Top of the Funnel Content: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How It Can Help Your B2B Business Grow

28 December 2021
by Jessie Taylor

Marketing funnel, sales funnel, lead generation funnels.

When it comes to B2B marketing, there's an awful lot of talk about funnels, including who owns the different stages of a funnel, what those stages are, and (maybe most important of all) what the heck you're supposed to do in each stage of whatever funnel we're talking about.

Here's the thing — the marketing funnel isn't set in stone. Companies use marketing funnels in different ways — to track website conversions or to see if new content is impacting sales, for example.

Even here at Leadfeeder, our sales and marketing team don't look at funnels the same way.

Which can make it really confusing when we're talking about top-of-the-funnel content. However, top-of-the-funnel content is one of the most powerful tools to grow your business.

That sounds a little over the top — but it's true!

Let's talk about why top-of-the-funnel content is crucial to business growth — and how to create it.

Note: Leadfeeder is a website identification tool that helps B2B businesses identify leads visiting their site. Sign up for a free 14-day trial.

What, exactly, is a marketing funnel?

By now, you've probably heard about the marketing funnel. It's a favorite phrase for marketers and sales teams to toss around.

To make the most out of top-of-the-funnel content, we first need to define exactly what a marketing funnel is.

A marketing funnel is a visual representation of the steps in the buyer's journey from becoming aware of your product or service to closing the deal.

Depending on who you talk to, a marketing funnel might have anywhere from five to nine steps. At Leadfeeder, we like to use the five-step marketing funnel, which looks like this:

Notice how each step in the funnel is a little smaller than the last? That's because fewer leads move from one step to the next.

Here's what it might look like in real life:

Step 1: Awareness: Let's say 100 leads visit your website. They might not all be in your target audience and they might not need what you offer. But they are pulled in by content that addresses challenges they face.
Step 3: Consideration: Out of those 100 visitors, maybe 25 are in your target audience and know they need a solution. You've whittled your leads down to maybe 10 or so. They match your ideal customer profile and they know they need a solution. Your job is to show your offer is the best fit for them.
Step 4: Intent: They are interested in your offer, woo! Maybe they visited your pricing page after a demo, sent your demo to their boss, or otherwise indicated they are ready to buy.
Step 5: Evaluation: This is where leads make their final decision. In most cases, sales and marketing will work together to ensure this stage goes smoothly.
Step 6: Decision: Closing the deal — you'll also want to lay the groundwork for retention by ensuring the onboarding process is smooth and considering upsells.

What are the benefits of top-of-the-funnel content?

So, top of the funnel content tends to be broader and targets a wider audience. Why should you bother with it, especially since it often attracts businesses outside of your target audience?

Let's look at a few reasons why TOFU content rules:

It's not as competitive: Think about the main keywords your business targets. There's a good chance those are highly competitive terms. With TOFU content, you can find key terms with a smaller search volume and less competition, making it easier to stand out.
Build brand awareness: Businesses can't buy from you if they don't know you exist. By creating top-of-the-funnel content, you get your name out there so leads already recognize you when it's time to make a purchase.
Built trust: Trust can be a deciding factor in the marketing funnel. Using top-of-the-funnel content, you can show your expertise and build trust. When leads need the solution you offer, the trust is already there. (Which also makes your sales team's job easier!)
Create assets your sales team can use: TOFU content can educate users so sales teams spend less time educating and more time selling.
Power retargeting efforts: If your content gets organic traffic, you can track those users and retarget them on other platforms or create targeted sales lists.
Discover what topics your customers are most interested in: Struggling to come up with content ideas for the middle or bottom of the funnel? Take a look at the most popular top of the funnel content and see what topics your top customers like the most. Then, create content targeting more niche keywords.

How to find top-of-the-funnel content ideas

Now you know what top of the funnel content is and why it matters — let's put all that knowledge to work.

Here are a few ways to come up with top-of-the-funnel content ideas that will drive traffic, educate your audience, and streamline the sales pipeline.

Research your main keywords and look for related, long-tail terms. These will be topics related to your main keywords but won't be as competitive. We use SEMrush and Ahrefs.
Use Google suggest and people also ask. Like related keywords, they are more likely to be long-tail and less competitive.
Use Quora or related sites to find out what questions your audience asks. Remember, these topics don't have to be closely related to your solution, just topics your customers care about.
Solve common problems your users have, even if they aren't related to your business. At Leadfeeder, we know salespeople often struggle to send cold emails. So, we asked our internal team what templates they use and bundled them together as a blog post.
Ask sales and customer service what questions they get asked the most. See if any questions make sense as TOFU content.