Forget about copywriting 101 — this is an advanced guide to sales funnel copywriting.
Why is funnel copywriting important, you might ask?
Compelling copy fast-tracks your casual site visitors’ transition into paying customers. If you’re getting loads of site traffic but get very little to no sales, then your funnel’s copy needs a bit more oomph!
8 steps to improve your sales funnel copywriting
Our step-by-step guide shows you the ins and outs of sales funnel copywriting.
1. Map out your funnel’s content
Start by mapping out the buyer’s journey through each stage of the content marketing funnel.
You need a clear understanding of how your funnels work and which content pieces go into each stage. Here are some examples:
- ToFu (top of the funnel): How-to guides, informative blog posts, industry news, infographics, listicles, etc.
- MoFu (middle of the funnel): Checklists, newsletters, white papers, eBooks, product demos, templates, free online courses, etc.
- BoFu (bottom of the funnel): Discount offers, pricing page, birthday promos, comparison posts, rewards programs, landing pages, welcome emails, etc.
Prepare a visual map of your funnel and build a list of content pieces you’ll create for each stage. This lets you structure a seamless lead generation and nurturing experience. Be specific about how each content piece connects so copywriters can inject a proper “buildup” between them.
For example, if you’re selling a WordPress SEO plugin, create how-to guides and informative posts for your ToFu audience. Once you get their attention, encourage them to download your free resource (eBook, checklist, templates, etc.) or subscribe to your weekly newsletter.
Your free resource and newsletters will then continue to provide helpful information to your leads. These can be WordPress SEO strategies that readers will have to do manually. Eventually, they’ll receive an email with plugin recommendations to make those SEO strategies easier. This will take them to your WordPress plugins store or landing page — where all the conversions happen.
- ToFu
- How to Build a WordPress Website
- What is the Importance of SEO in WordPress Development
- MoFu
- Free Checklist of Essential WordPress SEO Strategies
- Weekly newsletter with WordPress SEO tips and plugin recommendations
- BoFu
- WordPress plugins store/landing page
2. Make the starting sentence punchy
Ensure readers are hooked as soon as they read the first sentence of your copy. This may not sound like “advanced” sales funnel copywriting, but even professional copywriters sometimes forget to write captivating intros.
If crafting a punchy opener isn’t your forte, here are some tactics to create catchy first sentences:
- A mindblowing statistic.
- A thought-provoking question.
- A surprising statement.
- Something unexpected.
Another way to create punchy first sentences is to use an open loop.
It’s an intriguing line that hints at a revelation somewhere in the middle or end of the content piece. Teasers like these compel readers to continue reading past the intro. This can be a question or statement that makes readers wonder.
Below are content loop examples:
- I’ll show three tried-and-tested ways to 10X your sales without increasing your marketing spend. But before that…
- Your website’s ranking took a considerable dip, huh? I know why. And I’ll detail the reasons in this guide and share how to fix your nightmare.
- The 5th tip shared in this guide has helped countless small business owners double their leads.
3. Use customer data to write highly resonating copy
Use website analytics, social media analytics, surveys, and customer support reports to align with your target audience.
What are their goals? What features are they looking for? Why do past customers cancel their subscriptions?
Answering these questions will help you understand your audience’s sentiment and language.
For example, if several prospective customers state they’re looking for something “economical,” you can weave that word into your product page. This makes your copy speak to your audience personally and emotionally.
Your customer support team can provide a wealth of information for typical complaints and problem areas. Surveys and interviews conducted by the market research team can also offer valuable insights. Use these data sources to identify words and descriptors that resonate with your audience.
4. Use psychological triggers
Create stellar copy that makes readers believe they need your product or service. Buyers are some of the most emotionally driven creatures on the planet.
It’s a copywriter’s job to understand these emotions and use them to their advantage. Implement sales funnel copywriting strategies that trigger your audience’s vanity, greed, fear, and exclusivity on your sales page.
These powerful emotions can create a genuine belief that they need to buy your product as soon as possible.
Just don’t go overboard.
If there’s one thing people hate, it’s to be on the receiving end of an unrelatable television pitch. Be subtle and strategic with your psychological triggers— enough to keep readers alert but not enough to cause a complete disconnect.
Check out some examples:
- 50% of online stores close in less than a year (fear).
- This plugin can save you $1,000+ per month (greed).
- Join thousands of successful WordPress users (exclusivity).
