Latest / The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson / Building a Sales Funnel with Ryan McCrary
Transcript
- 0:002020, you literally could not meet with someone in person.
- 0:03You could not do business in person.
- 0:05It was illegal to do business in person.
- 0:09Hi.
- 0:09This is Melinda Emerson, the small biz lady host of the small bizhette podcast.
- 0:13I want to serve you.
- 0:14This pandemic has been so hard on America's small businesses and on just America in
- 0:20general.
- 0:20If you're ready to start your dream business, boy, do I have a great offer for you I am
- 0:25giving away 1000 copies of my best selling book, become your own boss in 12 months.
- 0:31Over a hundred thousand people have this book is been printed in multiple languages around
- 0:35the world.
- 0:36And I wanted to find a way to serve America's small businesses in this pandemic And so I am
- 0:42giving away a 1000 copies of my book.
- 0:44All you have to do to get your copy is head over to begin my biz dotcom slash free offer
- 0:51to, you know, sign up for your copy.
- 0:53All you have to do is pay shipping, and we will mail one out to you.
- 0:56I am so excited about this.
- 0:59I wanna serve you, grab your copy today.
- 1:02I left off.
- 1:04Ending small business failure.
- 1:06Welcome to the Small Biz Chat podcast with the number one small business expert Melinda
- 1:11Emerson.
- 1:13Bolinda's goal is to and small business failure, and she'll give you the information
- 1:17you need to succeed and live the life you dream of.
- 1:20Now here's the small biz lady herself.
- 1:24Melinda Emerson.
- 1:27Hi.
- 1:27I'm Melinda Emerson's small biz lady.
- 1:30America's number one small business spurt.
- 1:32And I would like to welcome you to the small biz chat podcast.
- 1:37Now the goal of the small biz chat podcast is to give our small business audience an
- 1:42opportunity to hear sage advice from various different perspectives, all with the goal to
- 1:48take your business to the next level.
- 1:50Now my next guest is Ryan McCrary, and he's known as the funnel doctor.
- 1:55He is a seasoned digital marketer and speaker who loves to share his knowledge on how to
- 2:01build strong sales systems in small businesses, his passion lies in helping entrepreneurs and
- 2:06authors Get their message and product in front of more people.
- 2:10Ryan's digital marketing agency specializes in online sales funnels that generate massive ROI.
- 2:18Alright.
- 2:19The funnel doctor is in the house.
- 2:21Ryan, welcome to Smallishjet lie.
- 2:23Thank you so much for having me.
- 2:25I'm so excited to be here.
- 2:26Oh my gosh.
- 2:27Well, I'm really excited to have you because we just heard about how hard it is to get be
- 2:34battling with these folks over these keywords and buy an ad.
- 2:36So I wanna talk to somebody who specializes in this So first of all, tell me how you got your
- 2:44nickname, the funnel doctor.
- 2:45Like, what what is your background?
- 2:47How did you come to give yourself that superhero moniker, if you will.
- 2:52Well, originally in business, my original business was a financial information product
- 2:57business.
- 2:57So it was not an agency.
- 2:59It was not digital marketing.
- 3:00I sold online courses.
- 3:02I wrote a book, some coaching because my professional background is actually in finance.
- 3:07I had my securities licenses.
- 3:08I worked in corporate America for many years, but I, you know, when I started my own business
- 3:13originally, like I said, it was just selling financial information products.
- 3:16But I had to learn how to market and sell online because I didn't have my corporate job
- 3:20anymore.
- 3:21I didn't have those benefits anymore.
- 3:23So I had to really learn how to actually have consistent, predictable revenue for my business
- 3:28as an entrepreneur.
- 3:29So I literally go head first into learning everything I could about all my marketing
- 3:34taking trainings, going to conferences, reading a lot of books from some of the big marketing
- 3:39gurus that many of us know today And in the midst of all that, I got a real knack for that.
- 3:45I built a lot of relationships with a lot of entrepreneurs, and I started it with building
- 3:49my own funnels running my own ads, and people would say like, hey.
- 3:52I saw your ads on Facebook, Instagram.
- 3:55I see your website, your landing page, kinda who did it.
- 3:57Can I hire the person?
- 3:58And I said it was actually me.
