Inside 3 $25,000 funnels ($75,000 total)
In this blog post we’re going to explore 3 individual funnel projects that cost at least $25,000.
We’ll look at the overall structure, the proposals and how I sold them. As well as the individual features and the value that they bought the customers.
The three types of businesses we’ll be looking at:
Membership site
Digital product launch campaign
Professional service
What I’ll be talking about in each business/funnel project:
- Customer type
- Problem faced
- How we generated the lead
- Proposal example
- Funnel overview
- How we sold it/value gained
For privacy and some legal reasons, I’ve generalised the businesses and changed the names of the owners. I’ve also edited some versions of the projects to protect certain aspects of the customer’s business model.
I absolutely believe you should have case studies and share them with clients, however I no longer consult these customers (although many remain good friends and we do pass work on to each other), but would provide these as case studies for consulting customers who asked for them. I’ve got a post here about writing case studies.
Membership site
Customer type
This customer was a training organisation that runs workshops, programmes and training all over the world. Almost all of it was delivered in person, either by the director or partners who had been hired or sought out previously.
They had a ton of content, as well as a solid process and amazing results for their audience.
Problem faced
The main problem was that they struggled to scale their offering effectively. Despite having a solid process, tons of materials and even partners to deliver the programs. They still had to manually organise massive liabilities such as travel, accommodation and venue hire.
The director was driving themselves into the ground working with staff and also delivering at the same time.
How we generated the lead
This was one of our first customers, and we had almost no experience delivering this exact process. However, we did have two longform pieces of high quality blog content. Which included worksheets and examples, and was over 10,000 words long.
We first met the client through a networking event and sent them the blog post as a primer and demonstration of how they could scale their business. While we had built membership platforms and online learning platforms before, we had never focused on scaling live training events into online training events.
Proposal example
$25,958
- Opt in forms across all current blog content
- Specific squeeze page for lead generation
- Longform blog post with opt in form
- Application page with redirection to membership site
- Membership site with multiple products
- Single course pages and layouts
- Sales page for trial course
- Call script for new applicants
- Application thank you page
MEMBERSHIP SITE
Automated traffic to email lead conversion via optin
forms and specific website placement. Connected to CRM/email program of choice. Multiple products with course pages.
$16,964
FUNNEL BUILDING
Optin form creation, placement and set up across entire website to convert traffic into leads:
$4,997
MARKETING AUTOMATION
Automation of sales emails from initial one off campaign plus nurturing for all new email leads:
$3,997
Funnel overview
How we sold it/value gained
The value of this project was in the director being able to create and upload content that would be applicable for 90% of their audience and customers. But it meant that they didn’t have to do, be there in person to deliver each programme. It meant that they could focus on sales, building relationships and partnerships. Rather than delivering the program to customers.
In fact, we found an enormous potential opportunity, by offering the concept of remote training, to this audience, wherever they work in the world.
First we had our longform blog post content. In fact we had two articles, circulated around how to build a massive email list for a membership site. The other on converting your business into an online membership platform.
After an initial paid discovery meeting, where we looked at their business model and what they were struggling with, we came back with the proposal above.
The core of the sales pitch was “give the directors more time, while expanding the number of potential clients they can help. And offer a profitable solution to new product creation.” It’s important to note that we spent a lot of time getting to know this client.
Something that pisses me off about people asking how to find a $25,000 hundred thousand dollar customer, is you have to put in a lot of work beforehand getting to know the client. It doesn’t mean you have to fly over and see them, although that does help. And if someone gave me five grand cash and I knew I wanted to land a $25,000 customer, I would spend that $5000 building a relationship with that customer.
That doesn’t mean you have to start with spending a lot of money to acquire a customer. If anything, many of our leads have been “free” to generate. But we have put enormous levels of effort into our authority and status, and built relationships by asking questions and taking an interest in their business and their life. In many cases, we’ve even bought their products.
Digital product launch campaign
Customer type
Time for some skeletons in the closet. This project, while profitable and frankly easy. Was marred by the fact that the customer was a raving maniac. I say this in jest now. But at the time it was extremely distressing to work with this customer, and eventually lose them.
It’s a real shame because the project had massive potential, but the customers’ selfishness and sociopathic attitude made it almost unbearable to work with them. This is a valuable lesson, while £25,000 might be extremely desirable in one sense, it’s still not worth your mental health and personal freedom.