5. Include an element of scarcity
Double down on your psychological triggers by instilling scarcity into your copy.
People are much more likely to take action fast if they think they’re about to miss out. This “fear of missing out” or FOMO can convince even the most frugal customers to spend big.
For example, you can tell readers that you have a limited stock of products. You may also launch special editions and time-limited promos in case actual scarcity doesn’t exist.
Here are specific ideas:
- Offer free shipping—but only for the next 24 hours.
- Discount available only for the first 100 customers.
- One item is left in stock. Order now!
6. Include an element of social validation
Feature social proof in your sales funnel copywriting to build buyer confidence. This includes customer reviews, follower count, star ratings, influencer content, and social media posts featuring your product.
Social proof is essentially a vote of confidence. It works so well because of a social psychology concept called normative social influence. When a person or group of persons agree on one grain of truth, there’s a subconscious pressure for others to conform.
7. Highlight customer pain points
Understand your customer’s pain points thoroughly, then sprinkle them all over your copy. Use them as opportunities to promote your product in a relevant and customer-centric way.
While your sales funnel copywriting should include solutions that help customers right away, position your product as a shortcut to solving their problems. In their eyes, you’re no longer selling a product — you’re selling convenience.
Here are some ways to touch on your customers’ pain points effectively:
- Is the summer heat killing your vibe? (Get this cool new beverage!)
- Bringing all the wrong scents on a first date? (Give this deodorant a try.)
- Tired and irritated during the day? (Sleep better with this pillow.)
The copy doesn’t place the product in the spotlight in these examples. Instead, they bring attention to the customer’s problem — with the product (or service) as the quick fix.
8. Tell a story
Use storytelling devices like Freytag’s Pyramid to incorporate storytelling into your sales funnel copywriting.
Freytag’s Pyramid includes a seven-step framework that, while used initially by playwrights and screenplay writers, can also be used in marketing, advertising, and branding campaigns.
- Exposition: Here’s you. Here’s your problem.
- Inciting Incident: Something or someone life-altering comes along, triggering a chain of unprecedented events.
- Rising Action: The hero’s initial attempts to solve the problem only added complication.
- Climax: The action peaks and reaches a do-or-die moment for the protagonist.
- Falling Action: Everything settles after the climax, and the protagonist reflects on their growth throughout their journey.
- Resolution: You edged out, defeated the enemy, and solved the problem. The battle is won.
- Denouement: You return to your daily life—triumphant.
In sales funnel copywriting, there are many ways to use Freytag’s Pyramid to reel customers in. It can be used to tell your brand’s story, share product use cases, feature customer success stories, publish case studies, and more.
Characteristics of sales funnel copywriting experts
A sales funnel copywriting expert can bring leads down the funnel at a breakneck pace. Their funnel velocity could be double — if not triple — that of an average copywriter.
Here are the things you need to look for in a sales funnel copywriter:
1. A firm grasp of sales psychology
Sales copywriters should know how to tap into the audience’s psyche and make them feel an emotional need to take action on your offers.
2. SEO knowledge
It’s not enough to be a great copywriter. In digital marketing, copywriters need to understand how to create SEO-friendly content.
The best copywriters know how to use keywords to their advantage. They weave them into each piece in a natural way and a way that makes sense to Google.
And if your copy is optimized for search engines, you’ll have an easier time ranking on page one—where all the leads are.
3. Strong research skills
The best copywriting sales funnel is based on data and proven facts—not mere hunches and guesses.
A sales funnel copywriter should be up-to-date with the latest trends and information. They should also know how to find reliable sources that add credibility to their claims.
4. Empathy
Sales funnel copywriting experts should know what makes your target audience tick. They know how to tap into emotions like fear, greed, and vanity to get the reader to take action.
They’re also well-aware of the powerful crossover between copywriting and psychology, leveraging the patterns of the human mind to their advantage.
5. Creative flair
Copywriters are creatives at heart. Therefore, they’ll need to use their imagination throughout their copy-crafting process.
They should be able to take the mundane and make it exciting — to sell the sizzle, not the steak. They need to write headlines that pop, metaphors that sting, and sentences that flow like a hot knife through butter.
Power your sales funnel with brilliant copywriters
Stop getting abysmal results from your sales funnels. The quality of your copywriters can spell the difference between getting hundreds of sales or getting nil.
Invest in reliable, highly skilled, and committed sales funnel copywriting experts today. Chat with one of our content experts now to learn more.
