• Break Down Barriers
• Expand Funnel Views
• Revenue Leadership Team
o Leaders that drive/influence revenue
o Align revenue to goals
o Set meeting cadences
Learn More: www.funnelwise.com/resources

67. • Weekly Results
o What is changing in the funnel, how does it compare to goals?
• MTD/QTD/YTD Pace
o How is organization pacing to monthly, quarterly, annual
goals?
• Funnel Trends
o What metrics have changed in each stage, how does it
compare to previous week?
Reporting Cadences – Weekly
FunnelWise

68. Reporting Cadences – Monthly
• Monthly Results
o What is changing in the funnel, how does it compare to goals?
• Cross-Funnel Comparisons
o What factors should be the main focus and what is the
projected impact?
• Funnel Momentum & Gaps
o Do projections align with goals?
FunnelWise

69. Reporting Cadences – Quarterly
• Overall Goals vs. Results
o What was the quarterly result against goal?
• Next Quarter Forecast
o Are we on track to meet next quarter’s goals?
• Key Areas for Improvement
o What areas need improved next quarter?
• Strategic Adjustments
o What happened during the previous quarter and what
adjustments need made to align with growth strategy?
• CAC:LTV Analysis
o Are marketing and sales efforts creating a positive return?
• Benchmarking Report
o How does our performance compare to historical
performance as well as industry benchmarks?
FunnelWise

70. BUILD YOUR JOURNEY
Right Person
Right Time
Right Touch

71. Example Journey Map

72. Thank You!