Is the sales funnel obsolete?

[cbscreative]

This arrived in my LinkedIn today which I found interesting. I've noticed the trend over the years but never consciously thought about it this way. Although written from the perspective of insurance which the author is an authority on, the principles apply to any kind of sales, especially service businesses. It will be an interesting read (so are the comments) and should make a good discussion here for small businesses.

Here's the article:
Is the Sales Funnel Obsolete? | LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140113143212-5214630-is-the-sales-funnel-obsolete?)

[David Hunter]

Interesting read.

The sales funnel is still alive and well. The author mentions that most prospects start on the web without any salesperson knowing about this prospects. True, the prospect is just using a different form of media. But the websites job is to capture information and take the prospect down the funnel to make a sale.

[cbscreative]

That's what I got from it too. There's really no surprise at all in the trend but this is an interesting way of demonstrating the shift. The sales person's job and focus is changing, and this helps shed light on how and why a business webs site and online presence is so crucial.

[David Hunter]

Agreed! It's amazing how many businesses don't have a website. Heck, you can creat a free website with Google! FREE!

[KristineS]

That is an interesting article. I think the sales funnel, like everything else, has been changed by the new technology that's available. I also think that salespeople who are smart will take advantage of the new technology to reach their customers. So there still is a sales funnel of a sort, it's just morphed from what it used to be.

[Dan Furman]

Agreed! It's amazing how many businesses don't have a website. Heck, you can creat a free website with Google! FREE!

That's actually part of the problem.

Soooo many garbage websites get built with great expectations, and then "don't work". It sours many smaller companies (who talk to each other) on the web. For an easy example, think of blue collar contractors.

[WhiteRhinoMedia]

The sales funnel is not obsolete, in fact it even says its not in the article. It has changed and I agree it
is a much smaller (top to bottom) funnel. Time is not on our side as it was before.

Reminds me of the 'is direct mail dead?' questions I see daily.

[Sean_DeSilva]

As long as there will be different stages in the buying process, such as awareness, engagement, interest, there will be a sales funnel of some type. the sales funnel reflects the inherent psychology of the sales process.

[Harold Mansfield]

For me, the sales process starts as soon as anyone sees me online anywhere or the real world. From the way I'm listed, to my SEO and page descriptions, to my website, to the information on it, to online reviews. If I'm doing everything correctly by the time the phone rings or a contact form comes through, all I need to do is close them. Because they will have already been sold before they picked up the phone.

[justinnichols]

80%+ of ALL purchases are still made in-person. This is particularly the case for B2B. Here's why...

Would you buy a $250,000 license for a software that could ruin your business if it doesn't work right by simply looking at the website and using PayPal? 99% of business owners still want someone across the table saying "Don't worry Bob, this is going to work great. I promise."

[Harold Mansfield]

80%+ of ALL purchases are still made in-person. This is particularly the case for B2B. Here's why...
Business to Business? Maybe. Conventions are a prime example of that.

However, Consumers? No way. It hasn't been 80% in at least 2 years and it's falling even faster this year than last year.