Figure Out What's Wrong With a Step in a Funnel by Looking at the Previous Step

When you are trying to figure out why a particular step in the funnel isn’t working, start by looking at the previous step. What happened in previous step that would have solved the problem you’re seeing in the next step? In sales, this is usually because you didn’t set the stage for the next stage properly.

For example, if you are having trouble closing a sale, look at the demo you did in the previous step—it should naturally lead to a sale if it was really was the solution to a burning problem the buyer has. Then look at the step prior to that and it could be that you didn’t understand their burning problem or enough information to describe the solution in their terms.

See also:

  • Sell Solutions Not Software

    When you sell software, the buyer considers whether or not they need more software. When you sell solutions, the buyer considers whether or not this solves their burning problem. It’s more effective to sell a solution (even if it’s packaged as software) so the buyer can see exactly how it addresses their pain and how it compares to their current way of solving the problem.