eCommerce Sales Funnel Guide: Stages, Metrics and How to Build a Sales Funnel for eCommerce to Drive More Revenue? [2025]
How do you end up buying a product online? You don't buy it instantly. Firstly, you hear about it somewhere or across any of its ads. This is followed by checking out their website, products, and social pages; you then look for other alternatives. After many comparisons and multiple ads, you finally purchase from a particular store or website.
Well, that's what a customer journey on a website or eCommerce store looks like. This journey isn't simple and linear; it's complex, with multiple touchpoints carefully curated just for the customers. In brief, the journey is a sales funnel driving the customers more toward making the purchase.
But what's an eCommerce sales funnel? What are the key stages in it? Moreover, how can you create one such customer-driving eCommerce sales funnel? Let's explore it together in this blog!
Ecommerce Sales Funnel: What Is It?
An eCommerce sales funnel refers to the visual map of the customer journey from being a visitor to a customer. It's a visual representation of the stages a potential customer goes through, from being aware of your product to becoming a loyal customer.
When a potential customer is at the top of the funnel, they have recently heard about your product, service, and website. That's their first touchpoint with your product. As they go down the funnel gradually, they know more about your business, website, and products.
The eCommerce sales funnel refers to a curated sales funnel for ecommerce businesses, which varies for every website. While low-cost items such as beauty products and apparel have a short sales funnel, luxury items that are high-end and expensive have a longer one. This is because cost also acts as a deciding factor and barrier in the potential customer's mind while deciding on the purchase.
4 Stages of an Ecommerce Sales Funnel
While the funnel structure is generalized, every eCommerce business has marketing strategies for each stage. In general, an eCommerce sales funnel generally has 4 stages.
- Awareness
- Consideration
- Conversion
- Post-purchase or Retention
Stage 1: Awareness
This is the top of the first stage of the funnel, where the shopper or the potential customer makes their first interaction with your brand, website, or products. They are aware of their problem and think your products and services may be a potential solution.
Also referred to as the upper funnel, these potential customers have discovered your brand and business through marketing efforts, word-of-mouth, social media, or advertisements. The TV ads or social media ads you see daily are examples of awareness-based marketing efforts to inform you of the product and business.
The awareness stage deals mostly with introducing the product or brand to the audience. There's no hard sell and purchase intent.
What makes this stage an important one? With effective awareness marketing efforts, you can reach a vast audience, some of whom would be genuinely interested in purchasing. The better your awareness marketing efforts are, the more people you can reach.
Strategies to Implement
Here are some strategies to help you reach a broader audience in the awareness stage.
1. Strengthen Your SEO
Most people will likely google their pain points to find a reliable solution. You need to be in the first list of search results on their screen to set the first impression right. A digital marketing firm, Ignite Visibility, claims that ranking #1 on Google helps you gain a click-through rate of 44.64%. This stat falls to 28.92% when you rank at #2 and to 17.26% when you rank at #10.
This is how important SEO (search engine optimization) and SEM (search engine marketing) strategies are. The higher you rank on Google search results, the more your chances of catching the audience's eyes.
Here are a few tactics to make your eCommerce website more Google-friendly:
- Work on improving your website speed and loading time.
- Focus on building well-researched, organized, and high-quality content.
- Make your site mobile-friendly.
2. Focus On Long-Form, Educational Content.
Creating long-form content such as blog posts, videos, on-site magazines, or lookbooks showcasing the audience’s target pain points and how you solve them is a great way to boost your engagement and click rates.
Moreover, Google prefers pages and content that drive engagement and keep the visitors hooked. While boosting your engagement, they also introduce the target audience to your products and website.
3. Use Social Media
A survey by Blue Foundation Media says that about 90% of marketers agree that social media helped their brands and businesses to gain better exposure. With the rising social media usage by all age groups, it's one of the most effective marketing and sales platforms.
So, take full advantage of social media platforms such as Instagram (stories, reels, and feed posts), TikTok videos, Google Shopping, Facebook ads, influencer collaborations, etc. Build an organic fanbase and scale up your awareness through advertising.
Here are some other awareness-based marketing strategies you can implement:
- Strengthen your affiliate marketing and referral programs.
- Invest in digital media ads such as podcasts, influencer marketing, YouTube videos, etc.
- Create lookalike audiences for Facebook ad campaigns using existing customer data.
- Suggest them personalized recommendations based on their needs and recent searches.
Stage 2: Consideration
When visitors reach this stage of the funnel, they know about your product and brand's existence. The audience knows what your brand is about and what products you sell. In this mid-funnel phase, they are one step ahead toward deciding if your products are worth their time and resources.