- 4:00So about 3 years ago, I decided to actually build an actual agency and people would have
- 4:05funnel issue.
- 4:06They would just, like, go to Ryan.
- 4:07Go to Ryan if you have any funnel issues or with certain platform and stuff like that.
- 4:11So I got coined as quote unquote the funnel doctor by being able to fix any problems
- 4:16someone would have with their funnel.
- 4:17Alright.
- 4:17Well, that's that's a big brand promise right there fixing any problem people have with their
- 4:22funnel.
- 4:23I'm I might take you up on that.
- 4:24Okay.
- 4:24So tell me what is the actual definition of a sales funnel?
- 4:29A sales funnel is just a step by step process for you to sell your products and serve Some
- 4:35people may also refer to it as, like, the customer journey, but a lot of entrepreneurs
- 4:40don't actually think of, like, the system that they should have for their business.
- 4:45So whether you're capturing leads and you actually turn them into customers, that's a
- 4:49system.
- 4:50I know when I started my business, I was just passionate about what I did I knew I had a
- 4:54service or a product that I wanted to give to out in the marketplace, but I didn't think of
- 4:59it in like a system or a systematic way or lead capture and how to bring people through, like,
- 5:04an actual journey.
- 5:05So like I said, it's basically just a step by step process that you bring customers into to
- 5:10sell your products and services.
- 5:11Mhmm.
- 5:12So it seems like small businesses need to learn how to sell online no matter what they sell
- 5:18because this pandemic has been, like, It it doesn't matter what you do.
- 5:23You you had your customers have to find you somehow online.
- 5:26Why is it so urgent?
- 5:28Oh, I personally think it was urgent much before COVID.
- 5:32And, you know, people knew it was urgent, and they did what they could to try to do stuff
- 5:38online, but with COVID, it now became mandatory.
- 5:41Now I know things are opening back up.
- 5:43But on 2020, you literally could not meet with someone in person.
- 5:47You could not do business in person.
- 5:49It was illegal to do business in person.
- 5:52So you had no choice but to do business online.
- 5:55So that position the digital marketers or the folks that run virtual companies much better.
- 6:01So now what we do is a lot more popular.
- 6:03It's a lot more needed.
- 6:04So you literally, I feel as though, honestly, if you're not doing business online, your
- 6:08business will not survive in my opinion.
- 6:11So you're saying everybody needs a sales funnel.
- 6:14I don't care who you are.
- 6:15Everybody everybody.
- 6:17If you need leaves at only if you need leaves in sales.
- 6:19You know, if you don't need leaves in sales, that maybe, you know.
- 6:22But you said only if you need leaves in sales.
- 6:24Okay.
- 6:26Think I get the point.
- 6:27Alright.
- 6:27So tell me, what are the top 3 reasons why people struggle with their sales funnels
- 6:32though?
- 6:32Like, why is this so hard?
- 6:35I think a lot of people don't understand fully what a sales funnel is.
- 6:41So a sales funnel, and I think with a lot of the online jargon nowadays, people are
- 6:46misrepresenting what it is or confused on what it is.
- 6:49And it really has little to do and that initially with, like, online, it's your sales
- 6:55process in your business.
- 6:57So that can be in person, you know, all the direct response marketers that you see direct
- 7:02mail and stuff that.
- 7:03So you have to understand the system that someone should go through.
- 7:07What's the first touch point?
- 7:08What's the first introduction online or offline?
- 7:11Like, what should that first touch point b, how do you provide value up front?
- 7:15And then from there, like, what's the next step?
- 7:17How do you make someone want to do business with you?
- 7:20And once you understand that, then it's like, okay.
- 7:23Well, how do we transition that online?
- 7:24What tools do we have to use?
- 7:26But I think number 1, people don't understand what it is.
- 7:29They don't understand direct response marketing.
- 7:32They don't look at their business from, like, a value ladder or a sanction ladder perspective.
- 7:36And they also don't have it.
- 7:38Alright.
- 7:38Alright.
- 7:38Hold on.
- 7:39Hold on.
- 7:39You're starting to throw out terms.
- 7:41I don't think people understand.
- 7:42So talk about what's the value ladder, Ryan?
- 7:45Come on.
