Funnel? Are we back in 8th-grade chemistry again? Quick — what does Fe stand for? What’s the densest compound?!

It’s okay. You can relax.

Today, we’re not asking science questions but exploring an interesting concept called the inbound marketing funnel. Unlike a usual funnel, an inbound marketing funnel helps sort good leads from bad ones and enables you to convert prospects into happy customers.

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Article Roadmap

• What Is Inbound Marketing Funnel?
• Why Is It Important?
  • ToFu: Top of the Funnel
  • MoFu: Middle of the Funnel
  • BoFu: Bottom of the Funnel
• What Is Inbound Marketing Flywheel?
  • Examples
• Leverage Technology to Your Benefit
• FAQs
• Next Steps

What Is the Inbound Marketing Funnel?

The inbound marketing funnel is a step-by-step process that helps convert prospects into paying customers. You might invest in advertising and other marketing strategies to reach customers. But no matter how much we wish, leads don’t convert instantly and that easily. They require time, effort and nurturing.

This is where the inbound marketing funnel comes in.

Similar to the widely known sales funnel, the inbound marketing funnel lets marketers know what exactly to say and when. The right type of communication at each stage of the sales and marketing process is crucial for optimal lead conversions.

The idea is that not all leads are equally important, and not everyone is looking for the same thing. The inbound marketing funnel takes this into account and categorizes the process into three parts:

• ToFu (top of the funnel)
• MoFu (middle of the funnel)
• BoFu (bottom of the funnel).

Yes, the names do sound like Asian delicacies. But let’s put aside the sushi cravings for now.

Marketing influences ToFu and MoFu, while sales usually handles BoFu. The farther along someone is in the funnel, the more likely they are to convert — meaning those at the bottom require special attention.

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Why Is It Important?

As you already know, the marketing landscape has changed drastically over the past few years. We increasingly depend on the digital world and online businesses to fulfill our wants and needs. People are making preliminary purchase decisions before even contacting the seller.

Because of this, sales and marketing departments have lost access to prospects early in the process. They don’t have the kind of leverage they used to.

This shift has forced many businesses to adapt to inbound marketing, where you draw customers in with high-value content that solves their questions/problems. Especially for B2B businesses, it’s vital to bring their A-game when it comes to attracting clients.

But just inbound marketing isn’t enough to convert prospects into customers. There needs to be a process in place to guide your business interactions. And creating a plan according to the inbound marketing funnel is part of that. It’s an effective way to retain existing customers and acquire new ones.

ToFu: Top of the Funnel

At this stage, you have a large pool of unqualified leads that are not very likely to convert. However, it’s important to know not only who they are but also what they’re looking for. Like looking for pretty seashells on the beach, you need to sift through them to find high-quality leads that not only want your product but also have the budget to pay you for it.

This stage is all about creating brand awareness and familiarity with your company, helping you build reach.

Now, how do you draw customers in when many of them might not even know they need your product or that it exists?

By answering their questions, solving their problems and meeting their needs.

You can do this by creating SEO-optimized blogs that are educational and relevant. This lets your target audience know that you’re an authority on subjects they value and helps build trust with you. Make sure you’re using SEO best practices and creating keyword-rich content to drive traffic to your website. You can also use:

• Social media to promote content
• PPC ads
• Short-form video content
• Podcasts
• White papers
• E-books
• Research reports

You must ensure that your content offers valuable insights that align with your target audience’s pain points and goals. And the more you post, the more visitors you’ll get. It’s helpful to post blogs at least twice a week. If that’s not feasible, you can aim for once or twice a month because anything is better than nothing.

The leads at this stage are “learners” because they’re just getting a lay of the land and are rarely ready to purchase. So pushing them to buy wouldn’t work in your favor and will scare them away. You can take such actions during the MoFu and BoFu stages.

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MoFu: Middle of the Funnel

While blogs help attract leads, how do you get them to stay?

Communication at the MoFu stage is arguably the most critical as it helps convert visitors into leads and separates good leads from bad ones. This stage is all about lead nurturing, and this is also where a lot of filtration happens, and many visitors will drop off.

The leads at this stage are “shoppers” because people have a clear idea about what they’re looking for and know the solution to their problems. They’re scoping out options and want specific information and product details. Their commitment to making a purchase is also higher, and the likelihood of closing deals is greater.

Comparing options and researching reviews happens now, and leads are interested in how your product can help them. In the ToFu stage, you pose solutions to the target audience’s problems, but in the MoFu stage, you explain why you’re the best solution. Another difference is that now you’re more deliberate about promoting your brand.

MoFu visitors aren’t likely to buy from you immediately, and pushing them to do that will annoy them. At this stage, you should focus on giving them everything they need, so they make up their mind about what’s the most educated decision.

So instead of saying, “talk to our sales rep,” make sure your communication aligns with their considerations. Consider gating free content at this point and putting a landing page behind a conversion form. You can collect details like names and email addresses at the very least and use them to build email campaigns and personalize content. You can also persuade them to:

• Use CTAs
• Read case studies and testimonials
• Sign up for newsletters
• Download guidebooks
• Register for free events

This stage is all about your business and brand, and you need to figure out your unique selling point to set you apart from competitors.

