A Content Marketing Funnel Explained A funnel for content marketing can help potential customers learn about your brand, discover solutions to their issues, and feel confident about buying from you. Content is best suited for every stage of the funnel. Infographics, videos and checklists are effective in attracting attention, generating leads and keeping readers engaged. Gated content, such as guides and templates, also is effective at this point. Awareness At this point, consumers are only aware of your brand and the solutions you provide. In this stage, content is meant to provide information and help prospects about the issues your solution addresses, as well as the ways it differs from competitors. Take note of the keywords your customers use when searching online. content marketing consultant can conduct keyword research to determine what terms your audience uses when searching online. This will aid you in determining if your product or service is required. These information can be used to build an editorial calendar and determine which content pieces should be designed to target these keywords. As a bonus producing content for this part of the funnel helps to build brand loyalty with customers. If your customers are more informed about your brand, they'll have greater confidence in your ability to solve their issues. This results in greater conversion rates, whether that's newsletter signups, purchases or click-throughs to your website. A well-planned strategy for content can also help you close the gap in conversion. If, for instance you find that most of your content is aimed at increasing awareness, but not enough influence consumers to make a buying decision, then you can increase your spending on advertising campaigns targeting middle-funnel keywords. Social media is a different way to boost your bottom-of-the-funnel conversion. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook allow you to interact directly with your customers and give you an opportunity to showcase your customer service. This can include everything from retweeting reviews to promoting special offers. You can also make use of existing content to push buyers to the bottom of the funnel like blog posts or case studies. If you write a blog post explaining why your product is superior to that of a competitor, you can share it on social media and invite your customers to join your email list to receive more details. You can also encourage conversions at this point by asking users to include your name on their social media posts after they've used your product. This will motivate other people to do the same and will help spread the word about the brand. Consideration A good content marketing strategy incorporates a mix of content types to engage customers at every stage of the funnel. Brand awareness campaigns, for instance could include ad copy, but also blog posts and infographics that address the most common issues and objections. This content could be further shared via social media or email to increase organic traffic. As buyers move through the process of considering, they start looking for specific characteristics of products that will help them make a purchase decision. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) pages are a great content type for this stage. Use tools for keyword research such as Ubersuggest or search for popular hashtags in your industry to discover the questions your readers are asking. Then, craft answers to these questions and place them in your content funnel map. During this phase it is essential to present an unambiguous proposition that shows how your product or service can solve their problems and make them more cash. The content should also highlight your brand's distinctiveness in comparison to the competition. It's a fairly simple stage to measure, as consumers are making a decision whether or not to purchase. Look at metrics like conversion rates, payment numbers and click-through rates to see whether your efforts are achieving. When consumers reach the advocacy phase they become loyal fans of your brand and share your content because they feel so strongly about it. This is a highly effective method to increase the number of people who follow your brand. But you'll have to focus on creating content that entices people to share it, instead of focusing solely on engagement metrics. Utilize Sprout Social, for example, to track social shares that result from your marketing efforts with content. This will give you a clear picture of the impact you have. Decision At the decision stage the buyers are looking for content that confirms their purchase and outlines how to use the product. At this stage they want to be sure that your solution will solve their problem and justify the investment. It is crucial to have high-quality content at this point, such as product guides, case studies, videos, and customer success stories. Customers also want to be able to ask questions and get answers from your support team. Sending them personalized emails and round-the-clock customer support is an excellent way to please your customers and encourage them to share their experience with others. It is your hope that by this point, the customer will be an advocate for your brand and will promote it to their coworkers and friends. To convert these advocates into rave customers, you'll have to provide them with 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 all great methods to achieve this. It's time to begin focusing on the retention of your audience after it has turned from leads into paying customers. Content marketing funnels tend to concentrate on revenue as the final goal. However, customers will continue to interact and engage with brands after they make a purchase. It's essential to think of funnels as a dynamic model that incorporates revenue, not a static model. While conventional content marketing funnels can help you develop your strategy, they don't account for the complexity of the buyer's journey. Reimagining the content marketing funnel as a circular model will help you develop an integrated strategy. You can create content that engages your target audience and increases conversions by planning for each phase of the process. You can then utilize the data from conversions to optimize and test your strategy. Ready to see the difference that this approach can make for your company? Contact us today to request a complimentary Content marketing playbook! Retention A funnel for content marketing is a valuable tool that can assist brands plan their strategy, implement it and measure its success. It also gives them insight into the gaps in their strategy for content that need to be filled. If a company has a lot of content geared towards attention and interest, but only a few pieces aimed at middle of funnel, it must develop content for this stage. Utilize tools such as Ahrefs which look at the average time on a page and bounce rates of each piece to determine how specialized your content is. The more high these numbers are, the more effective your content is. After you've put together content that will be at the top of your content marketing funnel It's crucial to keep it fresh and relevant. This will ensure that your audience stays engaged and curious about your brand and its products or services. This can be accomplished by creating new content that is focused on key words, addresses questions that your target audience is likely to look for, and highlights current information about your industry or product. As your audience steps onto the MOFU stage they'll be seeking more details about your product or service, as well as ways to solve their problems. It's also crucial to establish confidence by providing honest reviews and demonstrating your worth. In the last stage of your content marketing funnel, your audience will decide whether or not to buy. This is accomplished through gated content, which requires an email or other form of registration to access. This content is designed to turn the engagement and awareness that you've created at the top of your funnel into qualified leads. Your sales team can then follow up. You can still influence the customer journeys through your brand, even though the support and sales teams are primarily responsible for customer retention. Create content that is enjoyable for your customers throughout the entire process of content marketing. This can include helpful resources, behind-the-scenes information and special offers that only your customers be able to access. If you can create a sense of trust among your audience they'll be able to serve as genuine advocates for your product and naturally aid in reducing your sales cycle times.
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