However, many business owners overlook the power of the marketing funnel and fail to use it to its full potential. Each stage of the funnel plays a vital role in the marketing process and, when used effectively, can be especially beneficial for local businesses. 

According to KhrisDigital, “95% of buyers choose a vendor who provides them with sufficient content which helps them navigate each stage of the buying process.” 

We’ve already covered the top-of-funnel (TOFU) and middle-of-funnel (MOFU) stages of the marketing funnel, and will now complete the series by discussing the final step, bottom-of-funnel marketing (BOFU). This stage is focused on converting prospects into customers and represents the culmination of a well-rounded advertising strategy designed to increase revenue and strengthen your brand.

Before diving into specific strategies for this stage, let’s first clarify exactly what BOFU marketing is.

What is BOFU Marketing?

Unlike the TOFU and MOFU stages of the marketing funnel, which focus on attracting prospects and educating them about your business’s offerings, BOFU marketing is designed to push potential customers toward making a purchase.

This stage involves content that is much more direct than the previous stages and is measured primarily by its conversion rate, which is why it’s often alternatively referred to as the “convert” stage. At this point, the prospect is presumably ready to buy; they just need a final nudge to take action.

Many local business owners find this stage comes naturally, especially if they have experience in sales. However, they may not be maximizing its potential. Others may be unaware of its significance in the overall process, resulting in missed sales opportunities.

Regardless of your level of sales experience, it’s important to understand the primary goals of this stage before exploring deployment strategies. As mentioned, the main objective is to convert leads into customers.

Several secondary goals support this objective. One is to demonstrate that your products or services outperform the competition. This typically involves addressing common objections related to budget, reliability, and trustworthiness.

This leads to another goal, which is to increase the confidence of prospective customers. If they haven’t purchased yet, it likely means they’re lacking the assurance needed to move forward.

Finally, BOFU is also an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of not just your bottom-of-funnel efforts, but your TOFU and MOFU strategies as well. If your conversion rate isn’t meeting expectations, it may be time to reassess each stage to identify where your funnel is falling short.

Now that we’ve clarified the importance and purpose of the BOFU stage, let’s dive into some strategies that can help you boost sales.

Strategies

There are seemingly endless methods to complete the marketing funnel. Every local business is different, meaning some methods may perform better than others. It’s essential to experiment with multiple tactics to determine what works best for your business, including strategies not listed here. Still, here are 10 effective approaches to help you launch your BOFU marketing campaigns.

Promo Codes, Discounts, and Limited-Time Offers

Every consumer is looking to make the most of their budget, and offering a deal can give your business a competitive edge. These offers work well in various marketing materials but are especially effective in email campaigns and in-store promotions. Limited-time deals create urgency, encouraging quick decisions. At this stage, customers already understand your value, so a small discount might be the final push they need to convert.

Personalized Email Campaigns

It’s well known that email marketing is among the easiest and most affordable ways of advertising for local businesses, but did you know that 59% of marketing professionals believe personalization is among the best ways to increase email engagement, according to Mailjet? By using data gathered from consumer behavior and interactions, you can greatly improve the effectiveness of your email campaigns by tailoring products and services to their preferences. Another impactful tool is sending cart abandonment emails. Data collected by Baymard Institute found that ~70% of online shopping carts are abandoned, so addressing this can rapidly increase sales.

Testimonials and Case Studies

If a lack of trust is holding a customer back, testimonials and case studies can help build credibility. Wyzowl discovered that 90% of consumers trust customer opinions more than a company’s self-promotion. Testimonials can be placed across your website and nearly any marketing material, while case studies work well in email campaigns and newsletters. 

Retargeted Advertisements

Display ads and social media campaigns are effective at all funnel stages. Retargeting these ads to people who have already visited your website or interacted with your brand helps keep your business top of mind. This approach maximizes your marketing spend and becomes even more effective when paired with a discount or special offer.

Trust Badges

Another tactic that can appear at any point in the funnel, trust badges provide similar value to testimonials and case studies. These badges can include awards you’ve won, your average star rating from review sites, and companies you’ve partnered with. These visual cues show consumers that your business is reputable, helping increase confidence during the buying decision.

