#95 - What to look for in a funnel pro (if you are hiring out your funnels)

The most important thing they can do is to look at your business, look at your offers, look at your goals, look at how you like to show up in the world, how you market all of those things and say, okay, this is going to be the best funnel for you.

This is the Doing It Online podcast with your host, serial entrepreneur, six and seven figure funnel strategist and super nerd, Kate McKibben. Where every week we're here talking, nerdy and sharing the things that actually work to help you do what you do online. But better, easier and with a ton more profit too. Are you ready? Let's do it.

Hello. Hello everybody. It is Kate here from HelloFunnels and welcome to episode 95 of the Doing It Online podcast. Now today I am answering a question that we do get asked quite a bit. It usually is followed by the question, okay, and where do I find them? But the first question I know a lot of people want to know is I think I'm ready for a funnel. Really don't love the tech side of things, so I want to hire someone to help me with this, to help me build it. But where do I find them? How do I know that that's a good person? Like how do I find an amazing person to come in and build me a funnel that just freaking works. Whether you are looking or thinking about looking to someone to find someone to help you build your funnel, or perhaps you are a funnel builder or a funnel builder to be and you're wanting to know what people are recommending so you can make sure that you are there front and center for your dream clients, then this is the episode for you. Before we dive in, I really want to just cover off one thing that I think is so important. Before anyone goes out and spends any money on, on having a funnel or any other type of marketing automation created for their business. And that's. First of all is question number one. You need to be asking yourself is, are you and is your business ready for a funnel? Because the thing is, funnels are a tool and they work really, really well when implemented into a business in the right way at the right time. However, if the wrong type of funnel is, is used or if you do it at the wrong time, then really it is just going to be a waste of your time. Waste of. And I don't want that for you because particularly if you are at these beginning stages of business, you don't have a lot of either to waste and you need to be spending them both as wisely as possible. Let me just Quickly give you the rundown of the two signs that show that yes, you are ready for a funnel, yes, you'll benefit and grow from when it has the right funnel added into it. First of all, first question is, are you out there doing any kind of list building or promotion at all? So are you out there creating and sharing content? Are you out there going on people's podcasts? Are you out there, are you running ads? Do you have an opt in bribe? Are you doing anything at all that is, are you doing SEO? Are you basically, are you out there doing any kind of activities already paid or free that are helping people to find you, helping them to be brought into your world? Even if you're not doing a lot, even just doing a little bit, even if you're just getting a handful of new people or onto your email list, then if that is the case, then that you're 50% there of being yes, you definitely need a funnel. Because at the moment those people are coming onto your email list because they're probably looking for a solution. They're hoping that you'll have something that will help them. And if you don't have a funnel, they're probably going to go elsewhere. So that's number one. And then the second thing is, is do you have what we call funnel friendly offer? And there's a few pieces that make an offer truly funnel friendly. And usually it's an offer that you already have that you know has a couple of tweaks to make it ready for a funnel. But the main thing that you need to know is do you have an offer that sells? It doesn't have to be the best selling offer in the world at all, but it definitely needs to be an offer that when you've launched it before, that you've probably you've had sales on the first day and the last day of your open cart. That's usually a pretty good indicator. Everyone is dead in the middle of a launch. Okay, don't stress out about that. But if you open your cart and you have sales on that first day and that last day when you're closing your offer, you have sales that day. Yes, there's lots of different benchmarks, there's lots of different things we probably dive into a bit deeper. And hopefully your funnel pro, the person who is coming in to help you with this, they'll be able to cover this all off before you even start working with them. This would definitely be something they would check off just to be sure. Because, you know, if they're a true funnel Pro, they're only going to work with people who they're going to be able to really help. But yes, if you have an offer that's not like pulling teeth, it's not like getting blood out of a stone. It sells, sure, it could probably sell better, but it sells well enough. Then, yes. Okay, great. You are ready for a funnel. And sure, over time, hopefully that offer improves and you get to refine it. And from having that extra time and extra resources, because you have a funnel, you'll be able to do that even faster and easier. But as long as you're