A Content Marketing Funnel Explained

A content marketing funnel is a way to let potential customers learn more about your company, find solutions to their issues, and feel confident about buying from you. Different types of content work better in each phase of the funnel.

At the top of the funnel informational videos, infographics and checklists draw attention, create leads, and keep the readers interested. Templates and guides that are gated work well at this stage.

Awareness

At this stage, consumers are aware of the existence of your brand and the solutions you offer. This is where the content is created to educate and inform prospects about the problems that your solution addresses and also the differences from competitors.

Consider the keywords that your customers use when searching online content marketing. By conducting keyword research, you can figure out which terms your audience is searching for that suggest an interest in your product or service. This information can be used to develop an editorial calendar and decide the types of content that be targeted at those specific terms.

Producing content for this stage of the funnel will also help you build brand loyalty among your customers. The more people learn about your brand, the more confidence they'll have in your capability to solve their issues. This translates into higher conversion rates, be it newsletter signups, purchases or click-throughs to your website.

A well-executed strategy for content will assist in closing this conversion gap. For instance, if find that the vast majority of your content is targeted at educating, but not enough is helping buyers make a purchase decision, you could increase the amount of money you spend on advertising campaigns to target keywords in the middle of the funnel.

Social media is a different way to increase your bottom-of funnel conversion. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook let you interact directly with your customers, giving you the opportunity to show your dedication to customer service. This can range from tweeting good reviews to promoting special offers.

You can also use existing content to lure buyers to the bottom of the funnel like blog posts or case studies. If you write a blog article explaining the reasons why your product is superior to a competitor's you can share it via social media and invite your readers to join your email list to receive more information. You can also encourage conversions in this stage by asking users to tag you on their social media posts after they've used your product. This will inspire other users to do the same, and will help spread the word about the brand.

Then there is the consideration

A well-planned content marketing strategy includes a mix of content types to capture consumers throughout the funnel. Brand awareness campaigns, for example could include ad copy as well as blog posts and infographics to address common concerns and objections. This content could be further shared via social media and emails to drive organic traffic.

As consumers move through the decision-making process and begin to look for specific features of products that will assist them to make a purchasing decision. This phase is a great time to make use of FAQ pages. Utilize tools for keyword research such as Ubersuggest or search for popular hashtags within your industry to find questions that your readers ask. Develop answers to these questions and then add them to your content funnel map.

During this stage it is essential to present an unambiguous value proposition that shows potential customers how your product or service will solve their issue and make them more money. This content should also highlight your brand's uniqueness compared to the competition.

This is an easy stage to gauge since the consumer is making a purchase. To determine whether you're getting it accomplished, look for indicators like conversion rates or the number of payments made and click-through rates.

As they reach the point of advocacy, your brand grows increasingly important to them. They will be sharing your content with friends because they are so enthusiastic about it. This is an effective method to increase the number of people who follow your brand. But you'll need to concentrate on creating content that inspires people to share, rather than focusing on purely engagement metrics. Use Sprout Social, for example to track social shares that result from your content marketing efforts. This will give you a more precise picture of your influence.

Decision Making

They are looking for content in the decision-making process that confirms the purchase and provides instructions on how to make use of the product. At this point, they want to know that your solution solves their issue and will make their investment worth it. Quality content is essential at this point, including product guides, case studies, videos, and customer success stories. Your customers want to be able have questions answered and get answers from your support team. It is a great way to please your customers and encourage them share their experiences.

It is your hope that at this point the customer will turn into an advocate for your brand and will promote it to their friends and co-workers. To convert these advocates to raving customers, you will have to provide them with valuable information that will help them get the most from your product or service. You can accomplish this by creating personalized newsletters, tutorial videos, free trial offers and loyalty programs.

It's time to begin focusing on retention after your audience has changed from leads to paying clients. Content marketing funnels usually concentrate on revenue as the end goal. However, customers will remain in contact and interact with brands even after they have made purchases. This is why it's crucial to think of the funnel as a loop model rather than a static structure that ends with revenue.

The standard funnels for content marketing are useful for planning your strategy however they do not take into account the complexity of the buyer's journey. Instead reinventing the funnel as a loop model will help you create an effective and more holistic content marketing strategy. By planning for every stage of the process, you'll be able business to business content marketing create content that will engage your audience and drive conversions. You can then utilize the data from conversions to improve and test your strategy. Are you ready to see the difference this approach can bring to your company? Contact us today to request a free b2b content marketing agency marketing playbook.

Retention

A content marketing funnel can be a useful instrument to aid brands in planning, execute and measure their strategy. It can also give them visibility into the gaps in their strategy for content that need to be filled. For instance when a company has a significant amount of content targeted at generating awareness and interest, but a small amount targeted towards the middle of the funnel, they should prioritize creating content that is targeted at this stage.

An excellent way to determine how targeted your content is to use tools like Ahrefs to analyze the average time on the page and bounce rate of each piece. The more high these numbers are, the more effective your content is.

After you've put together content for the top of your content marketing b2b marketing funnel It's crucial to keep it current and relevant. This will ensure that your audience stays engaged and curious about your brand and the products or services it offers. The best way to do this is to create fresh content that focuses on certain keywords, provides answers to questions that are likely being asked by your customers and includes the most up-to-date information about your industry or product.

As your audience enters the MOFU stage, they'll be looking for more details about your product or service, as well as ways to solve their problems. In this stage it's crucial to build trust by offering authentic reviews and demonstrating value.

The final phase of the funnel for content marketing is when your customers will make a purchasing decision. This is accomplished through gated content that requires an email or other form of registration to access. This content is designed to transform the interest and awareness you've cultivated at the top of your funnel for content marketing into leads that are qualified for your sales team to follow up on.

While customer retention falls mainly into the hands of your support and sales teams, you can still influence the journeys of your customers your brand by creating content that delights customers throughout the entire marketing funnel. This could include helpful information, behind-the-scenes details and special deals that only your audience has access to. If you can build loyalty with your audience, then they will become your most loyal advocates and help to reduce the time to sell.