A Content Marketing Funnel Explained A funnel for content marketing helps potential customers to learn more about your brand, solve their problems and feel confident to buy from you. Different kinds of content work best for each stage of the funnel. Checklists, videos, and infographics are effective at drawing attention, generating leads and keeping readers involved. Templates and guides that are gated do well in this stage. Awareness At this point, customers are only aware of your brand and the solutions you offer. At this point, content is meant to give answers and educate potential customers on the problems your solution tackles and what makes it different from competitors. To identify your content gaps at this stage, you must consider the different types of keywords your target audience uses to search online. Keyword research can be used to find out what terms your target audience is using when they search online. This will help you determine if your product or service is required. This information can then be used to create an editorial calendar and determine the content pieces that will target those terms. Additionally creating content for this stage of the funnel helps to build brand loyalty with your customers. digital content marketing know about your brand, they will have more faith in your ability solve their issues. This results in greater conversion rates, be it newsletter signups, purchases or click-throughs to your website. A well-executed strategy for content can assist in closing this gap in conversion. For instance, if discover that the majority of your content is targeted at educating, but not enough is pushing buyers toward the purchase decision, you may increase your advertising budget to target middle-funnel keywords. Social media is a different way to increase your bottom-of funnel conversion. Social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook enable you to engage with your customers directly, giving you the opportunity to show off your customer care. This can include tweeting good reviews to promoting special offers. You can also leverage existing content to draw customers to the bottom of the funnel like blog posts or case studies. For example, if you write a blog post explaining how your product is superior than one from a competitor then you can post it on social networks and ask readers to subscribe to your email list to receive more information. You can also encourage a conversion at this point by asking your followers to tag you on their social media posts after using your product. This will encourage other people to do the same, and help spread the word about the brand. Consideration A good content marketing strategy incorporates a mix of content types to engage customers throughout the funnel. For example, brand awareness campaigns might include ads but they should also include blog posts and infographics which address common concerns and objections. This content could be further shared via social media or email to increase organic traffic. As consumers progress through the consideration stage when they are considering their options, they begin looking for specific characteristics of products that will assist them make a purchase decision. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) pages are an excellent content type for this stage. Utilize keyword research tools such as Ubersuggest or search popular hashtags in your industry to discover the questions your readers are asking. Then, you can write answers to these questions and then place them in your content funnel map. During this stage it is essential to present an unambiguous value proposition that shows potential customers what your product or service will solve their issue and make them more money. This content should also highlight the distinctiveness of your brand when compared to your competitors. This is a relatively easy stage to measure, since consumers are making a decision whether they want to buy. Look at metrics like conversion rate, payment figures and click-through rates to determine whether your efforts are achieving. When consumers reach the point of advocacy, your brand grows more and more important to them. They will be sharing your content with their friends because they are so passionate about it. This is a great way to increase your audience. But you'll have to focus on creating content that encourages people to share, instead of focusing on only engagement metrics. Utilize Sprout Social, for example to track social shares as a result of your content marketing efforts. This will give you a much more precise picture of your influence. Decision Making People are looking for content at the decision-making stage that validates the purchase and provides instructions on how to use the product. At this point, they need to know that your product will solve their issue and will make their investment worth it. High-quality content is important at this stage, including product guides video, case studies, and customer success stories. Your customers should also be in a position to ask questions and get answers from your support team. It's a great method to please your customers and to encourage them to share their experiences. At this point you're hoping that the customer will become a brand ambassador and recommend your product to their colleagues and friends. To convert these advocates into raving supporters you'll have to provide them with useful content that will help them get the most out of your product or service. Personalized newsletters videos, tutorials free trial offers and loyalty programs are all great ways to do this. After your audience has converted from leads to paying customers, it's time to focus on retention. The standard funnel for content marketing models tend to view revenue as the conclusion of the journey, but it is important to remember that consumers continue to interact with brands even after they've completed a purchase. Therefore, 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 making your plan, but they do not take into account the complexity of the buyer's journey. Reimagining the content marketing funnel as circular models will aid in developing an integrated strategy. You can create content that is engaging your audience and boosts conversions by planning for each step of the journey. 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 no-cost content marketing playbook! Retention A content marketing funnel can be a useful instrument to aid brands in planning, execute and measure their strategy. It also gives them visibility into the gaps in their strategy for content that must be filled. If a company has a lot of content that is geared towards generating the public's attention but only few pieces aimed at middle of funnel, it should develop content for this stage. Use tools like Ahrefs, which look at the average time on the page and bounce rate of each piece to determine how specific your content is. The more high these numbers are, the more effective your content is. It's important to keep up-to-date the content you write for the top of your funnel. This will keep your customers interested in your brand, its products and services. The best way to do this is by creating new content that focuses on certain keywords, addresses questions that are likely being sought by your target audience and includes the most recent information on your industry or product. As your audience enters MOFU and MOFU, they'll be looking for more information about your products or services as well as solutions to their issues. In this moment it is crucial to establish trust by providing honest reviews and demonstrating value. The final phase of the funnel for content marketing is where your audience will make a purchasing decision. This is achieved through gated content, which requires an email or other form of registration to gain access. This content is meant to convert the interest and awareness you've built at the top of your funnel for content marketing into qualified leads for your sales team to follow up with. You can still influence the journeys of your customers through your brand, even if the support and sales teams are the primary ones responsible for customer retention. Create content that is enjoyable for your customers throughout the entire process of content marketing. This can include useful sources, behind-the-scenes information, and special deals that only your customers have access to. If you can create a sense of loyalty with your audience, they'll serve as authentic advocates for your product and naturally reduce your sales cycle time.
digital content marketing