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BoFu: Bottom of the Funnel

Usually, being at the bottom of the barrel is a bad thing, but with leads, that’s where the good stuff is at. By the time leads reach the bottom, they’re ready to buy. It’s a matter of whom they will buy from.

The leads at this stage are also called “buyers” because they have done their research and are content with their decision, ready to purchase with a credit card in hand.

BoFu visitors are the rarest among the three but the most profitable at the same time. Yes, we get that it’s tempting to try and focus only on BoFu visitors, but you need to remember that everyone who visits your website can become a BoFu lead. With the right nurturing at the right time, you can maximize prospects converting to leads and leads converting to happy customers.

At this point, leads have pretty much made up their mind, and they just need a nudge in your direction. To do that, you can reinforce the value of your product or service. Consider using:

• Demos
• Free trials
• Consultations
• Automation (remind users of abandoned carts)

It also helps to give discounts and offers to create a sense of urgency. Ever had a business say something like, “Buy this in the next 48 hours, and you’ll get 15% off?” Yup, same tactic. Make sure you tap into the fomoness of it all.

At this stage, you should evaluate your campaign effectiveness and adjust strategies accordingly. For example, if your social media is generating a ton of traffic but most lead conversions are happening through email, it’s a better bet to focus on the latter and put your resources there. Tracking customer trends and behavior is also necessary here.

It’s important to continue engaging with your customers even after the purchase. You need to delight them (more on that in the next section).

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What Is the Inbound Marketing Flywheel?

The inbound methodology can also be understood using the flywheel model. It’s about empowering prospects and customers to achieve their goals using your support. It involves three steps:

• Attract: Draw in targeted customers using valuable, high-quality content and meaningful conversations. This is the stage where you prove your credibility and establish yourself as a trusted advisor in the field.
• Engage: Offer tailor-made solutions that address their pain points and requirements so they are more likely to engage with you.
• Delight: Continue to engage with customers post-purchase and provide them with dedicated support. It encourages them to continue aligning with your brand and improves customer retention.

With happy and satisfied customers going on to share their experiences with others, you can expect to establish a self-sustaining loop to attract new prospects.

Examples

Imagine you’re a business leader who wants to leverage inbound marketing to sell online business courses.

To attract customers, you can drive engagement by sharing targeted content through SEO-optimized blogs, hosting podcasts, posting their clips as social media reels or collaborating with other micro and macro influencers. It helps your niche audience discover you, and if your content resonates with them, they’ll stick around.

In the engagement stage, the focus is on converting leads. Brands can use email marketing, landing pages, sales calls, websites, product demonstrations or incentives (like offering 10% off on the first purchase).

In this case, you can release a basic introductory video free of cost and encourage customers to access the in-depth version through online courses. Remember to frame your content in a way that feels like solution selling instead of product selling.

In the delight stage, you respond to questions, queries and reviews post-purchase. You can use chatbots, surveys and social media listening to retain the audience. Interacting with client reviews lets other potential customers know you’re someone they can trust, so they’ll be more inclined to purchase from you.

Here are a few real-world examples of companies using inbound marketing: 5 Examples of Inbound Marketing Campaigns.

Leverage Technology to Your Benefit

It’s one thing to understand the methodology of inbound marketing, and it’s another to implement it into action. You need to continuously track leads, solve their queries, and identify customer patterns and behavior.

CRM solutions and marketing automation software can help with much of that, especially during the BoFu stage. By leveraging automation and technology, your marketers will work better and breathe easier.

FAQs

What is a funnel in marketing?

A funnel in marketing is a way to visualize customer journeys, from creating brand awareness to solving pain points to finally enabling the purchase. Just like a funnel, the most amount of leads are at the top, but these are unqualified, and the bottom has the least number of leads, but they’re rich in quality.

The funnel can be divided into three stages — ToFu (top of the funnel), MoFu (middle of the funnel) and BoFu (bottom of the funnel). With the help of these stages, you can tailor your communication accordingly and target the right audience with the right offers.

What are the four elements of inbound marketing?

The four elements of inbound marketing are:

• Attract
• Convert
• Close
• Delight

The methodology aims to attract leads with high-value content, engage them and solve their pain points, and delight them by continuing to engage with them post-purchase.

Why is inbound marketing necessary?

The marketing landscape has changed drastically over the past few years, and it’s increasingly moving to the digital world. Marketers have also evolved accordingly and are using inbound marketing to attract leads online. It draws customers in with high-value content that helps solve their problems and establishes you as an authority in subjects that matter to them.

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Next Steps

The inbound marketing funnel is a process through which you can make your marketing much simpler but effective at the same time. By using appropriate communication during ToFu, MoFu and BoFu, you can maximize lead conversions and give your customers a fulfilling experience. Similarly, the inbound marketing flywheel is another concept that enables you to delight your customers and engage them post-purchase.

Use these methodologies along with dynamic marketing automation tools, and you’ll elevate your business to a new level. And yes, we get that it’s easier said than done. How do you even begin to select a solution that’s the right fit for you?

We’ve made a free comparison report to make the challenges of software research, and by extension your marketing, easier. Check it out for more information on the features and limitations of the top industry products.

How do you think you can apply the funnel and flywheel concepts to your business? Let us know in the comments below!