A Lead, A Prospect, and A Client (What's the Difference, and Why You Need A Sales Funnel)

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When you're thinking about your sales funnel (pipeline), it helps to mentally distinguish between stages of working-together-ness to create a client lifecycle.

From the time you first identify the brand as a potential client or partner, to the point where you sign (or, ideally, renew) the contract with them, classifying your relationship with them into one of a few stages helps you keep track of them, helps streamline your sales process, and helps make sure you have a steady stream of business.

Think of the phases of the sales funnel the way you probably think of your circle of friends:

LEADS: These are acquaintances. You probably have some mutual friends, and you may have had a nice conversation with them at a cocktail party once. These are your leads. They're not completely unaware of you, but they might be on your radar a little more than you are on theirs. Think of these brands as ones that maybe liked a couple of your posts on Instagram, or that you did a sponsored post for through an influencer network. (Note: if it's a dream brand you've never had an encounter with, that's not a lead. That's a suspect.)

PROSPECTS: These are your casual friends. Maybe they're the ones you invite only under certain circumstances. You have a regular communication with them, but

CLIENTS: These are your BFFs. Trust has been established, you talk regularly, and you're committed to one another. And then you get paid for --- no, j/k, this is where the metaphor breaks down :)

By the way, some sales or marketing pros will tell you there are many more categories (aka stages of the funnel) - and there can be - but for the purposes of blogging partnerships, this will typically suffice. If you feel like you need to further differentiate relationship stages throughout the sales process, be my guest!

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So why bother establishing a sales funnel?

• Building your sales funnel this way ensures you always have a well-balanced client base. 
• It gives you the best odds of having a steady stream of work because there is always something on the horizon (leads), and there is always something in the works (prospects).
• If, heaven forbid, you lose all of your active clients, it means replacing that income will be much easier and you'll be without business for as little time as possible. Can you imagine if you suddenly and unexpectedly had no business and had no idea where you start finding new possible clients?
• It keeps your business fresh, making sure you always have new projects and interesting challenges on the horizon. 
• It fuels growth. 
• It creates demand for your work and increased demand with limited supply (unless you can clone yourself, there is a finite amount of work that you can produce) means you will be able to raise prices. 

And at the end of the day, isn't it all about the Benjamins?