What Is Bottom OF Funnel Marketing

also recommends the Evergreen Email Engine™ Playbook

Updated:

September 11, 2024

Created:

December 12, 2022

Traditionally, marketing strategies were linear and followed the AIDA marketing funnel. Brands would send out flyers, print ads in newspapers and magazines, and maybe even run radio spots or TV commercials.

Although the AIDA model provided a cornerstone, it can now be considered outdated. A modern approach has emerged in the form of TOFU, MOFU, and BOFU. Bottom of funnel marketing, or BOFU, is the stage that receives the least attention from marketers despite being the most critical and significant. Here we explore its importance and ways to approach it.

What is a Marketing Funnel?

Every customer goes through a specific journey before they decide to buy something- this journey can be visualized through the "marketing funnel."

It all starts with the AIDA model, an advertising framework developed by Elias St. Elmo Lewis in 1898. Even if a buyer finds a product intriguing, he discovered that only a small percentage will make a purchase, thereby concluding that customers must be nurtured to make such a choice. He then developed a 4-stage hierarchy that demonstrates what customers go through before buying a product.

● Awareness: The customer starts to become aware of the existence of your product

● Interest: The customer becomes interested in your product after learning more about it from the information you provide (its value and benefits)

● Desire: The customer starts to develop a desire in owning the product

● Action: The customer finally decides to take action and purchases the product

Marketers today go beyond the AIDA model and use an updated and more streamlined version that reduces the four AIDA stages into three:

● Top of the funnel (TOFU): The “awareness” stage where the focus is to generate brand awareness by attracting a large number of leads, keeping potential buyers interested, and eliminating unqualified leads.

● Middle of the funnel (MOFU): The “consideration” stage of the marketing funnel is where customers who have shown interest in the product need nurturing to make them convert.

● Bottom of the funnel (BOFU): The "conversion" stage is where customers are just a few steps away from making a purchase but may need a little more convincing, with brands reinforcing the decision. The bofu audience is made up of decision-makers.

The Difference Between a Sales Funnel and a Marketing Funnel

Both begin with a customer's interest and end when a sale is made. The main difference is in their intended outcome: Whereas sales funnels focus on generating sales by persuading consumers to make more purchases, marketing funnels focus on providing customers with a convincing relationship that makes not only a purchase decision but also a reason to become brand loyal.

What is Bottom of Funnel Marketing?

If you're wondering "what is bottom-of-funnel marketing," it is the point in the sales process where you're making a strong, direct push for a conversion. You've already presented your product or service and gotten them interested- now it's time to seal the deal.

Leads at the BOFU stage are high quality and need a little extra push to finally convert. They want to be sure that your product meets their requirements. You can convince them by providing additional reassurance, rewards, or a heightened sense of urgency. The buying decision comes naturally if your customer experience in the earlier stages has done its job.

The beauty of funnel marketing tactics is that customer journey phases apply to more than one person. Your potential customers can be quickly walked through the funnel and suddenly arrive at the final destination - the buying decision.

Once website visitors are ready for a purchase decision, your content strategy needs to meet the correct section of the funnel. From your pricing page to your call to action, have your bofu tactics ready for your bottom-of-funnel audience!

Top-Of-The-Funnel Marketing Vs. Bottom-Of-The-Funnel Marketing

Top-of-the-funnel marketing is focused on generating awareness, bringing in new leads, and getting them to engage with your product or service. The goal is to be top of mind once the customer is ready to buy. This includes tactics like cold calling, social media ads, email campaigns, and more.

Bottom-of-the-funnel marketing is the last stage before customers convert. Bottom-of-funnel marketing then is focused on nurturing quality leads from TOFU or MOFU and turning them into paying customers. Here, it’s all about building trust in the brand and helping customers get to that point where they're ready to buy. This includes tactics like live chat, email drip campaigns, lead nurturing, and more.

Why is Bottom-of-Funnel Marketing Important?

The bottom-of-funnel marketing stage is the last chance a marketer has to influence a prospective customer’s final decision. This is the time to reassure them by explaining product features, service inclusions, warranties, or shipping times. The goal is to reduce any barriers and highlight your product or service as superior to the alternatives.

It's important not just for customer retention but also for future growth. Succeeding with your BOFU marketing strategy will help you better nurture these leads to become loyal customers.

Bottom-of-Funnel Marketing Benefits

Helps Close Sales By Converting Sales Prospects and SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads)

These are leads who have demonstrated a desire to purchase while passing both the marketing and sales team’s criteria for a high-quality lead. In other words, they need a little push in the right direction. The right BOFU marketing strategy can help reassure them that your product or service will help meet their needs.

Requires Minimal Sales-Enablement or Decision-Based Content

Leads at this stage are further along in the buyer's journey, have already built up some trust in your company and brand, and have done their research. They’ve already been exposed to your marketing materials and have had enough time for it to sink in. They want to know that they're making the right choice.

Converts Hot Leads

BOFU marketing helps convince hot leads, those who are highly interested in your product or service, to convert.

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Bottom-of-funnel Marketing Tactics

Have Detailed Product Comparisons

Now that leads are ready to buy; you can compare your product or service to competitors. Don’t be too blatant or pushy, though. You want to guide them in making an informed decision.