As the potential customer sees your product as an ideal solution to their pain point, you just need to nudge and guide them in the right direction. You need to showcase that you understand their pain point and convince them to dive into the product details such as product description, pictures, etc. The main aim of this stage is to blend information and persuade potential customers.
Your marketing efforts in this stage should focus on improving your product page catalog with well-written descriptions. Try to gain the audience's trust with social proof, such as customer reviews and testimonials. Create comparison articles featuring your product amongst the other top-ranking ones. This helps potential customers spend less effort and makes them believe your product is the best.
Strategies to Implement
Here are a few strategies to help you improve your consideration-based marketing efforts.
1. Optimize Product Pages
About 85% of online shoppers say product page details, such as descriptions and pictures, are important when deciding whether to purchase a specific brand. Whenever a potential customer lands on your product page, the page is their sole guide.
It's the product page wherein they will explore and learn about the product in detail. It helps them decide if the product meets their needs, problems, and budget. You should optimize your product page regularly and make it as user-friendly as possible.
Here are some tactics to make your product page more user-friendly:
- Craft concise yet detailed and persuasive product descriptions.
- Focus on highlighting the product benefits.
- Make sure to use high-quality images and videos.
- Have a bunch of AI-based FAQs.
- Ensure the page is intuitive and easy to navigate with clear call-to-action (CTAs).
- Showcase trust signals such as customer reviews, secure payment badges, certifications, etc.
Are you looking ahead to optimize your product pages and make it easier for your customers to navigate and shop? Choose App0, your AI shopping assistant with complete knowledge and expertise of your product portfolio. With proven results across various eCommerce domains, their AI agents track every user's behavior, thus understanding their needs and serving them accordingly.
Based on the shopper's profile, activity, and journey, it predicts their questions, thus saving them from the hassle of asking them. Besides, the AI shopping assistant is always available to listen and answer your shoppers' queries, assisting them at every step of your customer journey.
On your product page, they assist the user with the commonly asked questions. Going beyond, they help them decide the best product according to their needs by comparing it with other variants on the website. It also assists them in choosing other products which go well with the shops' chosen ones. They are like virtual salespeople in action 24/7 on your Shopify store.
Accessible across all your channels, it can process all request types. With enterprise-grade security, it integrates seamlessly with your existing eCommerce technology. Making your user journey more facilitated and improved assists users in going to the checkout page, thus boosting your sales funnel optimization efforts.
2. Generate and Promote Social Proof
In the world of eCommerce, how will a mere website visitor trust you? That's why you need to showcase social proof signals, win potential customers’ trust, and provide credibility. It also makes it easier to convince how the particular product has addressed the needs and pain points of customers just like them.
Here are some tactics to build your eCommerce business’ trust and credibility:
- Display customer ratings and reviews beyond the product page.
- Feature user-generated content (UGC) both on your website and social media.
- Invest in influencer endorsements and post that content on your website, too.
- With case studies and testimonials, share how your product solves customers' real-life problems.
3. Utilise Social and Display Ads
Targeted ads are a great way to remind potential customers who have stopped their journey midway. To make your targeted ads more effective, segment and categorize your audience based on interests, demographics, behavior, etc.
Now, use retargeting to influence customers of the last product they visited on your website. You can also use dynamic display ads to highlight best sellers, new arrivals, etc. While retargeting, use strong action-driving CTA buttons such as “Shop Now” or “Limited Offer.”
4. Create a Sense of Urgency
As the customers have already shown interest in your product, you need to create a sense of urgency in their minds, compels them to act immediately. This is a great tactic to create FOMO and improve your conversion rates. Some effective ways of creating urgency are time-sensitive discounts (such as flash sales and limited-time offers), low-stock alerts, exclusive deals, and event-based campaigns.
Stage 3: Conversion
Also known as the purchase stage, the customer is convinced about purchasing the product. All you need to do is ensure that this transaction happens uninterrupted.
They have almost reached the bottom of the funnel and might have little internal objections, so you need to help them figure it out. The main goal is to keep them hooked on researching the product and taking that final step.
Some popular objections that the customer might be thinking of are:
- Do I need this product?
- It seems good but expensive.
- Will I receive a good-quality product as promised?
You should streamline the buying process as much as possible. For maximum conversions and reduced cart abandonment, craft a smooth buying experience for your customers with no technical hurdles.
Strategies to Implement
In the conversion stage, you need to solve these customer objections and give them the final push to make the sale. Below are some strategies to help you craft a frictionless purchase journey for your customers.