taking both those things, then it is funnel time for you, my friend. And your business will definitely benefit from having a funnel. So if you have the right funnel, that's the next thing. Not just any funnel. As long as you add the right funnel into your business, you should start making sales on autopilot. It should start adding a regular and reliable revenue stream. Now, whether that is a big stream or a small stream depends on how much list building you're doing, what you then do next to market yourself. But know that that funnel is there, that asset is there, and that it will grow as your business grows. It will start making more sales as you do. Ramp up that list building and it will give you the confidence to, to ramp up that list building, potentially in paid ways that you've stayed away from before because you were worried about that spend that you weren't getting a return on. So all of these good things. So let's just say, all right, you've ticked those two boxes. Offer sells, well, you're doing some list building. Sure, you could do more, but for now you're just doing some. Okay, let's now go. All right, what are we looking for? Where do we find this magical unicorn of a person who's going to come into your business, who's going to hold your hand, who's going to say, look, this is what is going to work for you. This is exactly what you need to do. This is what I need from you, and this is what I will do for you. And this is what you'll have at the end result. So that's what you want. Someone who comes in with that sort of level of confidence you're not looking for. Now, the caveat here is I'm assuming that if you're out there looking for somebody that you yourself do not consider yourself a funnel expert. If you're a funnel expert, then you're probably looking for someone different. You might just be looking for someone to come in and and do the build side, the tech side of things. And that's fine. And I say expert, I mean true expert, not just you've read some stuff on social media or you, you followed someone else's funnel and you've pulled it apart and you think, oh yeah, I just want to copy that because I hate to break it to you, trying to funnel hack as they call it, like go out and just copy someone else's funnel usually just results in a truly hacked funnel because you don't know the setup that they have behind the scenes. You don't know what they're investing. You don't even know if it works for them. So, so like it's so, so important that you can find someone here who, number one, like I feel like almost the most important thing they can do is to look at your business, look at your offers, look at your goals, look at how you like to show up in the world, how you market all of those things and say, okay, this is going to be the best funnel for you. This is going to be what is going to be the most profitable, what is going to make the most sense for you and what you want and your goals and what you want to achieve. Like that is number one. Otherwise you can just jump on to fiverr and five some, find someone to automate some stuff for you. So that's the first thing is, is you really, really need someone who has that just deep, deep knowledge of the different marketing strategies, what actually works and who and when they actually work. Because all strategies work if they're implemented in the right business at the right time. But particularly again, when your business is starting up. It is just, I cannot stress this enough. It's so important that you get the right one and it's at the right time and that it matches, as I said, how you like to market what your offer is, how you want to show up and the goals you have for your business. Then the second thing that you want is someone who is going to have existing knowledge of most of your tech stack. Okay, there's always going to be a few things that, and for example, something like page builders, maybe you use Unbounce and they have lead pages experience. If they've got enough experience on one or more of something similar, they'll be able to figure it out. But if they don't have any experience with any of your tech stack, they're probably not the right fit for you because the learning curve is going to be too steep, things are going to take a bit too long. And also because as any true nerd knows that every piece of software, it has its nuances, it has its best practices, it has its little weird little bugs that you have to find a little way around. They all do. None are perfect even. No matter how good their docs are, how good their help desk is, they all have some things that to make them work well, you just need the experience. So you really want to make sure that whoever you're working with, like the big pieces, the most important pieces, like your email system, your webinar system, if you're using a webinar, even your shopping cart, if they're going to help you set up any of that stuff, it'd be good if they had some previous good experience with those tech. So that would be the two things is I would make sure that you are looking for someone who is, has that level of expertise, who has that in strategy, who really, really understands it and can help to advise you and not just on what's new and cool. Like you want them to be that trusted advisor for you. And the second thing is you want them to have some good knowledge of your tech. Stack doesn't have to be everything, but the important