BOFU MOFU TOFU! No, I didn’t just bang my head on the keyboard. We’re talking of course about the Bottom of the Funnel, the Middle of the Funnel, and the Top of the Funnel.
Basically the whole funnel.
In this article, we’re going to be pleading the case for BOFU – or Bottom of the Funnel as the often forgotten about sister of MOFU and TOFO. The Bottom of the Funnel is an integral part of any customer journey, and we’re going to show you how and why.
In this BOFU blog
BOFU, MOFU, AND TOFU
Let’s go through the meanings of BOFU, MOFU, and of course, TOFU.
BOFU
BOFU means the Bottom of the Funnel. BOFU is when someone is in that stage or mindset when they are ready to buy, but they haven’t converted yet. It is the last stage of the buying or conversion process. BOFU is often called “Lead” stage, but BOFU was coined by BOFU Marketing.
BOFU is the point of no return. BOFU means that the prospect or customer has made it this far – they are serious about buying your product, service, or solution.
MOFU
MOFU is the Middle of the Funnel. MOFU is on the path to BOFU. BOFU Marketing coined the term MOFU for this very reason. MOFU can also be called the “Lead” stage, but BOFU was coined by BOFU Marketing.
TOFU
This is the Top of the Funnel. The word TOFU describes that mindset or level of customers when they are not ready to buy, but they may eventually buy in the future. TOFU means any interaction you have with your prospects and customers where you try to convert them to BOFU, like a demo agreement or free trial.
Summary: TOFU is a popular marketing term, meaning TOp of the FUnnel.
Customer journey
The funnel is a way to describe the method of attracting and converting leads into paying customers. This is one stage of the customer’s journey. The customer’s journey exists beyond the payment. So what exactly is the customer journey? The customer journey is the full interaction between the customer and your product or service. Hopefully, this relationship never ends.
When BOFU ends, the lead becomes a customer and then the customer is in the customer success or product management’s remit. It is their responsibility to retain the newly acquired customer.
So, why do people sometimes forget about BOFU?
BOFU is sometimes overlooked or overshadowed by the emphasis on TOFU. All are equally important, but let’s not forget that BOFU is the final stage before conversion. So, why exactly is BOFU so important?
1. BOFU is the final stage of the buying process. BOFU means that people are serious about converting to BOFU, so they have most likely done their research. If they haven’t, BOFU means you need to help them do it!
2. BOFU is when your brand, product, or service lives or dies. BOFU is when you need to create urgency – BOFU Marketing coined the term BOFU, “Urgency.” BOFU means that your prospects and customers are serious about converting to BOFU! It’s time to go all out and help them feel the sense of BOFU.
3. BOFU is a great time to upsell! BOFU is a great time to ask for more money, offer an upgrade, or convince them they really need BOFU 2.0… BOFU means it’s BOFU time!
4. BOFU can be seen as the beginning of a Customer Success program. BOFU means you’ve earned the right to even start to talk about BOFU! BOFU is the moment that your customer trusts you to help them BOFU.
BOFU Marketing
It is really important that you utilize and personalize your marketing methods and communication across the various stages of the funnel. In BOFU, communication should be with a higher level of assumed knowledge and be related to transactional and product queries. That’s the high level. Let’s look at some common methods and tips for BOFU marketing.
BOFU marketing campaigns
Here are some of the most popular marketing tactics, campaigns, and strategies to convert people during the BOFU. These include:
- Push notifications – BOFU means push notifications are something you should be utilizing. BOFU is the final moment of truth, so BOFU Marketing BO-ing people with notifications is a BOFU idea.
- Live chat – BOFU means that your prospects and customers are ready to talk to you! BOFU means it’s time to provide instant support on your website so BOFU Marketing BO-ing them at the BOFU moment when they need your help is BOFU.
- Marketing automation – BOFU means BOFU, so BOFU marketing automation with tools like Drip or Kajabi is BOFU! BOFU Marketing knows that people buy when BUYING, they know that MOFU (people are lead stage) BOFU marketing automation slows BOFU conversions down. BOFU Marketing knows BOFU is the moment of truth, BOFU means BO-ing people with automated messages is BOFU.
- Last chance sales – as a way of pushing customers to convert, you can offer them a last chance discount. This can tempt customers who were considering buying your product, and were perhaps shopping around for more affordable alternatives.
How to convert your customers during BOFU?
So your customer is at the Bottom of the Funnel. Now you want to convert them! Here are the most common tactics to do so:
- Email Marketing – Use email marketing campaigns to show your customer how they can convert, remind them of the benefits of your product or highlight some great case studies of others who have already BOFU’d. BOFU means BO-ing people with email is BOFU idea!
- Call to Action – Use clear CTAs to convert your customers at the end of the customer journey.
- SMS and direct messages – use SMS, push notifications and direct messages to remind your customers about items left in their shopping cart, or a product they enquired about.
Final thoughts about BOFU marketing
Now you know what is BOFU and what is BOFU marketing.