1. Use Predictive Entry and Progress Indicators
You can easily save your customers ' time with predictive entry, which auto-populates transactional fields such as name, shipping address, etc. This one-click “Buy Now” technology helps you get hold of busy customers who don't have time for the checkout process.
If you don't have a single-page checkout option, display the steps in the checkout process clearly so that your customers stay informed of how much of the process is still left. This is a great way to reduce customer frustration and minimize drop-offs.
2. Add a Chat Widget for Customer Support and Last Minute Queries
For users with last-minute queries and doubts stopping them from hitting on the “Buy Now” option, a real-time chat widget is a boon. It attends to their queries and doubts in real-time, thus helping them with everything from answering product-related questions to resolving checkout issues.
A chat widget creates a sense of accessibility, improving the customer experience and reducing cart abandonment.
3. Set Up a Frictionless Checkout Process with Multiple Payment Options
The faster and more straightforward the checkout process is, the more conversions you’ll end up with. Customers don't like a lengthy checkout process. That's why you need to streamline and facilitate the checkout process.
Here's what you can do to make your checkout process as short and straightforward as possible:
- Allow guest checkout options.
- Have fewer steps and one-step solutions like Apple Pay or PayPal.
- Make sure your checkout page is mobile-optimized.
- Multiple payment options allow customers to pay from any wallet or account.
- Provide flexible installment and buy-now-pay-later options (e.g., Afterpay, Klarna), too.
Here are some other conversion-based strategies you can implement:
- Set up cart abandonment emails.
- Create a sense of urgency and FOMO.
- Have clear yet compelling CTAs.
Stage 4: Post-purchase
The customer journey or the eCommerce sales funnel doesn't end with the customer taking the final action to make the purchase. While they have trusted their faith in you, it's your responsibility to take this bond of loyalty ahead and turn these one-time shoppers into repeat customers.
About 40% of an eCommerce store's revenue comes from its repeat customers, who comprise about 8% of its customer base. Also known as the retention stage, this final stage of the sales funnel is about creating a customer base that returns for more and more.
Repeat and customers are invaluable; they don't come back alone. They come back with a handful of other customers with their word-of-mouth marketing. This post-sales activity includes asking those customers to repurchase and leave behind their valuable feedback.
Strategies to Implement
Before moving ahead, ensure that the current customer purchase is fulfilled successfully. Assist the customers with constant updates related to the shipment and delivery. Post-delivery, contact them again for their feedback and suggestions on the product and the entire buying experience they had with your business.
Below are some retention-based marketing strategies that will help you improve customer loyalty and lifetime value.
1. Create Post Purchase Email and Messages
Post-purchase communication such as emails and messages helps you nurture the customer-brand relationship, thus building trust in the customers’ minds. It makes them feel heard and keeps your brand on top of their mind regarding customer experience.
Here are some tactics to help you craft some amazing post-purchase emails and messages:
- Send shipping, delivery, and other related updates promptly.
- To enhance the product value, including setup guides, usage, and care instructions.
- Send emails related to personalized recommendations on complementary products.
2. Implement Cross-Selling and Up-Selling
Cross-selling and up-selling strategies help you influence the customers into buying more. Cross-selling involves recommending products related to the customer's recent purchase. Let's say a customer recently purchased a phone, and you can suggest some phone covers for them.
Similarly, up-selling involves recommending a higher-value version of the existing product. Let's say a customer recently purchased a product; you can offer them a premium version of the product at a discounted price.
AI tools can analyze the user's behavior and recent purchases to make cross-selling and up-selling easier. Based on this information, send them personalized recommendations in post-purchase emails, checkout pages, product pages, etc.
3. Promote Loyalty and Referral Programs
Loyalty and referral programs are a great way to boost retention and make your customers spread the word-of-mouth. With repeat purchases, you can offer tiered discounts, exclusive prices, perks, and members-only pricing. They compel the existing customers to make the next purchase eyeing that discount.
Similarly, referral programs insist existing customers spread the word about your product. In return, they get a reward in the form of cashback or a discount. These incentives keep customers engaged with your business and website.
7 Ecommerce Sales Funnel Metrics to Watch Out For
Before diving into the eCommerce funnel metrics, let's first understand what they are. Ecommerce sales funnel metrics refer to the KPIs that help you track your performance and the customer journey through the funnel. These metrics provide you with a comprehensive and quantitative idea of how your sales funnel is performing and its possible areas of improvement.
Below are 7 key eCommerce sales funnel metrics you need to monitor and analyze regularly!