- 7:45You know?
- 7:46Take my folks, which we'll be talking about.
- 7:50So, basically, I feel as though, you know, you should have different touch points in your
- 7:55business and different amounts of value that you can give to someone.
- 7:58Take yourself, for instance.
- 8:00You know, I know you have books.
- 8:01I know you do coaching, consulting, you know, stuff like that work with a lot of
- 8:05corporations.
- 8:06You know, so you can give someone a lot of value from your book, but I feel as though, you
- 8:10know, you can give them a lot more value if they're on a training with or they sit with you
- 8:14in a workshop and stuff like that.
- 8:16And I feel as though businesses need to position themselves that way, say, hey.
- 8:20You got my book.
- 8:21Now why don't you get my course?
- 8:23Why don't you get my training?
- 8:24Why don't you sit in a workshop with me?
- 8:26Why don't you work with me one on 1?
- 8:27But, of course, as as entrepreneurs, we have to charge more for that.
- 8:31Our time is very valuable, but a lot of us, I know initially for me, I didn't look at my
- 8:35business that way.
- 8:37I didn't look at different touch points and it's sending people and providing more about
- 8:41So you're saying, like, sort of, like, the value ladder is really, like, the book and then
- 8:45the workbook and then maybe the mini course and then maybe the the the higher level coaching
- 8:51program.
- 8:51So it's so it's it's like all of your products.
- 8:54It's like the value stack almost.
- 8:56Is that what you're saying?
- 8:58Kind of, but I think what a lot of people do is they think about price too much and it's really
- 9:04about value.
- 9:05So once you assign the value that it's like, okay.
- 9:07Well, it makes sense that you would charge a $100,000 or $20,000, whatever for someone to
- 9:11work with you one on one, up close in person, because there's a lot of value.
- 9:14You know, it makes sense that you may charge 25, 30, $40 for your book, you know, because
- 9:18that's, like, kind of the amount of value.
- 9:20So I think some people think, well, 27, then we go to 47.97.
- 9:24Like, 147, they think about it that way, but you really wanna think about it from, like, a
- 9:28value perspective.
- 9:29And then, like, the price fits with the value.
- 9:32So when someone thinks about what they should prioritize because whenever somebody says self
- 9:37son of me, I merely think email.
- 9:39Like, I immediately think nurture sequences, email.
- 9:43You know, that that's what I think when you say cell phone number to me.
- 9:46So it's interesting that you're saying No.
- 9:48You need to be thinking about it offline first and then take it online.
- 9:52So that's interesting to me.
- 9:54But when you think about the three things that you can prioritize, whether it is driving
- 10:00traffic, your sales systems, or your follow-up systems, how do you prioritize those 3?
- 10:07Like, what's most important?
- 10:09I feel like a lot of people might think it's driving traffic, but It sounds to me like you
- 10:14might not agree with that.
- 10:16So what so how should people prioritize if all these things are important?
- 10:20What do you gotta do 1st, second, and third?
- 10:22And like you said, they definitely all are important.
- 10:25So I would prioritize the actual funnel structure.
- 10:29Your system and then the traffic and then, like, the follow-up automation, you know, but
- 10:34to be honest, I mean, you definitely need all 3.
- 10:37I think the first 2, in my opinion, are most important the traffic and the funnel system
- 10:43because you could have a great funnel system.
- 10:46But online, if you don't have traffic, and not enough people are actually gonna see it.
- 10:50I mean, vice versa, if you have a great traffic, you have ads, you have great content,
- 10:54but at the same time, if someone engages with your content, or, like, at a Facebook ad, a
- 10:59Facebook ad job is to get people to your page.
- 11:01So if they get to your page and your page is not optimized to convert, or you don't have
- 11:05some type of lead cancer or something like that.
- 11:07And, of course, the automated system, you really just gonna waste a lot of money and
- 11:10advertising.
- 11:11Right.
- 11:11So if They were asking me for advice in this conversation.
- 11:15I would say sales system, follow-up system, drive traffic.
- 11:21That's how I would number it if it were me, but I'm interviewing you.
- 11:25So I won't get my 2¢ in that.
- 11:27Alright.
- 11:27So now let's talk about the sales copy for your funnel, right, because I think I'm a writer.
