Blog Post
Introducers, Influencers, and Closers: The Marketing Funnel Explained
It’s all about BUZZ.
Whether the marketing model is AIDA (Awareness – Interest – Desire – Action) or something more expansive, Gen3’s experts are always focusing on lead generation at the top of the funnel, in the introducer phase.
In this phase, it is crucial that potential consumers feel energized and sense enthusiasm, or BUZZ, for the product. We can use traditional advertising, but we can also employ social media influencers to really get to the heart of what our audience is looking for.
Influencer affiliates use their own marketing tools such as comparison-shopping blogs, email blasts, and social media posts to target their respective audiences and encourage them to buy from our clients’ stores. Side-by-side product comparisons can be especially prone to generating buzz.
At Gen3, we like to begin with the end in mind by asking: what does winning look like from the client’s perspective, and how can we put them in a winning position? We measure global metrics to determine what’s really worked, and we use those measures to earn more consideration among consumers, because the funnel is only as good as the marketing work put into setting up sales.
Affiliates use client-approved assets to ensure their content is on-brand. Affiliates then leverage the loyalty of their respective audiences to drive traffic to specific products or landing pages for purchase. But sometimes things don’t work correctly. It’s extremely important to find influencers with audiences that really trust them, because the influencers act as a kind of “conveyor belt”, moving new consumers along the process, from interest to conversion. If an influencer’s followers lack that needed trust, the conveyor belt won’t perform smoothly.
At Gen3, we consistently and constantly communicate not only with influencers, but we also speak with our brands to ensure everyone is on the same page when it comes to messaging. The only way to leverage true success is with a one message/one voice approach, and that’s why it takes a strong agency to keep everyone flying in line, guaranteeing that the content is tailored to best connect with consumers.
Done right, all parties benefit from this affiliate arrangement. Our clients earn new customers. The affiliates earn commissions. Consumers find a great product and often get a discount to boot. And Gen3 benefits by building its marketing funnel to introduce other clients to these influencers with a proven track record of closing sales.
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