The marketing funnel concept has roots that trace back to 1898 when E. St. Elmo Lewis, an American advertising advocate, developed a model which outlined the steps a seller must take to attract and retain customers. This model was originally intended to improve sales processes and included the phases of Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action (AIDA). This structure laid the groundwork for what would evolve into the modern marketing funnel.

​Over the decades, this funnel has been refined and expanded but the core idea remains the same—guiding potential customers through a series of stages that culminate in a purchase. In the mid-20th century, the funnel model began to be applied not just in sales but also in marketing, reflecting a broader understanding of how advertising and customer engagement lead to sales.

E. St. Elmo Lewis is credited with the creation of the AIDA model, which is the earliest form of the marketing funnel. His work primarily focused on optimizing sales techniques, which inadvertently set the foundation for the marketing funnels used today.

William W. Townsend later adapted Lewis’s AIDA model into what he called the DRIP model—Differentiate, Remind, Inform, and Persuade—in the 1920s. Townsend’s adaptation highlighted the importance of differentiating a product from competitors and keeping it in the minds of consumers, which are still key strategies in today’s digital marketing landscapes.

​As marketing evolved with advancements in technology and media, so did the funnel model. Neil Borden, who coined the term "Marketing Mix," and Jerome McCarthy, who introduced the concept of the 4Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion), both contributed to expanding the scope of how the marketing funnel could be applied, integrating it with other marketing theories and practices.