Many buyers moving through the different buying stages provide clues and insight that savvy marketers can use to engage them in relevant dialogue in a timely manner. At the top of this buying funnel is the broadest segment of prospects that may be unaware, or at least not actively engaged in self-education. Many individuals that you interact with may keep themselves up-to-date on a particular solution set, but are not actively purchasing. Moving down the funnel buyers who are completing investigation and validation phases show an increase in activity and the questions and search terms that they use are generally more specific. (This is generally a much smaller segment than the broadest segment at the start of the funnel).

Marketing’s role is to facilitate the larger number of prospects at the early stages of the buying processes, and move prospects from mildly interested to active buyers. Sales’ role is to work the individual buying organizations to finalize a deal. As such, the funnel is a great representation of the two departments challenge as it shrinks as prospects become active buyers. The linear form of a shrinking prospect base is often incorrect because prospects frequently move up and down the sales funnel in a very non-linear fashion.

Overall, the funnel does work as a useful construct – generally buyers progress through a sensible buying process and as they do so generally they ask more precise questions and seek more precise topics of interest. Not excluding the non-linear patterns of buying behavior – marketers must be able to understand at any point of time if a prospect is in the buying process.