What Is a Content Marketing Funnel? Your Complete Guide

You’ve heard it countless times — “content is king.” 

At the same time, it’s still essential to have a strategy behind the content you’re publishing. 

That’s where a content marketing funnel comes into play. 

So what is a content marketing funnel? Think of it like the scaffolding or framework that guides customers from learning about your product or service for the first time, all the way through the different stages until they make a purchase. 

Understanding those stages and tailoring your message to each one is the key to success with content marketing funnels. 

Let’s break it down step-by-step. 

In This Article

• Learn about what a content marketing funnel is in a brief overview.
• Get insight into the top, middle, and bottom of the funnel.
• Find out tips and next steps for getting started with a content marketing funnel.

What Is a Content Marketing Funnel? 

A content marketing funnel is a model that lays out how content should attract, engage, and convert prospects from learning about your product for the first time, all the way to placing an order or making a purchase. 

It’s essentially a customer journey distilled into three steps: 

1. Top of Funnel — Awareness 
2. Middle of Funnel — Consideration
3. Bottom of Funnel — Decision

We’ll look at each section of the content marketing funnel in turn, but suffice it to say that if you’re asking “what is a content marketing funnel?” you’ll need to understand each stage and the content involved to produce the best content for your audience. 

Top of Funnel — Awareness

The top of the funnel is the Awareness stage of the customer journey. 

This is the first point when would-be customers discover your brand. 

At this early point in the sales funnel, they may not even know they have a problem that needs to be solved. 

That’s why your content marketing funnel should attract their attention and engage them with educational and informative content that gets them involved and establishes you as a trusted authority. 

So how do you do that? 

Certain types of content will convert better than others at this stage in the funnel:

• Blog posts: Write articles that address common questions and concerns or cover trending topics in your industry/niche. 

• Infographics: Design infographics that simplify complex ideas or distill them down into actionable, manageable steps.
  
• Social media: Posts on sites like Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and Twitter are great for sharing small but actionable tidbits of information.
  
• Videos: Short videos are a reliable way to engage users and offer entertainment or strategies they can learn from and apply.
  
• Ebooks and downloadable guides: Small guides provide more in-depth information for users interested in learning more and these also make fantastic lead magnets. 

At this stage in the funnel, your goal should be to cast as wide a net as possible in order to attract a large audience.

• For those unfamiliar with your brand, your content can educate them. 
• For those familiar with your brand, your content can reinforce credibility and position.

This leads us to the next stage of the funnel. 

Middle of Funnel — Consideration

The middle of the funnel is just as important as the top of the funnel. 

This is the Consideration stage, the point at which readers are actively searching for solutions.

This is when the credibility you’ve built in the previous stage comes together and helps you showcase your brand as the best choice. 

Here’s how to do that: 

• Case Studies: Show real-life examples of how your product or service has solved another company’s (or customer’s) issue and gave them the results they were looking for.
  
• White Papers: Offer detailed reports that give users a closer look into common industry challenges and how your unique solution was able to solve them.
  
• Webinars: Host live or evergreen (pre-recorded) webinars where you offer a helpful strategy or answer the most common questions you receive about your topic or content niche.
  
• Email Campaigns: Send personalized emails that walk your prospects further down the funnel while taking the time to answer their questions.
  
• Comparison Guides: Create helpful guides that compare your product or service with the competition and show how your unique sales proposition stands out. 

The goal at this stage of the funnel is to build trust and credibility while educating and informing. Nurture the interest expressed, while keeping your audience engaged with relevant content. 

Bottom of Funnel — Decision

The last stage of the content marketing funnel is the Bottom of the Funnel.

This is the point at which they’re ready to make a decision and a purchase. 

The goal of your content at this stage is to address any lingering doubts or final objections they may have while re-emphasizing the value your brand brings to the table.

Above all, your content should include clear, concise calls to action (CTA) and be designed to make it easy for the user to take action. 

At this stage, the types of content that tend to perform well across both B2B and B2C content marketing funnels include: 

• Product Demos: A detailed, one-on-one walkthrough where the user can see your product’s features and benefits.
  
• Free Trials or Samples: Let the prospect try your product out firsthand.
  
• Testimonials and Reviews: Incorporate social proof including ratings, reviews, and testimonials to help build trust and credibility.
  
• Pricing Pages: Be transparent about the costs involved including how much the user can expect to pay by way of different pricing plan structures (i.e. annually vs. monthly).
  
• Detailed FAQs or Knowledgebase: Answer common questions or provide more detailed instructions and guidance. 

At this point in the funnel, you’ve nearly crossed the finish line and got a conversion. 

Now all that’s left is to overcome any last-minute objections or hesitation that could be preventing the user from acting. 

Oftentimes, companies that focus on the bottom of the funnel combine these types of content. For example, they may offer a limited-time discount along with video testimonials after walking the user through a demo of the product. 

Getting Started with Your Content Marketing Funnel: Next Steps

Now that you know the three main stages of a content marketing funnel, how can you go about building one that resonates with your audience and gets them to convert?  

Here’s how: 

Step 1: Know your audience

The first step in launching a successful content marketing funnel starts with knowing your audience. That means using surveys, focus groups, or analytics to create detailed buyer personas. 

Keep in mind that buyer personas are more than just general demographics like gender, age, or educational background. 

The information you need to focus on as a content marketer includes details like your users’ needs, challenges, and decision-making process.

Step 2: Map content to different funnel stages

Next, you’ll need to design content specifically for each stage of the funnel. 

You can also repurpose existing content so that you’re not reinventing the wheel when it comes to getting more prospects to convert. 

• Top of Funnel content educates
• Middle of Funnel content nurtures
• Bottom of Funnel content converts

Step 3: Strategically promote content

A great content marketing funnel isn’t built overnight. When you’ve created high-quality content, focus on promoting it in places where your audience spends the most time, whether that’s social media, email, video, or elsewhere. 

Step 4: Measure, optimize and reiterate

Finally, track your key performance indicators (KPI) including website traffic, lead generation, bounce rate, and conversion rate to refine and polish your strategy. 

Content marketing funnel optimization isn’t a “once and done” thing, but rather a process that you continue to perfect over time. 

Final Thoughts

Establishing a clear understanding of the content marketing funnel is a fantastic way to hone your content marketing strategy and create clearly tailored content that resonates with your audience at each stage.

Then, continue to optimize your content with tools like the Originality.ai Content Optimizer to stay a step ahead of the competition.

Learn more about content marketing and tips for improving your content strategy:

• What Is Content Marketing? — 8 Benefits
• 8 Best Practices for Writing a Listicle
• 7 Tips For Polishing Your Brand Voice