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Attract and convert: what content to offer for each phase of the funnel?

The formula for success in inbound marketing  could be summed up in one sentence: "the right content, at the right time, to the right audience." It seems simple, right?

But the crux of the matter is knowing what the appropriate content is, and that depends largely on the phase the user is in recruitment, conversion, sale or loyalty. Therefore, we will review these moments of the relationship with the client and see what content works best to attract and convert into each of them.

Funnel phases: uptake

In this phase, we seek to attract traffic or, in other words, make strangers become visitors to our website.

To do this, we can use a wide variety of strategies such as:

SEO: through optimization of our own website (SEO on page) and link building techniques (SEO off page), we seek to position ourselves among the first results of Google and thus obtain clicks when users search for terms related to our products or with the needs they solve.

SEM: This technique is also based on improving our search engine positioning, but in this case, we will use paid ads.

Social networks : in addition to generating community and interaction around our brand, social networks can also help us to attract visitors. In addition to trying to generate organic traffic, we can rely on payment resources such as promoted publications or other social ads formats.

Email marketing: this tool can be very valuable to generate visits, but watch out for indiscriminate recruitment campaigns. Buying third-party databases is usually not a good idea, especially with the new rules of the GDPR.

Branding and public relations campaigns: for example, events aimed at influencers.

In this phase, the appropriate contents will be more generic, focused around solving a need that the user has detected and that in some way has to do with our brand. These are some examples:

Blog articles. To make them more dynamic, always prioritize readability: short paragraphs, lists, sections ... When it comes to attracting clicks, it is very important to have a headline with a hook. There are many formulas that can work, from "7 things you didn't know" lists to "negative" headlines such as "the big mistake I will never make again." But in any case, the most important thing is that they are quality and care items.

Guides in depth. This content seeks to resolve all doubts of a user regarding a topic of interest and make him feel informed. They can be in a blog article format (in which case it is crucial to include a very different index and sections) or through an ebook.

Video tutorials. It shows users how to do something they need directly, useful and enjoyable.

Podcasts. Another good way to attract visitors, increase the recognition of your brand and position yourself as an expert in your sector.

Funnel phases: conversion

In the conversion phase, we look for the visitor to leave us their data to become a lead. Here are three resources that are especially important: landing pages, forms, and call to action.

The landing page is a page of our website specially designed to capture leads, that is, for users to leave us their data in exchange for an offer or content of interest.

In order for a landing to work, it is important that the value offer be appropriate for the public it addresses. But that's not all since copy and design are also very important. These are some tricks to create better landing:

Clearly explain the benefits of the offer or the content to download. As with blog articles, readability is very important. Remember: short sentences and paragraphs, lists and headings are your friends.

Make intelligent use of white space, so that it is clear and pleasing to the eye.

Remove all items that are not essential, for example, the navigation menu. The idea is that the user cannot get distracted before converting.

The form is an essential element to attract and convert leads since that is where they will leave us their contact information. It is important that all fields are very clear, that it is easy to use and that it does not overwhelm the user by asking for too much information, although enough to be able to assess whether we are interested as a lead.

Finally, call to action or calls to action are the elements through which we tell the user what we want them to do. They generally have a button shape. When designing our landing, we must bear in mind that the user's attention should always be directed to them.

We have seen that in this phase we can use a content like "hook" so that the user leaves us his data. In turn, if you have reached this stage, you should already have a clearer idea of ​​what you need and how to solve it, so we can offer you more specialized content. Here are some ideas:

Webinars . Especially useful for B2B companies, webinars offer the user the opportunity to answer all their questions by chatting with an expert in the sector.

Free samples or trial periods. If we opt for this option, we have to explain very clearly the conditions of the offer and reduce the objections (for example, some brands do not ask for credit card information until the trial period has ended).

Testimonials and case studies. This type of content can do us very well to reinforce the credibility of our landing page.

Funnel phases: sale

We already have user data and have established a relationship with him. Now, the idea is to gradually feed that relationship until it becomes a customer. Here marketing automation comes into play, through two fundamental techniques :

Lead scoring: it is based on designing a system to rate each new contact, so that we can objectively know what are your chances of becoming a customer of the brand.

Lead nurturing: depending on the score we have obtained and the other characteristics of the lead, we introduce you to one of the workflows that we have previously defined. In this way, the lead will receive a series of personalized communications according to their needs.

To organize all this scoring work and communication with contacts, different marketing automation tools come into play, such as CRMs. The more we automate these tasks, the more fluid the process will be and the more time our team will have to devote to strategy and creativity. As for the type of content, the time has come to go for them all. What we are looking for is to create an offer that the user cannot refuse. Let's see some examples: The free trial periods, as we saw in the previous phase of the funnel, we can serve to capture leads, but can also be the boost they need to be encouraged to convert. The limited-time coupons and discounts also offer a very interesting incentive in the sales phase. And if what we are looking for is to solve the last doubts and objections of the users, we can offer one-on-one consultations with an expert from our team. Funnel phases: loyaltyWe have already managed to capture a new customer, but we still need one more step: to make that customer become a brand prescriber and become loyal in the long term. If we think that attracting and converting new customers is much more expensive than retaining them, we will realize the importance of this step. In the loyalty phase, we seek to renew the interest of the client with content of interest and new call to action, in many cases aimed at cross-selling (complementary products to those that already have). The email marketing is a valuable tool to keep in touch with him and go to fuel long - term relationship, but we can also look for other ways such as online communities, the applications or loyalty cards virtual or physical. In terms of content, the key is to make our client feel special. We can get it in different ways: With exclusive content, for example, informing you before anyone of the launch of new products or even allowing you to reserve them in advance. With contents that remind you of the values of the brand and make you feel part of a community. If we also make them easily shared, we can create a viral prescription effect of the brand. With special offers and discounts, customized based on the information we have about the customer and their previous purchases. Celebrating special occasions, for example, the client's birthday or the brand's anniversary. Here it can be interesting to give a twist to the most typical commercial occasions, such as Christmas or Black Friday.

#attract traffic #Social networks #Email marketing