things. Definitely the third thing to look for is that, and this is one thing we found really kind of exciting is as we've been working with more and more funnel pros, is that we've realized that every funnel pro brings their own little something extra, something special. Because usually the kind of people who step into this role and who want to become to be that next level, that funnel pro, not just a, you know, as I said, a $10 an hour, $15 an hour email scheduler, they are people who have already got some experience in the industry, which is great because that really lends itself to being laid in and being able to give you even better advice and also being able to help and really elevate other certain aspects. We have a lot of people who also do Facebook ads. So that would, so if, if that's something that you think would also be useful, then look for someone who's maybe doing the funnel building and also can either advise you on that or pot essentially do them for you. We have a lot of people who are graphic designers, we have people who are copywriters. Now the thing is, I don't want you to ever expect that a funnel builder can do all of these things and do them all to a really high standard. Most people are really good at a couple. But as I said, the most important things is the strategy and the build. You need to make sure that those are really, really dialed in. And then usually they'll be like, there'll be one other thing that they can layer on, potentially some of them. It's just gonna be a strategy in the build. And that, if you think about it realistically, for most people, should be more than fine. Because like I said, if you are ready for a funnel, you've sold your offer before, so you should already have a sales page. You've promoted your offer before. So you either already know how to write emails, or you have emails, or you have someone on your team who is doing your copywriting. So that's why I don't think that either of those things are the be all and end all. Because if you are in that stage of business where you're ready for a funnel, you probably already have or have access to those things. But that's why I put so much more emphasis and importance on someone who really, really understands that strategy, who can really help you to audit what you have and make that right decision and get that best practice, that best result for you. Not just necessarily someone who can quote, unquote, say they do the full service, we'll make it pretty, we'll write it, we'll do this to do that. And then they're not necessarily as specialized in the stuff that I think is actually as important. That's just me. That's just coming from. I said, from working. We've worked with like hundreds of people now who've come to us because they want to build their own funnels, they want to help other people build funnels. And just some of the stories that we hear. And also from my own experience, I'm like, this is the gold dust. This is the stuff that matters. Like, you can make millions with an ugly sales page. I've seen it happen. You can. The people who's. Again and again, I find it so funny when people come, they go, oh, I'm not a copywriter. But the copy that works best is some of the copy that they've written because it's real and it's from the heart and it really connects with them and what they do. So again, if you are out there right now and you are looking for someone to fill this role for you have a think. As I said, priorities number one, strategy, tech, they are just non. They are your non negotiables. They have to be amazing at those things. But then it's like, okay, well, what are the gaps that I have as a business owner? Like, do. Can I do. I already have Good copy or access to good copy? Do I already have the pages that I need? And maybe we're just going to be duplicating them for the funnel and they need to be able to update a few buttons or a few links kind of thing. So bear that in mind because it will all be structured into the price and the packages. Like if you're looking for someone who's going to write it, design it, build it, strategy, the whole thing, obviously they're probably going to come in with a higher rate. So just something to keep in mind. Now with all that in mind, I know there's a lot of questions that people well, there's a couple of questions that I know people want to know as well when they are looking for someone to fill this role in their business. So we've already covered off the Are you ready? Is my business ready? Is this going to be worthwhile? And that, and that I think is really important. The second thing for people, again just to kind of give you initial sort of one extra little tick I suppose if you are going oh, I think I need a funnel, I'm not sure, I'm not sure if I'm ready to invest to get someone else to do it for me or whether it's something I should just do myself is I have a tiny, really quick little maths equation for you. And again this is working on let's say quote unquote, what a good funnel should convert at. So this is usually a really simple little task I get people to do just to again make sure that they sense check is this gonna work for me? What is the impact this is gonna have on my business? So the first thing you need to do is go, okay, well roughly every month how many new email subscribers do I get? If for example you were just doing what you were doing and maybe you get say a hundred email