- 11:35I've written books.
- 11:36I've written, you know, what, 55,000, you know, articles about how to start and grow, but I
- 11:43don't write my own sales copy because That's a completely different skill, but I was curious
- 11:48as to whether you thought that the average small business owner out here should try to
- 11:53write their own sales emails.
- 11:55I definitely suggest you do get an expert that specializes in that to do that.
- 12:02Now having said that, really good copywriters don't really expect So I definitely think it
- 12:07depends on where you are at in your business.
- 12:09The reason why I got good at a lot of the stuff that I do is because I cannot afford to pay
- 12:13anybody when I started initially.
- 12:15So, you know, and also depending on what your skill set is as an entrepreneur.
- 12:19As an entrepreneur, you may be a good writer.
- 12:21You may not know response marketing.
- 12:23You may not be a quote unquote marketer, but you may be a good writer.
- 12:27So like I said, I really do suggest that you get an experienced writer copywriter, someone
- 12:33that understands your customer and that type of stuff, but at the same time, they are very
- 12:37expensive.
- 12:37So if maybe if you have to start on your own, I don't think that's necessarily bad.
- 12:41Alright.
- 12:41So what are some of the best tools you like with for people building sales systems in their
- 12:46business?
- 12:47Well, I like The click funnels type of platforms, Cartra, WordPress, you know, that
- 12:53type of stuff Shopify, great for ecom brands.
- 12:56So I think those are important, but I also, like I said, think that you really wanna be
- 13:00clear on your business and, like, your system and see what tool works best for your business
- 13:07because I, you know, I know a lot of people like myself, we subscribe to all these
- 13:10softwares.
- 13:11We got a 1,000,000 different things coming out of our account.
- 13:13And then we see that we may not need this or that or we just have too much stuff.
- 13:17So I think you definitely need to be clear on the system first and then get a tool that works
- 13:22best for you.
- 13:23I see.
- 13:24So if people are struggling with their sales funnel though, how do they troubleshoot it?
- 13:29Good question.
- 13:30It depends on really what part of the funnel because there are so many parts.
- 13:35Like, is it the copy?
- 13:37Is it the headline?
- 13:38Is it the offer?
- 13:39Like, really depending on what it is?
- 13:41So I really am, you know, big on split testing and just trying different things and, like,
- 13:46seeing, like, where the issue lies because also the issue may be that you just don't have
- 13:52enough traffic.
- 13:52I think a lot of people that I've worked with, they may say, like, the the system didn't work
- 13:57or the funnel didn't work.
- 13:58But they may not have actually drove enough traffic in it to actually really know if it
- 14:02works.
- 14:03So I think it really just depends on kinda like where it is.
- 14:07You know, what you wanna troubleshoot.
- 14:08And at the end of the day, if it's not converting, if people are spending money, then
- 14:13it may not even be the funnel.
- 14:14It may be your offer.
- 14:16So the greatest funnel is no substitute for product market.
- 14:20There's nothing.
- 14:22So the issue could be you just got a bad offer.
- 14:25Or or or could it be your offers too expensive?
- 14:28I mean, could it be the pricing is wrong, or is it, like, obviously, the
- 14:32pricing, but it could be that But, like, depending on the the the traffic.
- 14:38So if you have someone who's completely cold and you have a high price, Well, you may need
- 14:43to actually warm them up.
- 14:44They may may want to do business with you, but if you're selling someone something for $10,000
- 14:49and they don't know you, you haven't built a relationship.
- 14:51You haven't or them, then, you know, it's not that they don't wanna necessarily buy it, then
- 14:55you have to build a no like a trust.
- 14:57Got it.
- 14:57Got it.
- 14:58Alright.
- 14:58Last question before we go to break.
- 15:00We are just getting started with ads.
- 15:02What's the right platform?
- 15:03What's the right one to learn on?
- 15:05I'm biased to Facebook and Instagram ads.
- 15:08So that's what I'm gonna say, you know, but there are many other platforms out there, but I
- 15:12would say Facebook is.
- 15:13Okay.
- 15:14Interesting that you put them together.
- 15:15Like, they're a sandwich Interesting.
- 15:18Alright.
- 15:19You're watching small biz chat live.
