One of things I love the most about my business is introducing my new clients to the concept of the marketing funnel and watching their eyes light up when they see the possibilities for themselves! The marketing funnel is a simple concept, but the impact of it can be so enormous that once the concept sinks in, people start to see that there is more to their business than just working one-on-one with clients. Not that working one-on-one with clients is a bad thing – it’s not all, as it’s a very important part of a marketing funnel – but the idea of leveraging knowledge, helping more people and making more money in less time is highly appealing!

The basic idea of the marketing funnel is to offer products and services to your prospects in a wide range of financial levels ranging from free to your highest-end VIP one-on-one coaching. You attract as many people as possible into your marketing funnel by creating a compelling free offer such an audio report or download, and in turn they provide you with their email address so you can keep your business in front of them regularly.

I’ve never claimed to be a math wiz, but here is a basic formula to play with:

Product or Service Cost x Number of Buyers per Month = Leveraged Monthly Income

For each layer in your funnel, apply this formula. You start with a relatively inexpensive product or service that a large number of people are likely to purchase, moving toward more expensive products or services that fewer peoples are likely to purchase. The following example illustrates how each layer works together to leverage your monthly income:

White paper	Audio class	Online workshop	Group coaching
$15 x 30= $450	$49 x 20 = $980	$169 x 5 = $845	$349 x 3 = $1,047

Your Leveraged Monthly Income Total = $3322

Obviously the products, prices and number of buyers in this example are fictitious, but you can see that if your goal is to increase your business by nearly $40,000 in a 12-month period without working with additional one-on-one clients, this sample funnel would practically get you there! That is pretty exciting, since it will likely take you minimal time (relatively speaking) to create the products in your funnel and set it up on your web site because remember, this is knowledge you already have! Many times, people have a lot of the material for their products and services already created and saved on their computer!

What you put into your funnel is up to you, so if the price of a product seems too high or too low, adjust it! The same goes with the number of people you think will purchase it from you on a monthly basis. As your distribution list increases, certainly the number of sales you generate each month will increase. You don’t have to fill your funnel in a month. It takes time and careful planning, but you can do it yourself or hire a coach to help you make the best choices for your specific business.

If you dream of creating a more gratifying business – one that gives you time to enjoy your work and your life – you should take a good look at your marketing funnel. There are some marketing professionals who call this “creating passive income” but I prefer the term “leveraged income,” because you have to put a fair amount of thought and elbow grease into it. It’s not magic. But it does work like a charm!