It is normal for any person to look for an all-in-one solution. But no matter what we do, it is just difficult to combine all aspects of internet activities into one. For example, you might say that you don’t need a sales funnel because he already has WordPress.
While there may be a little truth to this, it is still best practice to have a separate sales funnel than combining that into your WordPress website. Sales funnels and blog sites were made for different purposes and different audiences. WordPress is like a restaurant where you entertain and serve, while a sales funnel is more like a giant billboard in a busy city.
Let us take a look at the difference between a sales funnel and WordPress. Hopefully, by the end of this article, you will be enlightened as to what makes them separate, and why you need to consider having two accounts.
What’s Different Between a Sales Funnel & WordPress?
When WordPress was created, it was designed to be a blogging platform. Over many years, it has grown into a powerful web builder. Today, you can integrate so many apps, add advertising space in your WordPress website, and even convert into an e-commerce store.
WordPress is a tool where you can build a website, but it is not a tool designed to create a sales funnel. With WordPress, you can add blog articles with affiliate links, create menus for your restaurant, create webinars, offer free downloadable content, sell products and digital goods, and so much more.
As mentioned earlier, it is like a restaurant. You can use so many plug-ins to make a better and more professional website, but it is never an effective sales funnel.
A sales funnel, on the other hand, is a one-page website where you convince your customer to buy. If you watch TV often, you may be familiar with product advertisements where there is a host who demonstrates the function and effectiveness of the product for sale. If you watch Home Shopping Network or HSN, then you would have an idea what a sales program is for.
A sales funnel works that way, but it is only used on the internet. With a sales funnel, your main purpose is to attract, convince, and make a customer buy your product by the time he leaves the page. Apart from that sales page, there is no other page that a customer can click. If you ever do that, the clickable button must lead the customer to either subscribe to your email list or complete the purchase right there, right now.
Remember: WordPress is a place where you put all possible resources for your business, like a TV series where people can come back, again and again, to get entertained. A sales funnel is a one-page website where you convince your site visitors to either subscribe to your mailing list or buy your goods, like Home Shopping Network or QVC on TV.
What a Sales Funnel & WordPress Do
Apart from the differences in the purpose, sales funnels and WordPress have differences with the order of what the site visitors do. What this means is that there are steps customers take between a WordPress Website and a sales funnel, much more so on where they land.
For a website, the customer or site visitor lands on a home page. From there, he has the choice to navigate your website at will. This is not how a sales funnel works.
Related Post: Make A Sales Funnel
With a sales funnel, the customer always gets to the landing page. From there, he cannot go anywhere he likes. This is why it is called a funnel. You start with a wide net to catch as many site visitors, and then you lead them to a funnel of activities, the end of which is making a sale.
With a website, the site visitor gets to the home page, and then he decides to go to any of the following:
- Opt-in
- Sales Video
- Blog Post
- Survey
- Order Page
- Download
- About Us
- Terms and Conditions
- Contact Us
- Shopping Cart
Remember: from the home page, a customer has the freedom to choose where to go.
On a sales funnel, however, the customer cannot skip the process. Although it is only one page; the site visitor has to pass each one.
Below is the typical order of activities that a site visitor will go through in a sales funnel:
- Landing page
- Opt-in
- Thank you email
- Receive email marketing campaigns
- Free webinar
- Watch sales video
- Go to Order page
- Receive upsell email or recommendation
- Receive account information like user name or password
- Log in to members only area
- Download the product or use it from the exclusive website
Now, this difference is very clear. A sales funnel guides a site visitor through the entire process of the sales. It is like having a door-to-door salesman who will explain everything to the potential client until the client buys. A website, however, is like a bookstore.
Like a bookstore, a website has so many distractions. A customer who has the intention to buy a notebook may get distracted and ends up buying something else, or not buying at all because there are so many options.
But if there is a door-to-door salesman offering only one product, like a set of encyclopedia, then you have an effective sales funnel method where the customer can understand what you are selling, for how much, and what the benefits are.
How The Traffic Works
For WordPress websites, the kind of traffic you get is called inbound. Inbound traffic is what you get from creating useful videos and blog posts, doing your SEO and SEM correctly, using the right keywords, and so much more.
Pretty much, inbound traffic happens when a customer uses a keyword in search engines, and then the search engines recommended your website on its top results. Inbound traffic is called organic traffic. It is natural. Maybe someone shared your post on his Facebook account; maybe search engines view your website as a relevant, fresh, and original one.
On a sales funnel, the kind of traffic you get is called outbound. Outbound traffic is the result of paid advertising. You see, you need to advertise so people can see your product. If they click that ad, they will be taken to your landing page. Usually, you pay per click or per thousand impressions, and if you make a sale, your advertising expenses will be covered.
Summary
It is not right to compare a sales funnel against a WordPress website because they do not serve the same purpose. If what you want is to gain an audience, you must use a website. A website can be monetized in many ways like affiliate marketing, paid ads, and so much more. If what you are looking for is a guided sales method, you must use a sales funnel.
To be able to choose wisely, decide first on the three things we discussed: purpose, customer action, and traffic.
Related Post: ClickFunnels vs Zipify
As far as price is concerned, there really isn’t much difference between the two. You can build a WordPress website for free, and you can also create a sales funnel for free.
If you want more features, WordPress will charge you more money. The same thing goes with a sales funnel. You need to pay at least $9 a month if you want the cool features like email automation, follow-up emails, webinar hosting, and so much more.