A Step-by-Step Guide to the Content Marketing Funnel

Content marketing is a powerful tool that helps marketers draw in potential customers and keep them interested throughout the sales cycle. But to use this tool effectively, you should have a clear understanding of how to effectively create a content marketing funnel – a process of guiding potential customers through three stages of their buyer journey: top, middle, and bottom of the funnel. For this goal, you will need to start with assessing your current content inventory, analyzing to identify gaps, and assigning which stage of the buyer journey the content aligns with. Read more to learn about each stage of the buyer’s journey and create content assets designed with specific goals in mind.

What is a Content Marketing Funnel?

Content marketing funnel is the process of guiding potential customers through various stages of their buyer journey. It involves creating and delivering content that caters to the needs of the target audience at different stages of their decision-making process, such as attracting attention, generating high-quality leads, and closing conversions. Each stage requires different types of content that will resonate with the potential customer and encourage them to move further down the funnel towards a conversion (e.g. a sale, a demo, a download). A successful content marketing funnel requires a deep understanding of your target audience and their needs, as well as a well-thought-out content strategy that focuses on delivering value at every stage of the funnel.

Starting Mapping Your Content Funnel

When it comes to developing a successful content marketing strategy, mapping your content funnel is crucial. To get started on this process, it’s important to assess your current content inventory. Review every type of content you produce, from blog posts to social media updates to webinars. By analyzing your existing content, you can identify any gaps in your funnel and opportunities for improvement. While this may seem like a daunting task, it’s a critical step in ensuring that your content is serving its intended purpose and helping to drive conversions. At this point, you may want to assign what stage of the buyer journey the content aligns with: top of the funnel, middle of the funnel, and bottom of the funnel. Let’s talk about each one in more detail.

Top of the Funnel (TOFU)

This is the awareness stage. Here, potential customers are gathering information that will guide them through the buyer journey. At this point, it’s probable that a customer is only becoming acquainted with your business and what it provides. It’s vital to establish a positive customer experience to demonstrate your value and encourage further engagement. The aim of this stage is to educate the potential buyers about their inquiries, satisfy their questions, and by helping them with their queries, smoothly convert them into warm leads. This stage should not be too sales-oriented. Educational materials are a great choice to provide more information in the awareness phase:

• How-to guides
• Infographics
• Checklists
• Video tutorials
• Landing pages

Middle of the Funnel (MOFU)

After your ideal customers have reached the middle phase of the funnel, they will no longer be satisfied with introductory content. Instead, you should focus on generating content that nurtures potential customers further down the funnel. For instance, they may seek

• How-to guides
• Product overviews
• Case studies
• Landing pages
• Webinars
• Success stories

Keep in mind that these prospects may have already been introduced to your brand during the discovery stage and will not be interested in discovery stage content. To provide effective content, you’ll want to customize it to your audience. Failure to personalize your content plan and marketing formats for customers at every stage could potentially lead to a poor customer experience with your business.

Bottom of the Funnel (BOFU)

When a potential customer reaches the bottom of the marketing funnel, they want content that helps them make the final decision to purchase. They seek information on the value of your product or service and what sets you apart from your competitors. Since these customers are ready to convert, providing high-quality content is crucial for building trust and closing the sale. The type of content you offer during the decision-making stage plays a key role in differentiating yourself from competitors and driving conversions. The most effective content formats in the BOFU stage are

• Product overview
• Customer review
• Success story
• Email campaigns presenting positive customer testimonials

Steps to Take After You Have Assessed Your Content

The first step in this process should be having a comprehensive view of the content that already exists for every stage of the customer journey. Once you have that view, you can identify any gaps in our content and determine what types of content assets you need to create in order to fill those gaps. Putting together an editorial calendar will help you prioritize what content to tackle first and when. Monitor your calendar daily to know what you have in the queue, what is next, and where the piece falls in the content marketing funnel. Additionally, conducting a competitive analysis of your competitor’s content marketing strategy can highlight opportunities for additional and even better content. This way, you can create a well-rounded content marketing plan that effectively reaches and engages your audience.

Recap

By creating a content marketing funnel that guides customers through their buyer journey, you can effectively communicate with each customer and keep them engaged throughout the sales cycle. To ensure successful implementation of the funnel, take time to analyze your current content and identify any existing gaps. If creating and implementing a content marketing funnel is too much to handle on your own, contact us to get help from our experienced professionals. With the right content strategy in place, you are bound to see higher conversion rates and revenue growth.