If I take a deep breath and close my eyes, I can place myself back in my tiny home office where I was sitting when I launched DataDab a few years ago. We had a rickety IKEA desk that I'd push up against the wall so I could stare at our makeshift vision board while I twisted my brain into knots, trying to find the right sequences of words that would make this crazy dream of becoming a “real marketing consultant” come true.
We were running on fumes financially, so I had to take on any client who'd have me to keep the dream alive. In retrospect, it was a pretty wild bet. There were many late nights in my office—a converted closet filled with marketing books, my laptop, my mic and headphones, and that vision board—that lasted until 2, 3, even sometimes 4 a.m.
Thankfully, it worked out. When I hit publish on this piece, it will get delivered to around a few thousand inboxes. The business is in a great place. I was able to find enough of the right sequences of words to grow a respectable client base and, more importantly, attract some wonderful kindred spirits along the way to collaborate with.
I won't lie: I've made plenty of mistakes over the past three years. I am a deeply flawed marketer. But I do feel confident that I've learned some useful things about creating SaaS content marketing funnels that actually work. Now that I'm starting to focus more on consulting, I figure it's a good time to spill the beans.
Here are the frameworks, metaphors, aphorisms, and various other forms of advice that I find myself returning to when I struggle with building content marketing funnels for SaaS companies.
Why content marketing funnels work
Every piece of content has thrust and drag. The thrust of a piece is what motivates readers to invest the energy necessary to extract its meaning. It is the reason they click. Drag is everything that makes the reader's task harder, such as meandering intros, convoluted sentences, abstruse locution and even little things like a missing Oxford comma.
When your content has more thrust than drag for a group of readers, it will move them through your funnel and your conversions will grow. Achieving this takes practice and experimentation.
The idea of thrust and drag may seem obvious, but it helps to decompose the problem of creating an effective content marketing funnel into its component parts. Do you know what your target audience wants to read about at each stage of the buyer's journey? Can you channel that knowledge into compelling content? These are independent variables, so work on one at a time.
The FACET model: A framework for SaaS content marketing funnels
Over the years, I've developed a framework I call FACET to help structure SaaS content marketing funnels:
- F: Foundation (Top of funnel)
- A: Authority (Middle of funnel)
- C: Conversion (Bottom of funnel)
- E: Expansion (Post-purchase)
- T: Testimonials (Social proof throughout)
Let's break each of these down.
Foundation: Top of the funnel
The foundation of your content marketing funnel is all about casting a wide net. This is where you create content that addresses broad topics related to your industry, pain points your potential customers might have, or general trends in your space.
For example, if you're selling a project management SaaS, your top-of-funnel content might include blog posts like:
- “10 Time Management Techniques for Busy Professionals”
- “The Future of Remote Work: Trends to Watch in 2023”
- “How to Run Effective Virtual Meetings: A Comprehensive Guide”
The goal here isn't to sell your product directly. It's to attract potential customers who are experiencing problems your product could solve, but may not be actively looking for a solution yet.
| SaaS Industry | Blog Post Ideas | Infographic Topics | Video Content Suggestions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Management | "10 Time Management Hacks" | "Anatomy of a Successful Project" | "Day in the Life of a Project Manager" |
| CRM | "Building Customer Relationships 101" | "The Customer Journey Map" | "5 Min Guide to Sales Forecasting" |
| Marketing Automation | "Email Marketing Best Practices" | "The Marketing Funnel Explained" | "A/B Testing for Beginners" |
| Accounting Software | "Tax Season Prep Checklist" | "Cash Flow Management Tips" | "Understanding Financial Statements" |
One mistake I see a lot of SaaS companies make is trying to be too salesy at this stage. Remember, you're building trust and establishing yourself as a helpful resource. The selling comes later.
Authority: Middle of the funnel
As we move down the funnel, our content needs to start positioning our SaaS as a potential solution to the problems we've been discussing. This is where we establish our authority in the space.
