What is a Conversion Funnel: A Guide to Turning Visitors into Customers

Have you ever wondered how your website visitors become customers?

The answer lies in a powerful marketing and sales tool called a conversion funnel.

Conversion funnels are a pretty fundamental concept and quite essential to understanding your customers’ decision-making processes.

Every business selling online has its own conversion funnel. However, not all will be making the best use of their funnel and some might not even be aware of their own.

If you’re wondering what is a conversion funnel is and how you can use one to boost your online success, you’re in the right place.

In this article, we cover what a conversion funnel is, its' various components, why you need one established, and the conversion funnel optimization strategies you need to know.

A conversion funnel is a model that describes the journey potential customers take from initial awareness of your product or service to the point where they take a desired action, such as making a purchase.

The path in a conversion funnel is not always straightforward or linear. In fact, it can involve multiple touchpoints spread across different sales channels and platforms.

A study by Ruler Analytics revealed that the average conversion rate across all major industry types is 3.3%. This is pretty low and goes to show the importance of having a strong conversion funnel in place to guide prospects.

Pro-Tip: While the term conversion funnel is often used interchangeably with sales funnel, it’s important to note the difference. A sales funnel typically starts when a potential customer enters the sales pipeline and focuses solely on making a sale.

Source: Ahrefs

Conversion funnels are broader and focused on creating connections with leads, at any point in the journey.

Conversion funnels are important because they provide a structured framework for understanding and optimizing the customer journey.

When your business maps out the steps that your prospects take from initial discovery and awareness to eventual conversion, you can identify where there are bottlenecks getting in the way, remove these roadblocks, and improve your funnel conversion rate.

If you learn to employ a conversion funnel the right way, your business can:

The stages of the conversion funnel can vary based on your specific business and sales model.

However, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the customer journey from awareness to conversion, most conversion funnels cover at least five key stages.

Each stage represents a unique step in the customer journey and provides an opportunity to optimize for conversion.

Position of the Funnel: Top

The awareness stage is all about introducing your brand to potential customers and making them aware of your offerings.

It often involves drawing in your target audience through various marketing efforts, and captures the most amount of traffic.

This is an example of OptimizePress using blog posts to create awareness.

The most successful online companies know that the awareness stage isn’t about using a single method but a diversified approach. This can include:

Success in this stage means…

Position of the Funnel: Middle

In the interest stage, your goal is to build trust and desire with prospects or leads.

While the awareness stage focuses on building recognition for your brand, that’s not enough to drive action. Your prospects need to prefer your solution/service over your competitors.

For example, OptimizePress has a marketing learning center that you can use to grow your knowledge.

This stage involves nurturing their interest and showcasing why your product or service is the best solution for their needs. This can be done by:

Success in this stage means…

Position of the Funnel: Lower-Middle

In this stage, your objective is to transform interest into a strong urge to purchase your product or service.

At this point, you need to convince potential buyers why they should choose your brand over competitors by highlighting the unique benefits and value you offer.

OptimizePress highlights customer reviews and testimonials on the homepage in a fun and engaging way.

You can do this by:

Success in this stage means…

Position of the Funnel: Bottom

In the action stage, also known as the conversion phase, the goal is to transform leads into customers.

This is where potential buyers make a purchase, subscribe, or complete another desired action.

OptimizePress’s checkout page is simple and straightforward.

To optimize conversion in this stage, you can:

Success in this stage means…

Position of the Funnel: Post-Conversion

The re-engagement or loyalty stage follows a successful conversion, focusing on retaining and nurturing existing customers to encourage repeat buyers.

This stage is crucial for maximizing customer lifetime value (CLV) and turning one-time buyers into loyal advocates for your brand.

Retaining current customers is more cost-effective and efficient than constantly acquiring new ones. After all, loyal customers already trust your brand and can quickly move through the funnel for repeat purchases.

OptimizePress has a dedicated community of users who can share their journeys with the tool, ask each other for tips, and even casually chat as brand advocates.

At this stage, you can focus on:

Success in this stage means…

Ready to optimize and create an effective conversion funnel? Here are some practical steps you can take across each stage.

There’s no doubt that your conversion funnel can make or break your sales success and also take your marketing strategies to the next level. 

Here are the key points to remember:

With this knowledge under your wings, you can create a successful conversion funnel to drive your business today.