Although everyone seems to use the label of author these days, and everyone seems to have a book, there is a difference between the fashion of having a book and using a book as a serious product rather than a mousetrap! So when I am talking about the Book funnel, I am talking about s serious book offer that has true value and is capable of standing on its own two feet. I appreciate this is not for everyone, but please do not discount it just because you don’t have or don’t want to publish a book. This type of funnel works just as well with other documents and information-based products. These are particularly good for demonstrability and creating the aura of legitimacy to your expertise.
Writing and recording is a great way of creating authority; when it comes to writing, it helps no end if it is something you actually enjoy doing. I guess in that regard, and despite my dyslexia, I am lucky, as this is something I truly enjoy. I keep writing, hoping the best seller is just around the corner. Until then, I write for two clear reasons, to spread the word and help as many people with other business development as possible and because I simply enjoy it.
Page 1 – The Sales Page
We follow the rules already introduced to you earlier in this program of Hook, Story, Offer. At the very top of the page, it is important to have a good curiosity-based headline. Then comes the story and then the offer for the product. It is often well worth the effort to make a video supporting the offer. The model you might want to use for this would be the “Who, What, Why, How.” We cover script and headline writing a little later in this program. For now, I just want to concentrate on the format of the pages.
I would then add on the righthand side of the page the order form. The first question to ask is where you need to send the product. Once this has been completed, we can move to the next step, where they will be asked to complete the payment details. Clearly, it is important that if you are following my lead and giving the book or other product for free but charging for postage and packaging, this needs to be clear and mentioned up front so as not to mislead the prospect.
Most, but not all, of your prospects will make the emotional purchase. Still, for those that are more logical, below, we place a list of bullet points illustrating the more logical approach that comprises a list of what they will learn when they invest in this purchase. Finally, I try to create a little urgency and or scarcity to appeal to those who may fear missing out on the offer; this can often push them off the fence and buy.
With this type of funnel, I use the two-step order form at the top of the page when the offer is free, plus postage and packaging. This version is used simply because it has been proven that conversions are higher using this system. People generally are more likely to complete part one of the form with personal details when the payment details are not immediately visible. On part two of the order form, you can also include an order form bump with appropriate additional product offers. A percentage of people will use this and purchase the additional offer made.
When you are selling digital information, I would suggest using a slightly different model with the order form at the bottom. This is because I want the prospect to see what they are being asked to pay before they commit to the purchase. Again these are relatively low-cost products.
Order Form Bump – This needs to be something that takes no effort to explain. Remember I mentioned earlier that it was like standing at the checkout at the supermarket, so you only have a few seconds to convince them that they should add this to their basket. When looking at books specifically, some of the easiest bumps are as follows:
- Would you like to add the audiobook for an extra £**
- Would you li to add our special training video for an extra £**
- Would you like to add our case study pack for an extra £**
If you cannot explain the bump as simply as this, the conversions will likely be low. The bump comes after they have entered their payment detail but before they click the submit button.
Evidence strongly suggests that if you put the bump before this, conversions will be negatively impacted. You want the purchase to already happened in the prospect’s mind. This is a last-minute impulse buy.
Page 2 Upsell Pages
On the next page, you can set up what is commonly called a one-time offer (OTO). On this page, we maintain the buying process rather than closing it off by saying thank you for your purchase. You might start this page with a title that says something like ‘WAIT’ and then announces that the order is not yet finished; it then says, “Please Customise your order now.” What I like about this approach is it keeps the buying process open and so improves once again the conversion rate, providing the content is right.
The key to upselling when you are dealing with information products is to not sell more of the same thing; this is a big mistake. If you are selling a book on a given subject, you do not want to sell something else on the same subject because, in the customer’s mind, that problem has just been solved with their first purchase. So instead, sell them the next thing they are going to need. There is truth in the saying that each time you solve a problem, it will create a new one, and so you can bear this in mind when you are planning your upsell pages. Think about what you have just sold them and consider what it is that will be the next logical step for them and how you can help with that too.
Under the order button, you will also need to give the buyer the option not to take advantage of the offer by simply including a ‘No Thanks’ button. This must be close to the order button and big enough to be easily seen. On this link, take care not to mix it with a positive message as this can be too much of an influence. So, for example, you would not say, ‘No thanks but take me to the members’ area.’ That is because you make it a positive benefit of clicking ‘No Thanks’, which is not what we want. You can increase your conversion by instead saying something like, ‘No thanks, I don’t want to take advantage of this amazing bonus offer.’
Optional Down-sell – If your prospect says no to your offer, you could offer them a down-sell. You simply take away an element of the offer and reduce the price accordingly. Another down-sell option is to offer a payment plan. Those that use funnels all of the time will tell you that the down sell is a very valuable part of the process and are a very powerful way to increase the cart value of purchases with just a little more effort from you when designing your funnels.
You can also add another upsell option, but the same rules will apply as before.
The Thank You Page
This is the final page of your funnel, where you get the chance to thank them for their purchase and give them all the information they will need to make use of what they have just bought from you.