subscribers just let's just say it's a hundred cause it's a nice round number a month from just doing what you're okay, great. The next thing is think about what is your best selling offer like the offer that you would most likely be putting into a funnel. And for some people you may only have one. Some people have multiples. So just think about what's that one that is the easiest to sell, whether or not that ends up being the one that you funnel. Again, once you find that funnel Pro and you bring them on, they'll be able to help you determine if that is the best offer to funnel. But let's just for now, as I said because we can't have a two way conversation. Let's just say what is the price of your best selling offer or your most profitable offer so far? Then I want you to do a tiny bit of math. Figure out what is 2% of that number of the people who you have per month. And if you're only getting a handful per month, think about it per year, even like if that makes it easier for you. Now if you look at that number and go, okay, so 2% of 100 is 2. That's why I chose 100. I'm lazy that way. Which means that you could, you should be able to safely assume that your funnel will make you. If it is, as I say, quote unquote, a good funnel. Some and the ones that we like to help people build perform better than that. But that is always the benchmark of a funnel that is doing ticking the boxes, doing well enough. So 2% of people convert to a sale, usually within the first 30 days of joining your email list, without you having to do anything. Is that 2 sales, 4 sales, 10 sales a month or even 10 sales a year again, without you having to do anything. What is that worth to you? What is that dollar amount? Because that's one of the things I love about funnels, is some things that we do, particularly in the marketing industries, they can be hard to go. Like, yes, we know that they're valuable, but how valuable? Like, it's hard to put a real hard number on these things. Funnels is an easy thing to put a number on. And then remember that that's every month or every year, like it keeps making you money over and over again. So, you know, that's the final question to ask yourself, is the, am I ready for a funnel? Is what is that number? And for some of you, you might look at that number and go, ooh, well, where my business is at right now, maybe that's going to bring me an extra couple thousand dollars a year. Sure, that would be great. But maybe that's not something that I'm ready to invest in just yet. And that's totally okay. Maybe you might want to DIY it instead. And if you do, hey, we'd love to help you. We have DIY programs over at HelloFunnels. Co. Of course. But like I said, it is so important, I think, that this, this tool, this asset of a funnel is put into your business at the right time, at a time where it's going to help you and in the right way. So if you are in that early stages and you yes, the funnel would still help you. Obviously it's going to make you even a handful of sales every month. Extra without you having to be launching or physically selling is always going to be a bonus. But yes, maybe what is right for you right now is to DIY it. But for those of you who've looked at that number and gone, wow, that's going to bring in tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands a year. I need to get this in. I need to get this in fast, but I'm really busy. Then you should outsource this. This is definitely something you want to get someone and someone who knows what they're doing, who's going to make this experience amazing for you, who's going to take it off your plate, take the stress guide you and just get it done. That is where you need a Funnel Pro. So the other questions that people are asking about this process, about setting up a funnel, let's quickly go through them. Number one, where do I find them? Where do I find these magical, what we call Funnel Pros? Well, we actually have a directory on our website, so all of our certified Funnel Pros and we have our first cohort up there now and we're just about to kick off our next cohort. So we'll be have some new amazing Funnel Pros being added soon. But these are people that I can handle. My heart say they know their strategy. They know because not only have I taught them everything that I know and my team knows, but we've tested them and vetted them thoroughly and they are really good at their tech. They also have an amazing support system in the fact that they have us and my team to double check and to jump in and ask questions of particularly as they are working with their first Funnel clients. But you go to hirefunnelpro.com if you're looking for someone who is amazing at the strategy, who knows the tech and who's just a lovely, decent person. Because again, we always sense check that on all because our program is application only. So hire a Funnel Pro. Com, that is where I would go. I wouldn't bother with your fivers with your upworks, anything like that. Hit these ladies up first, you will not be disappointed. Second question, how long does it take to set up a funnel? Well, the truth of it is the setting up of the funnel, like the actual building part, is not a very long process. The process that takes time is getting the. Well, first of all is making sure that the offer is, like I said, funnel friendly. So again, your Funnel Pro or whoever it is you work with. They should be able to look