Why Your Funnel Needs a Clear Goal

Before you start building pages, forms and automation, you need to know what you actually want your funnel to achieve.

When you're new to online business, it's very easy to hear the word funnel and immediately start thinking about pages.

You might start wondering how many pages you need, what your landing page should look like, which emails to send and what automation you need to set up.

But there's something I'd suggest doing before you build any of it.

Decide what the funnel is supposed to do.

What Is a Funnel Actually For?

At its simplest, a funnel is a journey.

Someone discovers you or your business, takes some kind of action and then moves towards the next step.

That next step depends on what you're trying to achieve.

You might want someone to join your email list.

You might want them to buy a digital product.

You might want them to book a call.

Or you might be promoting someone else's product through affiliate marketing.

These are all different goals — and that means the funnel you build can be different too.

Four Common Funnel Goals

One Funnel Doesn't Have to Do Everything

This is another mistake I see beginners making.

They try to make one funnel collect emails, sell a product, promote an affiliate offer, book calls, build a community and do half a dozen other things at the same time.

The result can be confusing for both you and the person going through the funnel.

Keep the Journey Simple

A good beginner funnel doesn't need to be complicated.

If your goal is to build an email list, for example, your funnel might look something like this:

Ask Yourself These Questions First

Before opening your funnel builder, take a few minutes to answer some basic questions.

Your Goal Determines Your Funnel

Building Your Funnel with systeme.io

One of the things I like about systeme.io is that you can build different types of funnels depending on what you're trying to achieve.

That means you can start with the goal rather than simply throwing pages together and hoping they work.

For a beginner, that way of thinking can make funnel building much easier to understand.

Don't Build What You Don't Need

Another benefit of starting with a clear goal is that it helps you avoid unnecessary complexity.

If your immediate goal is simply to build your email list, you probably don't need a complicated sales funnel with multiple offers and dozens of automation rules.

If your goal is to sell one digital product, you may not need five different lead magnets.

Build what supports the goal you have right now.

You can always expand your funnel later.

A Quick Funnel Planning Checklist

Start With the Destination

When you're learning about sales funnels, it's tempting to focus on the technology first.

Which funnel builder should you use?

How many pages do you need?

What automation should you add?

But those questions become much easier once you know where you're trying to take people.

So before you start building your next funnel, take a step back and decide what you want it to achieve.

Start with the goal. Then build the funnel around it.

If you want to start building funnels for your online business, take a look at systeme.io.