A Content Marketing Funnel Explained

A content marketing funnel is a way to help potential customers learn about your brand, find solutions to their problems, and become confident in purchasing from you. Different types of content are more effective in each stage of the funnel.

Checklists, videos and infographics are effective at drawing attention, generating leads and keeping readers engaged. Content that is gated, such as templates and guides works well at this stage.

Awareness

At this point, customers are aware of the existence of your brand. They are also aware of the solutions you offer. At this point the content you create is intended to provide answers and educate prospects on the problems your solution solves, as well as how it differs from competitors.

Take note of the keywords your target audience is using to search online. You can conduct keyword research to determine what terms your audience uses when they search online. This will help you determine if your product or service is needed. These data can be used to create an editorial calendar and determine which content pieces should be designed to target these keywords.

Additionally, creating content for this phase of the funnel helps you build your brand's affinity with your customers. The more consumers learn about your brand, the more trust they'll have in the ability of your company to solve their problems. This results in higher conversion rates for newsletter signups or purchases as well as clickthroughs on your website.

A well-planned content strategy can help you close the gap in conversion at this stage. If, for instance you find that most of your content is aimed at increasing awareness, but nothing is influencing customers to make a purchase decision, then you could increase your spending on marketing campaigns that target middle-funnel keywords.

Another method to increase your bottom-of-funnel conversion is through social media. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook enable you to engage directly with your customers and give you the chance to show your customer care. This could include anything from retweeting positive reviews to promoting exclusive offers.

You can also make use of content that already exists to help buyers move through the funnel, such as case studies or blog posts. If you write a blog post explaining the reasons why your product is superior to the competition's you can share it via social media and invite your customers to join your email list to receive more information. You can also encourage conversions at this point by asking users to include your name on their social media posts once they've used your product. This will encourage other people to do the same and help spread the word about your brand.

Then there is the consideration

A well-planned content marketing strategy includes a mix of content types to engage customers throughout the funnel. For example campaigns to promote brand awareness could contain ads however, they should also feature blog posts and infographics that address common concerns and objections. The content can then be distributed via social media and email to drive organic traffic.

As consumers progress through the process of considering, they begin looking for specific features of the product which will assist them in making the purchase decision. This is a great time to make use of FAQ pages. Use tools for keyword research such as Ubersuggest or search popular hashtags in your industry to discover the questions your readers are asking. Create answers to these questions and include them on your content funnel map.

At this point, it's important to provide a clear value proposition that demonstrates to prospective customers what your product or service will solve their problems and earn them more money. The content should also highlight your brand's uniqueness compared to your competitors.

It's a fairly simple step to measure, as consumers are making a choice whether they want to buy. Examine metrics such as conversion rates, payment numbers and click-through rate to determine if your efforts are working.

As they move into the advocacy phase they become loyal fans of your brand and are more likely to share your content because they feel strongly about it. This is a highly effective method to increase the number of people who follow your brand. However, you must focus on creating content that entices people to share, rather than focusing on purely engagement metrics. Consider using a tool like Sprout Social to track the social shares that result from your content marketing efforts. This will give you a precise picture of the impact you have.

Decision Making

They are looking for content during the decision-making phase that substantiates the purchase and explains how to make use of the product. At this stage they want to be certain that your product will solve their issue and justify the purchase. At this point it is essential to provide high-quality content, like product guides and case study videos and customer success tales, is essential. Your customers want to have questions answered and get answers from your support team. Providing them with personalized emails and round-the-clock customer service is a great method to please customers and encourage them to share their experience with others.

You 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 enthusiastic customers, you'll have to provide them with valuable content that allows them to get the most from your product or service. This can be done by creating customized newsletters, tutorial video, free trial offers and loyalty programs.

After your audience has converted from leads into paying customers It's time to concentrate on retention. Content marketing funnels typically focus on revenue as their end goal. However, customers will continue to interact and interact with brands after making an purchase. Therefore, it's important to reimagine the funnel as a loop model rather than a static structure that concludes with revenue.

While traditional funnels for content marketing can aid in planning your strategy, they don't account for the complexities of the buyer journey. Instead thinking of the funnel in loop models can assist you in developing an effective and holistic content marketing b2b marketing strategy. By planning for every step of the process, you'll be able to create content that is engaging your audience and increase conversions. You can then use the data from these conversions to enhance your strategy and make sure that it is working effectively. Ready to see the difference this approach can make to your company? Contact us today to request a complimentary playbook for content marketing.

Retention

A funnel for content marketing is a valuable tool that can assist brands develop their strategy, implement it, and measure its effectiveness. It can also provide an understanding of the gaps in their strategy for content that must be filled. If a brand has lots of content geared towards the public's attention but only few pieces aimed at the middle of funnel, it should create content specifically for this stage.

Utilize tools such as Ahrefs that look at the average time on the page and bounce rate of each piece to determine how targeted your content marketing services is. The higher the number, the more effective your content.

After you've put together content for the top of your funnel for marketing content, it's important to keep it current and relevant. This will ensure that your audience stays engaged and curious about your brand and its products or services. The best way to do this is to create new content that focuses on specific keywords, addresses questions that are likely to be sought by your target audience, and highlights the most up-to-date information about your industry or product.

As your audience enters the MOFU stage they'll be seeking more information on your product or service, as and ways to resolve their problems. In this stage, it's important business to business content marketing build trust by offering authentic reviews and demonstrating value.

In the final stage of your content marketing funnel your audience will decide whether or not to purchase. This is accomplished through gated content, which requires an email address or other form of registration to gain access. This content is designed to turn the awareness and engagement you've created at the top of your funnel into qualified leads. Your sales team will then follow to follow up.

While customer retention falls mainly into the hands of your sales and support teams, you can still have an impact on the customer's experience with your brand by creating content that entices them throughout the entire content marketing funnel. This can include helpful resources, behind-the scenes information and special promotions that only your audience will be able to access. If you can create a sense of trust with your customers they'll become authentic advocates for your product and naturally help reduce the time it takes to sell your product.