at the offer that you have, look at the key stats and maybe some launches have you done recently and help to advise you on anything that needs to be updated or changed. And obviously that requires some tweaks and changes potentially to your backend. Maybe you need to create a new bonus, something like that, just to make sure it's going to convert and sell and make you as much money as possible. The second thing that takes the time is getting the pieces together. So one of the funnels that is notorious for taking the longest amount of time is a webinar funnel. Because guess what, you have to create and record a webinar for it. And everyone drags their heels on this. But of course, that's where it's great if you can have someone who can really hold your hand, who can really advise you in setting up an amazing webinar, which our funnel pros absolutely can. The answer is, how long is a piece of string? And it really does come to like, what are you coming with? How prepared are you? Like I said, your, your funnel pro should be able to take a lot of the heavy lifting off your plate, but there's still things that you're going to have to do. So if it is, like I said, a webinar funnel, you got to create the webinar. No one else can do that for you. They can help you with maybe the design of it. They could potentially help you with the slides, with planning out what's going to be in it, but you still got to sit down and record it. And that's something people always drag their feet on. But then once that is done, it's actually quite simple. And the other thing to bear in mind is quite often I said this, these funnel pros, they're unicorns, they're rare, they're. They quite often have a wait list. So if you are thinking this is something you want to get onto, get this added into your business sooner rather than later, then you want to probably go and start making those connections, start finding who is going to be the funnel pro for you as soon as you can so that you're not having to wait too long. Next question, people always want to know is how much does it cost to get a funnel built? And this I totally understand. So hopefully you did the little equation that I talked about earlier and, and you have that really hard and fast number in your head of what without having to do anything else in your business, without having to spend another cent or change anything that you're doing literally what plugging in a funnel right now should do for your business. And then remember that that is every month and that it grows. So then if you do start doing ads or you do start your businesses obviously are always growing, that's going to grow and continue to grow with your business. But I'm about real numbers. I don't want to like give you anything airy fairy here. So usually a funnel. So this would include your funnel strategy, your funnel build. The range is usually between 1 to $5,000. So it depends on again how simple the funnel is. There's lots of different types of funnels. Some are far more complex. They are obviously going to be on the higher end of that scale. And then also don't forget as we mentioned, like every funnel Pro will probably have their own little set of secret sauce they can add in, whether it is also doing Facebook ads or doing page design or doing copy or whatever that is. Or maybe they're also going to do launch management alongside it. So that's going to obviously add, you know, some extra potentially on the top end as well. So depending on what it is that you need and what type of funnel it is, somewhere in that range should see you get a pretty awesome funnel. And again I said if you did that calculation and you put those numbers side by side, hopefully that ROI is there and then some. And it's pretty obvious to see that yes, now is the time to add your funneling and that's pretty much it. Those are the main questions. So hopefully guys, I said hopefully this has helped you. If you are thinking about getting a funnel, adding that funnel in and you don't want to do it yourself. So hopefully now you have a bit of a framework for when to do it, what's the impact it's going to have and where to find an amazing person to do it for for you. And if you were listening to this, like I said, like you are a funnel builder or you would like to be and you've been listening into this episode to make sure that you are on the right track, then we would love to help you to uplover your skills, your strategy, your confidence and your bank account by welcoming you into our next Funnel Pro 12 week certification program. There are as recording this, there are just a couple of spots left in the next cohort which kicks off on May 2nd and we'd love to for you to join us. It's going to be so much fun. You get to hang out with a group of amazing super nerds. While I said up leveling your skills, your strategy, all of it with myself and my team. If you want to get all of the details and the dates, head to befunnelpro.com or grab the link below and we'll see you inside. And until then guys, keep doing what you do. I will see you next week for another episode. Bye.

Thanks so much for listening to the Doing it online podcast. If you love this episode, don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review. And if you're ready to take your online course sales to the next level with your own six or seven figure funnel, let Kate show you exactly how today@Stealmyfunnel.com.