Free Trials and Demonstrations

Confidence is key at this stage of the marketing funnel, and offering potential customers the chance to use your products or services for free or see them in action before making a purchase is a great way to build that confidence. Be clear that trials are obligation-free to ease concerns. Demonstrations are great for overcoming objections by showing exactly how your product or service addresses customer pain points.

Customer Support

While some local businesses may not have sufficient resources to employ a customer support team, it’s still a highly effective tactic that can be adapted for any budget. Whether via phone, email, or live chat, personalized assistance helps resolve last-minute objections. According to Tideo, live chat is preferred by 41% of customers, compared to 32% who prefer phone calls and 23% who prefer email. Additionally, 63% are more likely to purchase from a website that uses live chat widgets. There are free tools available to implement chat widgets, making this a worthwhile strategy for any business.

Checkout Page Reviews

For businesses that rely on online sales, displaying reviews on the checkout page is a simple and persuasive tactic. Reviews help build trust and can also address unanswered objections, providing the reassurance needed to finalize a purchase.

Pricing Page Optimization

Optimizing your pricing page can include several elements previously mentioned, such as free trials, live chat, and reviews. It should be as transparent as possible so the user can make an informed decision without navigating off the page. This can also be an opportunity to perform A/B testing with different designs and messaging to see what users respond to best.

Product Comparisons

This is one of the most aggressive strategies at this stage of the funnel. It directly compares your offerings to a competitor or a generic brand, proving where your business exceeds theirs. Be careful not to create a negative image around your brand by disparaging your competitors. Instead, focus on where your brand excels, such as features, price, and service.

General Tips

No matter how you approach the bottom of the marketing funnel, there are four essential best practices that will help maximize its effectiveness.

Identify Audience

The BOFU stage is designed to push interested and informed prospects toward making a purchase. That’s why it’s critical to ensure your messaging targets the right audience. Using BOFU strategies on individuals who aren’t ready can be off-putting and may drive them away. By tracking interactions on your website, social media, and other advertising channels, you can better identify those who are ready to purchase, ultimately helping you get the most from your marketing budget.

Utilize Multiple Strategies

Each BOFU strategy appeals to different types of consumers. Using a diverse mix allows you to reach a wider audience. Relying on only one or two tactics or limiting your use of marketing channels can restrict your results and lead to missed opportunities. This principle applies to every stage of the funnel, but is especially crucial at the bottom. You’ve already done the work to get leads this far, so now the goal is to get them across the finish line, and different people are persuaded in different ways.

Conduct A/B Testing

A/B testing is key to maximizing both your budget and campaign performance. Testing elements like layout, design, copy, and calls to action can uncover what resonates best with your audience. These insights can boost revenue without requiring additional ad spend and help you avoid the time sink of constant guesswork.

Conversion Rate Optimization

At the end of the day, conversion rates are what matter most to local business owners. CRO involves analyzing your campaign performance and identifying where leads are being lost. By making data-driven adjustments, you can continually fine-tune your approach to boost results. Since the marketing landscape is always evolving, staying current and adaptable is essential for long-term success.

Find Out How Best Version Media Can Help

A comprehensive marketing strategy can be challenging for many local business owners who are focused on the day-to-day operations of their business. Best Version Media makes it easier by bundling geo-targeted social media and display ad campaigns that help you maximize your budget while reaching the right audience.

BVM also provides listings, reviews, and reputation management, all from one easy-to-use dashboard, allowing you to efficiently manage every aspect of your marketing efforts.

Contact BVM today to get started and elevate your brand.

The post 10 BOFU Marketing Strategies Every Local Business Should Be Using appeared first on Best Version Media.

However, many local business owners may not realize that print advertising still plays a valuable role in successful marketing strategies. While digital ads certainly have their benefits, print advertising has several ways it can positively affect marketing efforts that digital methods simply can’t match. Some of these advantages are straightforward, while others are less obvious.

If you’re looking to take your advertising strategy to the next level, check out these five key ways that print marketing still outperforms digital methods.