- 15:21We're gonna talk more with the funnel doctor about all this ads and stuff.
- 15:25When we come back, I'm Melinda Emerson.
- 15:27Stay with us.
- 15:32Hi.
- 15:32I'm Melinda Emerson, small biz lady.
- 15:35And I'm known as America's number one small business expert.
- 15:38I know a thing or 2 about how to run a successful business.
- 15:41I've been running my own for over 20 years, and I'm often asked, how do I actually become my
- 15:47own boss?
- 15:48It starts with knowing what you want and why.
- 15:51Then you need to figure out how you're fun your dream business.
- 15:54Next, you must research your idea and make sure you understand everything that's involved.
- 16:00Next, you must determine your target customer, then complete your business plan.
- 16:05And finally, it's time to start your business as a side hustle first if you can.
- 16:10I wrote my best selling book become your own boss in 12 months to give you a road map to
- 16:14business success.
- 16:15And over a hundred thousand people in multiple languages around the world have been helped by
- 16:19this book.
- 16:20And now to support people affected by this pandemic, I'm giving away a 1000 copies of
- 16:26becoming our boss in 12 months For free, all you need to do is pay the shipping and handling
- 16:31fees.
- 16:32If you're ready to turn your calling into income, claim your free copy of my book today.
- 16:38Don't delay.
- 16:39This offer is only good while supplies last.
- 16:41Click the button below and get yours before they're all gone.
- 16:46Hi, everybody.
- 16:47We're back now on Smallbiz chat live.
- 16:49We're talking with Ryan McCurry.
- 16:51The final doctor And he's gonna tell us a little bit more about how to create a strong
- 16:56sales funnel.
- 16:57Alright, Ryan.
- 16:59How long should an initial nurture sequence take for a sales funnel.
- 17:0430 days, 60 days, 90 days.
- 17:07What is it?
- 17:08How should I design my my initial email nurture sequences in a sales funnel?
- 17:13I think it depends on the angle.
- 17:15So definitely have to depend on what is the next step in your funnel.
- 17:19So generally, I would say 30 to 60 days.
- 17:22I'm big on kinda hitting them hard in the initial phase, like 7 to 10 emails up front.
- 17:27But like I said, I think it really depends on what the end goal is and what you're trying to
- 17:32offer on the back end.
- 17:33I always start with the end in mind, and I suggest everyone do the same thing.
- 17:37Alright.
- 17:38So I see a lot of people sometimes sell too quickly, or they sell people at the wrong stage
- 17:45of awareness Do you see this issue comment?
- 17:48I mean, one of the things that I find really interesting, like, people connected with me on
- 17:53LinkedIn, and then, like, 2 seconds later, email me a pitch.
- 17:56And I don't know them from Adam's alley cat.
- 17:58Right?
- 17:58And I'm like, dude, I'm I'm gonna figure out the unconnect button on LinkedIn because you
- 18:03offended me that much with this ridiculous pitch.
- 18:05So I I mean, but people do that elsewhere online too, but that's like the most common
- 18:11egregious place.
- 18:12I see it.
- 18:12So how how have you seen that happen, you know, with people selling at the wrong stage?
- 18:17I've seen that all the time, and great marketers know we really don't have to sell, I
- 18:23feel as though when I get on sales call with someone, I don't have to sell.
- 18:26They're selling me on why I should work with them.
- 18:29So I think what you have to know, like, and trust And, also, I think people wanna see what
- 18:34your customers are seeing about you, not just you.
- 18:37So I'm real big on that.
- 18:39We do a lot of ceimonials and reviews and stuff like that.
- 18:42But I do feel as though people definitely try to monetize too early, big on no, like, and
- 18:47trust But like I said, all the great marketers, they know that I don't have to initially sell
- 18:52anyone on anything.
- 18:54I can provide enough valuers though I know the problem that we solve and we know there's a
- 18:58major problem as we've been talking about in the digital space of people not knowing how to
- 19:03navigate it or have a funnel and stuff like that.
- 19:05When I get on a call with someone, I feel as though this is why we can solve your major
- 19:09problem.
- 19:10I don't have to sell you on anything.
- 19:11Interesting.
- 19:12Okay.