Offer Promo Codes or Special Discounts

Sometimes a little push is all a customer needs. When people see a deal that they can't pass up on, whether it's a saving of $5 or $2, they're going to jump on it- fast. Moreso, if it’s a timed or limited discount.

Hand Leads off to Sales Team Members

If your lead has specific questions or concerns, it's best to connect them with your sales team. Your sales department is trained to provide more personalized attention than a marketing blog or infographic. Their sales funnel should be ready and waiting to convert leads quickly.

Provide Detailed Use Cases and Testimonials

When you're trying to get people who don't know you to buy from you, it's important to give them a compelling reason to do so- and that's exactly what case studies and testimonials do: they provide a detailed example of how your products bettered someone else's life. Customer stories are some of the most powerful lower-funnel marketing tactics.

Building a Powerful Pricing Page

This is a great way to demonstrate what you have to offer and what customers will get for their money. Remember to draw attention to any special inclusions or features you have to offer.

Be More Direct

Get to the heart of your message. You'll want to be clear about the benefits of your product or service and how it solves a problem for your audience. Be sure that this phase of the customer's journey is full of educational content to simplify the buying process.

Stand Out From the Competition

Highlight all your best features and make sure to present your brand as the superior choice compared to your competitors. Eliminate the need for the customers to comparison shop by proving your company offers the best solution in the industry.

Get Really Persuasive

Different methods, such as showing off customer reviews, emphasizing awards and accreditations, using scarcity marketing, or a mix of these, can convince your leads to take action. Remember, a potential customer in the lower funnel is at the decision stage.

Make Your Best Offer

Competition is fierce in the industry you’re in, and that means you need to offer your leads something unique. Give them an offer they can't refuse. Increase conversions with ideas like a promo code or free trials.

Give Leads Information They Can Easily Share

You want your leads to spread the word about your brand to other people- especially those who may also be in the market for something you offer. There's no better way to do it than with compelling, shareable content. Your current customers can continue to bring in leads as they share information about your services with people who are in different stages of shopping.

Provide Information on Implementation

Communicate with warm leads as though they are already paying customers. Demonstrate how easy it is to utilize your product with blog posts and email marketing content that is full of late-stage content.

Create Unique Content for Each User Cohort

Tailor your messages and content for each user cohort. Speak directly to their needs and concerns, increasing your chances of making a connection with them and turning them into customers.

Directly Address Obstacles

The best way to get people to buy your product is to make it easy for them to do so. Look for any points of friction and come up with a solution. Try to become hyper-problem-aware so that the decision stage isn't interrupted with pain points.

How to Help Your Sales Team Build a Successful Marketing Funnel

So many companies end up wasting time and money on strategies that aren't going to get them where they want to be because they're focused on the wrong things. Identify an overarching goal and stick to it. Use data to back up your marketing efforts to avoid wasting time, money, and effort.

Awareness

Building awareness is a process of getting the right people to hear about your business, in the right way, at the right time. Narrow your focus on audiences that are actually interested in what you have to offer. This way, visitors to your website are more likely to become paying customers.

Find out which social media channels your target market uses and what content will catch their attention. For SEO, low-intent keywords may help people discover your brand.

Consideration

Here is where you can start targeting higher-intent keywords for your SEO and PPC campaigns. People who search for a product already have the intent to purchase. Therefore, they're more likely to click on an ad that speaks to their wants than one that merely promotes your brand.

Conversion

Here’s where you run organic and paid search campaigns targeting prospects who are ready to convert. Target keywords that suggest one is ready to buy, like “buy,” “free delivery,” “in my area,” and “best price.” You might also want to employ a conversion rate optimization (CRO) strategy to get better results. The potential customer is searching for low-hanging fruit and is ready for decision-making.

Loyalty

Retaining customers, and encouraging repeat purchases, is key to increasing profitability. Develop lasting customer relationships by providing excellent customer service whenever existing customers have concerns. Continuing the relationship with content marketing is also part of what the lower funnel represents.

Advocacy

Customers trust reviews more than they do ads. Encourage existing customers to leave you reviews or positive feedback in order to attract new ones. Use marketing channels like social media posts, a bofu content blog post, and offers for additional services to keep your current customer loyal after they make the final decision to purchase from your company.

Marketing Funnel Examples

Netflix

Non-Netflix users are usually offered a 30-day free trial. They know recurring payments cause friction, so they disclose their terms using an easy, understandable text where the customer can see it. At the conclusion of the trial period, consumers are guided through an uncomplicated subscription process.

Netflix pre-selects the premium plan for the user but guarantees them they can upgrade, downgrade, or cancel at any time.

Crazy Egg

In order to sway undecided customers, this web optimization solution provides social proof (used by 300,000 websites) and live chat (through Egg Bot) on its website. It also comes with a free 30-day trial that can be terminated at any time. Once interested parties are ready to sign up, they are once again shown positive reviews that reinforce the company’s value.

Basecamp

This project management tool makes it easy for users to convert after the awareness and consideration stages. Their signup page is easy on the eyes and uses a friendly, inviting tone in its copy. The use of testimonials is persuasive and reassuring. A well-written FAQ helps dispel any concerns. After signing up, consumers receive a simple automated email from the CEO that outlines the account fundamentals. A nice touch.

Gabriel Ryan

Gabriel Ryan specializes in leveraging software to boost conversions and drive sales through authentic evergreen marketing. Gabriel is dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs to scale their monthly recurring revenue sustainably.