What marketing automation is, why funnels will help you sell, and what email and automation platforms you should be using for your business. ----- Welcome to episode 78 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! This week, Bjork interviews Chris Davis from Automation Bridge and ActiveCampaign about using marketing funnels to drive sales for your business. When most people have a new product for their business, the first thing they want to do is go tell the world how amazing it is and try to get people to buy. That’s the point of creating a product, right? Not so fast, says Chris Davis from Automation Bridge. The sale starts way before you every publish your product or need people to start buying. The sale starts with your first interaction with your potential customer - and that interaction should be friendly, helpful, and interesting to the customer. This is the start of your sales funnel, and in this episode Chris talks about what to do next. In this episode, Chris shares: What marketing automation is and what it does for your business If “marketing automation” means no work What a sales funnel is and why it’s important Why funnels are more natural than cold sales How the stages of a sales funnel work Why you need a product to sell How your existing processes can show you what to automate How email marketing differs from marketing automation What email platform you should be using for your business Resources: ActiveCampaign LeadPages Clay Collins AWeber MailChimp ConstantContact Campaign Monitor VerticalResponse GetResponse ConvertKit Ontraport AutopilotHQ Infusionsoft Episode 041: Ninja Email Marketing for Bloggers with Barry Moore from The Active Marketer activecampaign.com/learn Chris on Twitter @autobizchris Automation Bridge If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!