1. Trustworthiness

Fostering a connection with the community is paramount for local businesses. Strong relationships can be powerful tools to enhance marketing efforts, but trust must be established before community members are willing to engage with a business. While digital advertisements are a great way to spread awareness far and wide, print marketing builds trust much more efficiently.

According to Electro IQ, 56% of consumers consider print marketing to be more trustworthy than any other type of advertisement. Several factors contribute to this perception, including the more personal nature of how print materials are distributed.

While the internet can reach nearly every demographic, print media is often consumed by specific, targeted groups of people. As a result, the ads feel more personal and relevant to the reader, which leads to more follow-through and action. Print ads also provide a sense of legitimacy to local businesses, increasing the attention and engagement with the advertisement.

2. Viewership

Building trust opens the door to greater ad engagement that digital media often can’t replicate. Marketing Dive found that only 9% of digital ads exceed one second of viewership and just 4% surpass two seconds.

In contrast, Marketing Week reports that 75% of readers view print ads for an average of 2.2 seconds. This longer engagement not only boosts retention but also provides more time to convey detailed information.

How this opportunity is used depends on the nature of the product or service and the intention of the ad. Including elements like business address, phone number, store hours and customer testimonials are just a few effective ways to maximize a print ad that not all digital ads can match.

3. Comprehension

It’s no surprise that people are more likely to engage with content they can easily comprehend. This is another area where print ads have a significant leg up over digital. A study by Two Sides North America found that, “Direct mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than digital media.”

This is important because readers are more likely to understand the information and intent of an ad, which helps maximize the effectiveness of a marketing campaign. When an ad is placed in a local magazine, every reader is valuable, and presenting easily digestible information can extend the ad’s impact.

This also leads to another key reason print marketing beats digital, and that’s stronger brand recall.

4. Brand Recall Rate

Before achieving the ultimate goal of making a sale, an advertisement must resonate with consumers enough to become memorable. After all, presenting a product or service that sparks interest is a critical step, but it becomes irrelevant if the consumer chooses to do business with a competitor.

This is another area where digital can’t keep up with print marketing. According to the study by Two Sides North America, consumers recalled the brand from a print ad at a rate 70% higher than from a digital ad. 

Several factors contribute to this advantage, perhaps none more impactful than the longevity of print. Per Linemark, consumers keep print ads for an average of 17 days. While digital ads may reach a broader audience, print ads tend to stick around longer and are more likely to be revisited after the initial impression.

5. Action

All of these factors show why print remains valuable, but it means nothing without the reader taking action and making a purchase. Fortunately, print ads still excel in that area as well. Southern California News Group revealed that print ads have a 20% higher response rate than digital ads.

This stems from all of the reasons previously discussed. A trustworthy, easy-to-understand ad leads to increased viewership and brand recognition, which ultimately results in readers becoming customers. 

Not only do print ads boast a higher response rate than digital, but they also generate a 112% return on investment, according to Neyenesch. At this point, the advantages of print are obvious, but that doesn’t mean a business should rely solely on physical ads to drive sales.

Combining Print With Digital

Print and digital marketing campaigns each have their areas in which they excel. That’s why implementing an advertising approach that uses both is essential to local business success. Neyenesch found that, “Campaigns that integrate print and digital see response rates increase by up to 400%.”

This boost is largely due to the common marketing principle known as the “Rule of 7,” which suggests that a potential customer needs to see a brand at least seven times before taking action. Combining print and digital is not only the fastest way to reach that goal, but it is also more effective.

While print tends to resonate more deeply with readers and offers higher brand recall, digital ads can appear more frequently and are easier to distribute. Together, they form the most powerful and well-rounded marketing strategy for any business.

How Best Version Media Can Fulfill Your Marketing Needs

Best Version Media offers local businesses a comprehensive marketing strategy through print, digital and online presence advertising solutions all from one easy-to-use dashboard. For nearly two decades, BVM has helped businesses grow within their communities and make the most of their marketing budgets.
Contact BVM today and start growing your business.

The post 5 Ways That Local Print Advertising Still Beats Digital appeared first on Best Version Media.