A Content Marketing Funnel Explained

A content marketing funnel is a method to help potential customers learn about your brand, find solutions to their problems and then feel comfortable buying from you. Content is more appropriate for each stage of the funnel.

At the top of the funnel, infographics, videos, and checklists attract attention, bring in leads, and keep the readers interested. Templates and guides that are gated work very well at this point.

Awareness

At this stage, consumers are aware of the existence of your brand. They are also aware of the solutions you offer. This is the stage where content is created to educate and inform potential customers about the challenges your solution solves and also the differences from competitors.

Consider the keywords that your target audience is using to search online. You can use keyword research to determine what is a content marketer terms your customers use when they search online. This will aid you in determining if your product or service is needed. This information can then be used to develop an editorial calendar and determine the content pieces that will be targeted at those specific terms.

Additionally creating content for this phase of the funnel helps you build your brand's affinity with consumers. The more people are aware of your brand, the more trust they'll have in your capability to solve their problems. This results in higher conversion rates for newsletter signups or purchases and click-throughs on your website.

A well-executed content strategy can also help you close the gap between conversion and purchase at this stage. If, for instance, you discover that the majority of your content is aimed at raising awareness, but not enough influence buyers to make a purchase decision, you may increase your spending on advertising campaigns targeting middle-funnel keyword phrases.

Another way to increase your bottom-of-funnel conversion is through social media. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook allow you to interact directly with your customers and give you the opportunity to show off your customer service. This can include posting positive reviews on Twitter to promoting special deals.

You can also leverage existing content to push buyers into the bottom-of-funnel like blog posts or case studies. If you write a blog post that explains why your product is superior to a competitor's you can share it on social media and invite your customers to join your email list to receive more information. You can also encourage conversion at this stage by asking your customers to tag you in their social media posts after they have used your product. This will encourage other people to do the same, and will help spread the word about your brand.

Then there is the consideration

A good content strategy will comprise a variety of content types that capture consumers at every stage of the funnel. Brand awareness campaigns, for example may include ads as well as blog posts and infographics addressing common concerns and objections. This content can be further distributed via social media and email to increase organic traffic.

As consumers move through the process of considering and begin to look for specific features of products that will help them make a buying decision. This phase is a great time to use FAQ pages. Use tools for keyword research such as Ubersuggest or search for popular hashtags for your industry to find questions that your audience is asking. Develop answers to these questions, and then add them to your content funnel map.

During this stage it is crucial to present an unambiguous value proposition that demonstrates to potential customers the way your product or service will solve their problem and make them more money. This content should also highlight your brand's distinctiveness in comparison to your competition.

This is a relatively easy step to measure, as consumers are making a decision whether they want to buy. To see whether you're getting the job done, look for metrics like conversion rate as well as the number of transactions and click-through rates.

When consumers reach the advocacy stage and become advocates for your brand, it becomes increasingly important to them. They will share your content with others because they are so enthusiastic about it. This is an effective method to increase the number of people who follow your brand. You'll need to develop content that is inspiring people to share it instead of only focusing on engagement metrics. You might want to consider using a tool such as Sprout Social to track the social shares that result from your content marketing efforts. This will give you a more accurate view of your impact.

Decision

People are looking for content during the decision-making phase that confirms the purchase and explains how to use the product. At this stage they want to make certain that your product will solve their issue and justify the purchase. At this stage it is essential to provide high-quality content, like product guides as well as case study videos and customer success stories are essential. Your customers should also be able to ask questions and get answers from your support team. Sending them personalized emails and 24/7 customer service is a great method to please customers and encourage them to share their experience with others.

It is your hope that at this point the customer will be an advocate for your brand and spread the word about it to their friends and co-workers. To convert these advocates into rave customers, you'll need to provide them valuable content that allows them to get the most from your product or service. Personalized newsletters, tutorial videos and free trial offers and loyalty programs are great ways to do this.

It's time to focus on the retention of your audience after it has turned from leads into paying clients. Content marketing funnels usually focus on revenue as their end goal. However, customers will remain in contact and interact with brands after they make an purchase. This is why it's important to reimagine the funnel as a loop model rather than a static structure that concludes with revenue.

While traditional funnels for marketing content can help you develop your strategy however, they do not take into account the complexity of the buyer's journey. Reimagining the content marketing funnel as circular models will help you develop a more holistic strategy. You can create content that engages your audience and drives conversions by planning for each phase of the journey. Then, you can utilize the information from these conversions to improve your strategy and ensure that it is working effectively. Are you ready to experience the impact that this strategy can make to your company? Contact us today to request a free content marketing guidebook.

Retention

A content marketing funnel is a helpful tool that can help brands plan their strategy, implement it, and measure its effectiveness. It can also give them an understanding of the gaps in their strategy for content marketing strategies that need to be filled. For example, if a brand has a large amount of content targeted at generating the public's attention and interest, but only a few pieces that are geared towards the middle of the funnel, they should focus on creating content for this stage.

One of the best ways to gauge how well-targeted your content is to use tools such as Ahrefs to look at the average time on the page and bounce rate of each piece. The higher these numbers are, the better your content is performing.

Once you've written content for the top of your content marketing funnel It's essential to keep it fresh and relevant. This will keep your audience interested in your brand, its products and services. This can be done by creating new content that focuses on keywords, answers questions that your audience is likely to search for, and highlights current information about your industry or product.

When your target audience enters MOFU, they will be looking for more information about your product or services, as well as solutions to their problems. In this stage, it's important to build trust by offering honest reviews and demonstrating value.

The final step of the content marketing funnel is when your target audience will make a purchase decision. This is achieved through gated content that requires an email address or other form of registration to gain access. The purpose of this content is to transform the engagement and awareness you've created at the top of your content marketing funnel into leads that are qualified for your sales team to follow up with.

You can still influence the journeys of your customers through your brand, even though your support and sales teams are primarily responsible for retention of customers. Create content that delights your customers throughout the entire process of content marketing. This could include helpful sources, information behind-the-scenes and special promotions that only your target audience will have access to. If you can establish a relationship of trust to your customers, they will become your most loyal advocates and will help you reduce the time to sell.