Lead nurturing is one of the most profitable long-term strategies for most businesses that want to market their products and services on the web. We’ve been through the four-step nurturing process, and now we’re going to focus on one of the essential strategies used by every digital agency out there — content marketing.
The goal of content marketing is to create and place content in such a way as to attract potential leads and build long-lasting relationships with them.
Depending on the funnel stage that your leads are in, different content needs to be made. That’s where targeted content comes into play.
Targeted Content
Let’s take a look at a quick overview of the sales funnel. It’s divided into four categories:
- Awareness — top of the funnel (ToFu)
- Interest and evaluation — middle of the funnel (MoFu)
- Decision — Bottom of the funnel (BoFu)
- Action
ToFu Content Examples
The awareness stage has the widest audience. Therefore, you need to make your content simple, informative, and engaging in order to gain the attention of the people who could benefit by using your product or service.
Here are some examples of the ToFu type of content:
- Social media posts/ads
- Influencer partnership
- Overview blogs
- Infographics
- Explainer videos
- Introductory emails
- Quizzes
MoFu Content Examples
If your ToFu content is successful, your potential buyers will get familiar with your business. This is when they will enter the interest and evaluation stage. The goal of your MoFu content should be to deepen the relationship with your prospective clients and educate them about their problems and solutions further.
Let’s take a look at the type of content that works best for the middle of the funnel:
- Email newsletter
- In-depth blog posts
- Relevant news about your industry
- Checklist type of blogs
- Educational ebooks
- In-depth guides
- Detailed videos
BoFu Content Examples
During the last stage of the funnel, the buyer is aware of the problem and is considering your product and services as a solution. Your goal now is to showcase your product or service. However, you should refrain from making it sound like a sales pitch. Instead, you should keep your content informative and helpful.
Here are some great examples of how businesses worldwide do it:
- Case studies
- Product demonstration
- Demonstration of various features of your product
- Product comparisons
- Product reviews
- Testimonials from satisfied customers
- Giveaways
- Coupons
- User-generated content (social media, forums, reviews, and more)
Content for Returning Customers
Once your new customer has made a purchase, you’ll want to convert them into a regular. That’s why it’s important to continue offering high-quality content and maintain a long-lasting relationship.
Some types of content you can take into consideration are:
- Contests and giveaways
- Newsletter
- Webinars
- Re-engagement emails
- Community forums
- Various events related to your product
- Storytelling videos about your business
Please bear in mind that some content forms don’t have to be specific to each funnel stage. For instance, product comparisons could work both as MoFu and BoFu type of content if you adapt them. It’s important to have the freedom to explore which type works best for your business at each stage. Also, you should make sure to find the best possible content creators who know how to engage customers.
Final Thoughts: Content Comes First
Feeding high-quality content to your leads at the right time is one of the best ways to engage them and nurture them. It’s an approach that tends to bring long-term results to those who practice it.