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Execution11 minDec 2024

The Customer Acquisition Funnel: Optimize or Die

The Funnel Problem

You're getting traffic. But nobody's converting.

The problem isn't traffic. It's your funnel.

The Customer Acquisition Funnel

Every customer goes through these stages:

  1. Awareness: They know you exist
  2. Interest: They're interested in learning more
  3. Consideration: They're considering buying
  4. Decision: They decide to buy or not

Optimizing Each Stage

Stage 1: Awareness

Get people to know you exist. Channels: Content, ads, partnerships, PR.

Metric: Impressions, reach, traffic

Target: 1,000+ people aware of you per month

Stage 2: Interest

Get them interested in learning more. Content: Blog posts, videos, webinars, case studies.

Metric: Click-through rate, email signups, demo requests

Target: 10% of aware people show interest

Stage 3: Consideration

Help them evaluate your product. Content: Pricing page, comparison, testimonials, free trial.

Metric: Trial signups, demo attendance, pricing page views

Target: 25% of interested people move to consideration

Stage 4: Decision

Remove friction from purchase. Make it easy to buy. Remove objections.

Metric: Conversion rate, customer acquisition

Target: 10% of considering people convert

The Math

1,000 aware → 100 interested → 25 considering → 2.5 customers

If you want 100 customers, you need 40,000 aware people.

Optimizing for Conversion

Landing Page Optimization

  • Clear headline (what's the benefit?)
  • Social proof (testimonials, logos)
  • Clear CTA (make it obvious what to do)
  • Remove distractions (no navigation, no links)

Email Optimization

  • Personalized subject line
  • Clear value prop in first line
  • One clear CTA
  • Test send times

Demo/Sales Call Optimization

  • Qualify before the call (are they a good fit?)
  • Have a clear agenda
  • Ask questions (don't pitch)
  • Close for the next step

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Focusing only on traffic. Traffic without conversion is useless.

Mistake 2: Not measuring each stage. You can't optimize what you don't measure.

Mistake 3: Leaky funnel. If 90% drop off at consideration, fix that first.

Mistake 4: Not testing. A/B test everything. Headlines, CTAs, copy.

The Bottom Line

Map your funnel. Measure each stage. Optimize the biggest leak. Repeat.

A 2% improvement at each stage compounds to 10%+ overall improvement.