The Struggle

As a small business owner or coach, you do everything yourself, from marketing, admin, to service delivery and everything in between. You’re showing up online but not seeing any results for the time and effort that you are putting in. You’re lucky to see any engagement, let alone a paying client or two.

The Truth

That’s where a simple marketing funnels change the game. From visibility to conversion, marketing funnels for one-person businesses help you move people from “just looking” to “ready to buy” without the constant hustle. But, there is a catch!

It takes hard work, consistency, continuous tweaking and improvement, testing, and conversions, not just throwing something out there and hoping it sticks. For many, this is too much hard work, the thought of providing a thumbs up, responding to comments, and engaging in an actual conversation with your target market.

Truth: Social media and marketing your content are not a right of passage for small business owners; it’s a privilege to share with those who want to hear from you.

4 Things You Could Be Doing Wrong

Overcomplicating the funnel

  • Many small business owners hear the word “funnel” and instantly picture a 7-step beast with multiple ads, lead magnets, webinars, and email sequences.
  • Why it doesn’t work: They don’t have the time, budget, or tech support to run something so complex, so they set it up halfway and abandon it before it delivers results.

Skipping the connection stage

  • Aussies are great at being visible (lots of social media posting), but they don’t always follow through with educating and building trust.
  • Why it doesn’t work: Visibility without trust means people may like your posts but never feel ready to buy. Without a relationship, the funnel stops cold.

No clear CTA

  • Many funnels end with “learn more” or “get in touch” rather than a direct, specific next step.
  • Why it doesn’t work: Vague CTAs create friction. If people don’t know exactly what you want them to do, they’ll scroll away.

Neglecting nurture

  • Small business owners often build the top of the funnel (ads, social media, freebies) but forget about follow-up sequences and ongoing communication.
  • Why it doesn’t work: Leads go cold quickly. If someone downloads a freebie and you never follow up, you’ve lost them to a competitor who does.

There is a common thread: Most Australian small business owners are too busy doing the marketing themselves to move people through the funnel strategically. That’s why they’re visible but not converting. and there are three main reasons why this happens. It’s a huge problem and one that is easily corrected.

You lack the time to do everything yourself

You don’t understand the clients journey from curious -> considering -> ready to buy

You don’t know how the tech works that you need for your funnel

5 Practical Steps To Improve Your Marketing Funnels

  1. Visibility: Be seen where they are and choose 1–2 platforms where your ideal clients actually spend time. Don’t spread yourself thin. Consistency is what matters.
  2. Connection: Educate and build trust with your audience by sharing value-driven content (blogs, short videos, social posts) that answers their questions and positions you as the go-to expert.
  3. Conversion: Make the next step clear and straightforward. Every piece of content guides people to the next logical step, such as downloading your free resource, booking a call, or signing up for a session.
  4. Nurture: Stay top of mind and use email marketing or a simple follow-up system to keep in touch. This is where you warm up the audience and nurture them, and when they are ready to buy, they will.
  5. Loyalty & Referrals: Turn your clients Into raving fans, once someone buys, the funnel doesn’t stop. Delight them with an exceptional experience so they refer others and become repeat clients.

Your Next Steps

If you’ve had enough and need help with building your funnels or being more proactive on social media. Let’s hep you fix that we can map your first funnel together. Book a clarity call with me today and we will help you start building a system that works while you sleep.