- 19:13And then what kind of analytics tool should people be looking at to evaluate the success
- 19:17success of their funnel?
- 19:18I mean, obviously, sales is, like, the number one way to evaluate it, but What kind of other
- 19:23analytics markers should they be looking at when they're looking at the success of their
- 19:27sales funnels?
- 19:28Definitely have a great CRM platform that's gonna look at, of course, the page visits, the
- 19:33opt in rates, the conversion rates, your upsell rates, and that type of stuff.
- 19:38I haven't really seen, like, a great all in one platform that I've seen that, like, does all
- 19:43that stuff.
- 19:44You know, we do like a lot of Excel spreadsheets and that type of stuff.
- 19:47But like I said, you definitely wanna look at opt in rates conversion rates, click through
- 19:52rates, email open rates, email click rates, and also text message as well.
- 19:56I know we didn't talk about that a lot today.
- 19:58But I think text message is getting a lot more popular.
- 20:01The open rates and the click through rates are a lot higher than email.
- 20:04We still love email.
- 20:05Email still works.
- 20:06Email's not dead.
- 20:07Don't let anyone tell you that.
- 20:08But I think that's another thing that's important as well that people don't talk about
- 20:12enough is the text marketing is getting more popular too.
- 20:15Alright.
- 20:15And then last thing, how do you determine if you don't have a strong enough offer?
- 20:19Like, I mean, because that's really hard.
- 20:22Is it just like No sales must be a bad offer, or do you think there's other things to look at
- 20:28before you look at your offer?
- 20:30Number 1, how many people have seen, though?
- 20:33So I think that's one on 1, like, how many people have actually went to your page and
- 20:39actually seen it?
- 20:40And have a substantial enough traffic to actually know if it's the offer or not.
- 20:46Now if you've had the traffic, then it comes to my opinion is what type of traffic?
- 20:51Was it warm traffic, cold traffic, you know, lukewarm traffic?
- 20:56And then from there, once you analyze these things, and then it's like, okay.
- 21:00Now once we see that we have warm traffic, they know, like, and trust us.
- 21:03We've had enough page visits.
- 21:05Now it's not converting.
- 21:07Now it may be the offer, maybe the price, and stuff like that.
- 21:11And, also, I think how are you selling it?
- 21:13Because if you're selling something high price, rarely do people buy that just from, like, your
- 21:18sales page to a Facebook ad?
- 21:20You may need a conversation with them on the phone or in person.
- 21:23So it may be that they wanna buy it, but it's just how you're selling it is not the right
- 21:27mechanism.
- 21:27I see.
- 21:28I see.
- 21:29Alright.
- 21:29What's your favorite podcast?
- 21:31I drawers, marketing secrets,
- 21:33Who's who is it by again?
- 21:35It's the besides yours.
- 21:37Oh, besides mine.
- 21:39Oh, I'm sorry.
- 21:39I didn't hear what you said.
- 21:40Besides my.
- 21:41Marketing secrets.
- 21:43Is Russell Brunson.
- 21:44What is your favorite business app?
- 21:46Favorite business app.
- 21:48Teamwork.
- 21:48Teamwork?
- 21:49Okay.
- 21:49I actually use that one.
- 21:51Alright, Ryan.
- 21:52Favorite book.
- 21:5480 20 sales and marketing.
- 21:56Because once I learned the Pareto principle, that changed my business tremendously.
- 22:02That was a good book.
- 22:03That was a good book.
- 22:03Thank you all for joining me for this episode of the small biz chat podcast If you want more
- 22:09information about how to start and grow a business, head over to Small Busley University.
- 22:13I'm sure I got a course over there that can hook you up and get you where you wanna go.
- 22:17Thank you all so much.
- 22:18The mission of small bitch tab is to end small business failure.
- 22:22I'm Melinda Emerson, the small biz lady.
- 22:23I wanna leave you with this.
- 22:25You never lose in business either you win or you learn.
- 22:28God bless everybody.
- 22:30Good night.
- 22:32Thank you for listening to the Small Biz Chat podcast with Melinda Emerson.
- 22:37For more resources and small business success strategies, visit succeed as your own boss.com.
- 22:44Subscribe to this podcast wherever you listen to podcasts and join us next Wednesday.