1. Conversion Rate (CVR)
Conversion rate, in eCommerce, refers to the percentage of visitors who turn into your customers by completing a desired action. Measured at every funnel stage, it helps you understand how many shoppers complete a desired action for the particular stage. It helps you identify and optimize the funnel stages that don't convert visitors. You can calculate the conversion rate using the given formula.
2. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
Customer lifetime value (CLV) refers to the total revenue or profit the eCommerce business generates from a customer over some time. Considering the orders or transactions made by the customer since the first day helps you measure the customer’s satisfaction and loyalty towards your business. Follow the simple formula below to calculate a particular customer's CLV.
3. Abandonment Rate
The abandonment rate refers to the percentage of shoppers who added the products to their cart but didn't complete the purchase. Measured generally at the awareness and consideration stage of the sales funnel in eCommerce, it helps you understand why the customers dropped off. It helps you identify and address the challenges that make potential customers drop off their carts midway. Here's how you can calculate the abandonment rate with a simple formula.
4. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
As the name sounds, customer acquisition cost (CAC) refers to the total cost (marketing and sales expenses) involved in acquiring a single new customer. The CAC from different stages of the eCommerce sales funnel helps you calculate and improve your ROI. You can calculate the CAC using this simple formula.
5. Average Order Value (AOV)
Average order value (AOV) refers to the average amount the user spends in every order. This metric helps you understand each customer's behavior and shopping patterns. It helps you plan and recommend up-selling and cross-selling products to that customer accordingly. Follow the simple formula below to calculate the AOV of a particular customer.
6. New vs. Returning Users
This KPI is a ratio between the shoppers who have visited your website or store for the first time and those who have already visited it. This ratio helps you optimize your sales funnel specifically for that audience. It's because new users need many more resources to be convinced to convert than returning users. Here's how you can calculate this ratio with a simple formula.
7. Checkout Flow Completion Rate
As it suggests, the checkout flow completion rate helps you understand the percentage of visitors who completed the entire checkout process successfully. This metric helps you identify and optimize the possible friction points in the checkout process. You can calculate this rate using this simple formula.
How to Build a Sales Funnel for Ecommerce to Drive More Revenue in 2025?
An effective eCommerce sales funnel is the backbone of a high-converting online store. It’s a step-by-step journey to guide potential customers from awareness to purchase, ensuring no lead is left untapped. Here’s how to create a sales funnel for eCommerce that drives more revenue.
1. Attract Attention with Targeted Traffic
Start by identifying your ideal customers and using data-driven strategies to reach them. Utilize SEO, paid ads, and social media marketing to drive qualified traffic. Leverage engaging content like blog posts, videos, or infographics to build awareness and generate interest.
2. Capture Leads with Compelling Offers
Not every visitor is ready to buy immediately. Offer value in exchange for their contact information—think free guides, discounts, or exclusive content. Use optimized landing pages and pop-ups to highlight these offers.
3. Nurture Prospects with Email Campaigns
Once you’ve captured leads, nurture them with personalized email sequences. Segment your audience based on behavior, preferences, and purchase history. Provide educational content, product recommendations, and timely promotions to build trust and keep them engaged.
4. Simplify the Purchase Process
Ensure your checkout process is seamless and user-friendly. Reduce friction with clear calls to action, multiple payment options, and an intuitive interface. Add social proof, such as reviews or testimonials, to reinforce trust and encourage conversions.
5. Retain Customers with Post-Purchase Strategies
The funnel doesn’t end with a sale. Encourage repeat business by offering loyalty programs; personalized upsell offers, and exceptional customer support. Stay top-of-mind with follow-up emails that include product care tips, new arrivals, or exclusive discounts.
By optimizing each stage of the funnel, you’ll not only boost revenue but also build lasting relationships with your customers—turning one-time buyers into loyal brand advocates.
Summing Up
Ecommerce sales funnel guides your visitors to becoming your customers. It's a powerful framework to understand and analyze customer behavior at various buying stages. With a well-planned funnel, you can improve your sales and facilitate every stage of the buying journey for your customers.
If you want to improve your sales funnel and make buying easier for your customers, go for App0’s shopping assistant today! Trusted by leading eCommerce giants, their AI agents are product experts with complete knowledge of your products to guide customers.
With effortless browsing and checkout options, they're a boon for busy on-the-go customers. With App0's AI agents, ordering and reordering are just a click away! The easier your customers find shopping with you, the higher your website conversions are. Ready to see App0's AI agents on your website? Contact them now!