Having said that, the lessons learned from this customer have allowed us to sell this particular funnel process over and over, to many other similar business models.
This customer was an expert in their particular field. In this case wealth and financial management. And they had a digital product which taught you how to manage your money better, as well as a private membership group and the potential for events, books, software and pod costs etc.
The sky really was the limit. It’s such a shame that the customer was so difficult to work with.
Problem faced
The basic premise was that the product wasn’t really selling. Although he had a large audience, authority and plenty of exposure. And the conversion rates for the products were quite high I.E.the number of people who saw the products compared to the number of people who bought. The goal was to increase the number of people who saw the product. Again, this customer was stuck in the “delivery” of the system rather than sales and marketing.
The customer had a fair amount of YouTube content, but a lot of blog content which there’d been publishing for years. This customer already had a lot of traffic, but it was just being directed to their blog posts.
Their marketing team also struggled to understand the value and necessity of opt in conversions. Instead focusing on “brand look and feel” and not wanting to be too pushy. Ironic as their background was in fact in banking and finance.
How we generated the lead
This is another solid example of being a customer of a potential customer. I had consumed their books, blogs, training content and live events. Eventually I reached out to them and made it a point to consistently try to catch up with them at least once a month. Even if it was via text, phone call or email. I knew I wanted them as a customer.
The power of the lead came from constantly offering ideas and being seen to want the work. I can’t tell you how often we’ve won projects which we had no right to, because I was more enthusiastic about the project, than the competition.
And because I had bought their products I had been through their process, and I knew all of the areas that I would improve which is what I suggested.
Proposal example
£25,000 (US$33,000 at the time)
- Opt in forms across all blog content
- Specific squeeze page for YouTube content
- Redirects to video sales letter and thank you page
- Video sales letter script
- Order form
- Follow-up series for new subscribers
- Launch series for current subscribers
- Sales page
- Sales copy
- Sales video
- Data segmentation of list
FUNNEL DESIGN AND CONSULTING
Digital Product Funnel Playbook. Order of priorities and a funnel strategy to grow sales and revenue on automation. Includes review, audit and full checklist of tactics recommended:
£5000
COPYWRITING
Warm up campaign for current list. Sales campaign for current list and new subscriber value stack series:
£9000
MARKETING AUTOMATION
Email and marketing automation for new leads, customers and course sign ups:
£3000
SUBSCRIBER CONVERSIONS
Implementing optin conversion tactics based on Funnel Design and Consulting:
£3000
SALES AND LEAD GENERATION
Sales page copywriting and letter for core offers with page design and building to increase sales. Sales video scripts with VSL delivery on key pages:
£5000
Funnel overview
How we sold it/value gained
increase the number of qualified interested leads that the customer had access to. While the email list was healthy-ish. Having a small number of hyper- qualified customers of course made massive sense for them and their business. The membership model also meant that they could charge recurring revenue for access to their knowledge and expertise, which of course scales are business immensely.
The way that we sold this particular model was by showing them a demonstration using Geru.
I explained how using opt in conversions on blog posts, current traffic could convert to subscribers between 5% and 30%. And then how estimated one and 2% of those options would become customers. I also explained to them the concept of launching a product to their current email list, and using that content to automate the process in future.
This was really a case of being able to scale a digital product, sell it on automation, generate recurring revenue and convert current audience and traffic into sales and leads. The gap was that they had zero sales and marketing efforts. They had a big audience, plenty of authority. They also had a good product and delivered it well. But they weren’t converting leads and sales from their audience.
Professional service
Customer type
This customer sold professional services to other large companies. They were around £1 million turnover a year, based in the UK, but with customers all over the world.
They had been going about 10 years and currently had a database of around 2000 customers. Ranging in size and industry, but what kept their customers coming back was the quality of their delivery, and customer service.
They had an extremely scalable model whereby the core team was very small. But the delivery team was essentially freelancers. However, the director was finding customers were beginning to move away to other suppliers. Not necessarily because of the quality of the content or delivery, but because of the lack of sales effort. The business had been going for around 10 years, and had initially started and found success with their own online advertising.
Now they were looking to sell the business to a much larger but similar business. And the director wanted to spend less time at the office.
