Top of funnel (TOF) content is a must-have for any company. Without it, people may never even come across your brand or learn about your business. TOF content is how we generate leads that will hopefully turn into customers. But what kind of TOF content will successfully draw customers in?

Before we can answer this question, we first need to understand what TOF content refers to.

What is Top of Funnel (TOF) Content

Every customer of any company goes through the buyer’s journey. After encountering a problem, the first thing a customer usually does is turn to the internet for a solution. This is the start of the journey; or, the top of what marketers call the “marketing funnel”. And what goes on at the top of the funnel is referred to as “top of funnel content”, or “TOF content” for short.  

Top of funnel content is part of lead production. As buyers conduct research for a solution, they become aware of your brand because of the TOF content you have put out. TOF content could include tutorials, articles, DIY guides, or blog posts related to the topic. They may find the answer they are looking for and end their journey. Or, they may dive deeper and look into purchasing a product to help them out. In other words, they may become a lead.

As buyers become more and more interested in purchasing a product, they move further down the funnel. Consumers that are not interested in purchasing “leave” the funnel. But it all starts at the top, and you want your brand to put out TOF content that will generate brand awareness and leads that could eventually turn into sales. 

Simply put, TOF content draws in people looking for solutions, who could become leads, and eventually, customers. Now, what are the elements of good TOF content?

What Makes Good TOF Content

Good TOF content should be attractive to a consumer because it offers a solution. It shouldn’t be too sales-directed. Usually, TOF content is unbiased and unbranded. It solves the audience’s needs and is engaging, striking, and easily-consumable. It may also incorporate visual aspects that are eye-catching to draw people in and keep them interested.

Ideas for Good TOF Content

Now that we understand what TOF content is, let’s take a look at some examples of good TOF content that you can create to produce as many leads as possible.

Articles

Articles are pages on a company’s website that provide consumers with information and answers. They are usually about a common problem among consumers. Articles are about topics that are always relevant, meaning they will generate visitors to your website for years to come.

An example of an effective article might be “How to Remove Carpet Stains”. Carpets are a common household item, and it’s inevitable for the average person to stain their carpet once or twice. So, it’s safe to assume that an article relating to this topic will stay relevant and useful to customers for a long time. Having articles such as this on your website is a great way to keep you at the top of search engine results.

To learn more about how to rank at the top of search engine lists, we recommend checking out this article that breaks down the what, how, and why of SEO.

Blog Posts

Blog posts are one of the freer forms of TOF content. It is a way to keep your brand fresh. You can write blog posts about trends within your industry to show that your company is keeping up to date. Writing about what’s popular at the time can also keep your website near the top of search engine lists as people generally search for whatever is trending. Also, blogs are typically a more casual platform. They open the floor for you to write about whatever you want. You can use a blog to test certain topics out to see if they grab enough attention from your audience. Basically, you can get creative as you want!

Free Ebooks, Guides, and/or Tutorials

Giving a guide away for free may not sound like a great way to drive sales. But consumers have the whole internet to search, and if they aren’t finding the answers they need on your website, it’s likely they’ll find them elsewhere. Creating free how-to guides for common pains is a great way to draw potential customers in. You offer a resource for them to refer to, making them more aware of your brand and more likely to visit your website again.

An example of a free guide could be a “Puppy Manual” for new owners that don’t know where to start. Giving puppy owners information for free could keep them coming back to your page in the later years of the dog’s life. And there’s also a chance that after looking through your guide, the customer will decide that they need some help, in which case, they’ll turn to you.

Within your free guide you could also add free templates or tools for customers to use. With our “Puppy Manual” example, this could be a “Puppy Feeding Schedule” template. These tools will constantly remind the customer of your company in a positive way, which could lead to a sale in the future.

Videos, Webinars and Podcasts

Videos are a great way to draw in customers that don’t want to spend their time reading through articles or blogs. It is especially useful for presenting solutions to problems that are difficult to explain via text. Some things, like changing a bike tire, are just better shown than told. You may also try with hosting podcasts for those who prefer listening.

You could also create DIY videos that are relevant to your industry. Much like the free guides, providing these resources for customers causes them to view your company positively. This positive association could lead to a purchase in the future since they already find your company reliable and trustworthy. And if they watch your video and decide that the DIY route is not for them, they’ll call on you! 

If you want to learn more about how to create a video that is appealing to viewers, check out this article on Facebook video ads. The elements explored in this (free!) guide are applicable to any video being created for marketing purposes. You can even send a written sneak peek of your content via SMS marketing campaigns.

Infographics

As mentioned, TOF content should be engaging, striking, and easily-consumable. Infographics are all of this in one package. They are basically a collection of images, charts, and text that give an overview of a topic. However, they stand out due to bold colours and striking visuals that relay information in an exciting, but easy-to-understand way.  They’re like an article but in a shortened and colourful format. And they’re great forms of TOF content because of their presentation: people are more likely to remember information from an infographic because they see it in a visual way rather than having just read words. Linking an infographic to your company can cause you to be memorable to consumers.

Infographics may look like a challenging resource to create, especially if you don’t have a design member on your team. Once shared as even a single Instagram post, they can bring a lot of value. If you don’t have much content to work on, you can even start cropping pictures together and use these elements to create a post.

Final Words

Creating TOF content is a great way to generate leads for your business. If your TOF content is valuable and broad enough, you’ll be able to capture numerous leads that will eventually turn into sales. All you have to do is understand the buyer’s journey (by providing TOF content or setting up a customer portal) and think about what people search for. Provide them with the answers they’re looking for, create a good impression, and they’ll remember you when it’s time to purchase.

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