The Content Marketing Funnel Explained

When you’re writing marketing content, your number one priority is to write with your target audience in mind. Sure, adding keywords and SEO-friendly headings is important. But if your content isn’t relevant or suitable for its target audience, it won’t rank anyway, much less convert readers into customers.

So, how do you visualise your target audience clearly and simply? How do you know not only who you’re writing for, but how to tailor your content to suit their needs? You put together a content marketing funnel.

In this beginner’s guide, we’re going to introduce you to the concept of marketing funnels, explaining what they are and how they work. Then, we’ll explain how you can use them to your advantage, offering a handful of tips to help you optimise your content for different stages of the funnel.

What is a marketing funnel?

First of all, let’s cover the basics: what is a marketing funnel? In essence, it’s a guide that marketers often use to visualise the journey a customer takes, from their initial searches through to making a purchase or enquiry.

They’re called funnels because that’s exactly what they set out to do: funnel thousands of site visitors towards the same end goal. A funnel is split up into three distinct stages (we’ll get to those in just a second), each one representing a different point in the customer journey.

Funnels aren’t just used to help inform content creation – they can be used for PPC ads, emails or any other form of digital marketing. However, for the purposes of this guide, we’re going to focus solely on content.

The components of a marketing funnel

A content marketing funnel is traditionally split into three sections. These are…

• Top of the funnel (TOFU), otherwise known as the ‘awareness’ stage. At this point in their journey, customers are carrying out research to work out which products or services they need. Without any prior knowledge to go on, these customers will be looking for clear, concise information to help them determine which products and services are right for them.
• Middle of the funnel (MOFU), or the ‘interest and consideration’ stage. Now your prospective customers know which products and services they need, they’re beginning to weigh up their options and explore different brands. At this point, they’re most likely scanning for USPs, checking out reviews or browsing a number of different websites to find the best price.
• Bottom of the funnel (BOFU), or the ‘intent, evaluation and conversion’ stage. Now, customers have decided what they want and where they want it from – all they need is that final push to convince them that now is the right time to buy or get in touch.

Optimising content for different stages of the funnel

So, what’s the point of splitting your content creation into stages? The answer’s simple: if you write for a particular stage of the funnel, you’ll automatically be targeting your content at the right people.

Let’s start at the top of the funnel – people who don’t even know what product or service they need just yet. If they don’t know that, they probably won’t have heard of your brand either – so bombarding them with technical jargon or information about the history of your company will probably just push them away.

Ultimately, customers at the top of the funnel need clarity. Blog content is a great way to offer them that; try writing beginner’s guides or explainers (kind of like what you’re reading now) that pull readers in and engage with them. Tell them only what they need to know, and if they want to research further, link them to other, more in-depth articles you’ve written to push them into the middle of the funnel.

‘TOFU’ content is a great way to showcase your expertise, too. If you write engaging, clear and concise content that subtly showcases your knowledge and experience, you’ll notice that a lot of readers will stick around long enough to become customers.

This is why CTAs are so important. Always suggest an action for readers to take, no matter which stage of the funnel they’re in. If they’re at the top, maybe point them in the direction of a more in-depth article so they can continue their research. If they’re in the middle, encourage them to read more about your company and check out your glowing customer reviews. If they’re at the bottom, just tell them where they can get your products or how to get a quote!

The point here is that all of your content, no matter where it’s published, should be written with the reader in mind. The funnel approach makes it much easier to visualise that reader and understand exactly what they’re looking for, allowing you to deliver quality content each and every time.

Not all customers follow the same, linear process

The funnel approach is a solid way to visualise each stage of the customer journey. But it’s important to remember that not every customer will follow this same, linear path from awareness to conversion – some will come straight in at the conversion stage, while others will jump forwards and backwards as they learn new information or explore new options.

It’s worth keeping this in mind when you’re writing content. Try to get inside the mind of your reader and think about the different directions they could head in after they’ve read your content. Sometimes, it’s worth presenting them with a couple of options. Perhaps they want to read more in-depth information before they progress down the funnel, or maybe they’ve seen enough and are ready to buy. Every customer is different, so although each piece of content should be focused primarily on one part of the funnel, that doesn’t mean it should totally neglect the remaining parts.

As you gain a greater understanding of your audience, you’ll be able to gradually refine your funnel and continually stay one step ahead of your competitors. Want a helping hand with your content strategy? Speak to our team at Brave Agency today.