Problem faced
There were a few problems within the business. Mainly because it hadn’t changed a massive amount since being set up. Having said that, the director was extremely open to trying new ideas and repeatedly demonstrated that they were willing to try new things. All too often we have businesses who want an omelette but are willing to break any eggs.
The deepest level of the problem, was that the director wanted to sell the business and eventually move out of running the business. They knew that the roadblock however was increasing sales and marketing efforts. One of the drawbacks or symptoms of such a high quality and personalised service, was that 90% of their enquiries were low value. They had a process for passing certain types of projects, around 80 to 90%, to an automated system. Larger projects that required project management would have to go to a person.
So the two core problems were first of all automating and managing low value leads and enquiries. And to expanding and deepening current sales relationships and processes.
How we generated the lead
This will be a complete shock and revelation but again, this is through knowing exactly who we wanted to work with, building a relationship with them, and consistently telling them that we could help. Even to the point of being cheeky.
I knew I wanted to work with high ticket services, and I knew this particular business could use our help. This was a case of finding out who the right people were, and moving to the right location. You know how they say the harder you work, the luckier you get? This is a great example.
If I hadn’t previously created YouTube content, blog content and webinars. There’s no way the customer would have been interested in working with me. I was so specific and what we could do, I was the obvious choice when they started to expand their offerings.
Proposal example
$26,000
- Deep dive qualification interviews with staff
- Chat bot messaging
- Chat bot automation and redirection
- Custom coding for chat bots
- Launch campaign to current subscribers
- Launch campaign to current high ticket customers
- Sales script for high ticket customers
- Data segmentation and opportunity identification
- CRM set up and management
COPYWRITING
Proposal anti-follow up, warm up campaign and nurture campaign email automation copy:
$8,000
PROPOSAL AND QUOTE SYSTEM
Proposal standardisation, automation and training to reduce workload and increase conversions. Including new request for quote tests and current data audit:
$8,500
CONVERSION ANALYTICS
Audit and setup for conversion goals for key pages to identify priorities for conversion improvement. Includes current data audit:
$1,000
MARKETING AUTOMATION
Automation of nurture, follow up and warm up campaigns to generate new sales and leads on auto-pilot:
$3,000
CRM pipeline and automation
PIPELINE SET UP
CRM deal stages and pipeline set up to manage relationships and identify opportunities easier:
$3,000
MARKETING AUTOMATION
Triggers based off pipeline deal stage to automate nurturing, testimonials and relationship management:
$2,500
Funnel overview
How we sold it/value gained
Them: “It’s quite expensive!”
Me: “yes I know it is, sign here and we can get started today.”
That is word for word how I sold the project. I put together a proposal just as before, which the director said was so useful, he used it as a blueprint for his own future proposals.
The value in this project was in giving time back to the account management and project management teams. While they had lots of enquiries in Leeds, most of them were so low value they weren’t worth the human account management cost. But they did have an automated sales process for 80% of the low value work, our job was to launch the new campaign and automate what was working already.
The goal was to get the director as much time back as possible, while increasing revenue and sales for new and current customers.
Selling $25,000 marketing funnel projects
Hopefully this post shows you a few things.
First, there is nothing that ties these projects together in regards to experience or delivery. The projects took roughly around the same time, but all had varying includes and requirements.
What did cause a price increase was the amount of time I invested in the relationship. I’m getting really tired of people asking “where do I find $25,000 customers” who aren’t willing to build a $100,000 relationship.
If I wanted a $25K customer from scratch, right now, you can bet I’d spend $5K trying to wine and dine them. I’d fly over, talk to them and get meetings with them.
If you don’t have $5K cash upfront, then you have 2 options.
- Create content and build authority around a subject as I did. No more bullshit excuses. The bill comes due. Either you want a five figure customer, or you don’t. And if you’re not willing to put the work in to build expert status, then you really should be asking yourself “do I really want this customers?”
- Start with smaller products and get $5000 customers but DO NOT deliver a $25,000 product for $5000. Deliver a $5000 workshop, course, coaching program, workbook. The list is endless. Then, as you build a client base start to offer higher ticket products.
Have you got a niche?
You need to start with your niche. If you don’t have a solid niche to target, then of course you’re going to struggle to find your clients.
I’ve got 49 Niche Examples just for funnel builders below. Enter your email and I’ll send you your 49 Niche Examples that you can target.