Continuing with our project management SaaS example, middle-of-funnel content might look like:
- “5 Ways Project Management Software Can Boost Team Productivity”
- “Agile vs. Waterfall: Choosing the Right Project Management Methodology”
- “The Hidden Costs of Poor Project Management (And How to Avoid Them)”
These pieces start to hint at the benefits of using project management software (like yours), but still focus primarily on providing valuable information to the reader.
| Content Type | Audience Perception Shift | Time to Impact | Resource Investment | Amplification Channels | KPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry Trend Report | High credibility boost | 3-6 months | High (data collection, analysis, design) | PR, social, email, paid ads | Press mentions, backlinks |
| Executive Roundtable Series | Elevated brand positioning | 1-2 months per event | Medium (event planning, guest coordination) | LinkedIn, partner channels | C-suite engagement rate |
| Original Research Study | Significant authority establishment | 6-12 months | Very High (research design, execution, analysis) | Academic partnerships, industry publications | Citation in other works |
| Contrarian Viewpoint Blog Series | Thought-provoking differentiation | 2-3 months | Low-Medium (research, writing, promotion) | Social media, industry forums | Conversation starts, shares |
A common pitfall at this stage is to focus too much on your product features rather than the benefits and outcomes your customers care about. Remember, people don't buy project management software because they want Gantt charts. They buy it because they want to deliver projects on time and under budget.
Conversion: Bottom of the funnel
Now we're getting to the point where our readers are seriously considering solutions to their problems. Our content at this stage needs to clearly demonstrate why our SaaS is the best choice.
For our project management SaaS, bottom-of-funnel content might include:
- Detailed product comparisons (“ProjectPro vs. Competitors: A Feature-by-Feature Comparison”)
- In-depth case studies (“How Company X Increased Productivity by 50% with ProjectPro”)
- Free trials or demos (“Try ProjectPro Free for 14 Days”)
| Buyer Persona | Sales Cycle Stage | Content Type | Conversion Goal | Avg. Conversion Rate | Key Objection Addressed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technical Decision Maker | Evaluation | API Documentation + Sandbox | Trial Sign-up | 8-12% | Integration complexity |
| Financial Decision Maker | Justification | TCO Calculator + ROI Case Study | Sales Call Booking | 15-20% | Cost justification |
| End User | Consideration | Interactive Product Tour | Free Trial Activation | 25-30% | Ease of use |
| Executive Sponsor | Negotiation | Customized Proposal + Competitor Battle Card | Contract Signing | 40-50% | Strategic fit |
The key here is to be specific and data-driven. Vague claims like “We're the best project management solution” won't cut it. You need to show exactly how your product solves real problems for real customers.
Expansion: Post-purchase content
A lot of SaaS companies make the mistake of thinking their content marketing job is done once a customer signs up. But in the world of SaaS, where churn is a constant threat and expansion revenue is crucial, post-purchase content is vital.
This might include:
- Onboarding guides and tutorials
- Regular product update announcements
- Advanced tips and tricks for power users
- Customer spotlight features
The goal here is twofold: reduce churn by ensuring customers are getting the most out of your product, and drive expansion revenue by showcasing advanced features or use cases that might encourage upgrades.
Testimonials: Social proof throughout
Finally, we have testimonials. These aren't confined to a single stage of the funnel, but should be sprinkled throughout.
From short quote snippets in your blog posts to full-blown case studies, social proof is a powerful way to build trust and credibility at every stage of the buyer's journey.
Made to STIRC: Creating compelling content
Now that we've covered the structure of our funnel, let's talk about how to create content that actually moves people through it. I use a framework I call STIRC:
- S: Surprising — presents unexpected new information or theories
- T: True — we actually believe it
- I: Important — has an impact on our behavior
- R: Relevant — related to domains we care about
- C: Cool — we think we'll look impressive for sharing it
It's hard to hit all five of these in every piece of content. You're not going to be able to do it every time. But at least you know what you're looking for.
| Content Concept | S | T | I | R | C | Total Score | Refinement Suggestion to Boost Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "AI in SaaS: Hype vs. Reality" | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 21/25 | Add proprietary data to boost 'Cool' factor |
| "The Hidden Psychology of User Onboarding" | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 23/25 | Validate theories with A/B test results for higher 'True' score |
| "2025 SaaS Trends: Our Bold Predictions" | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 22/25 | Partner with analyst firm to increase 'True' score |
| "The Counterintuitive Math of Freemium" | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 23/25 | Add interactive calculator to boost 'Relevant' and 'Cool' scores |
For example, let's say we're writing a top-of-funnel blog post for our project management SaaS. A title like “5 Surprising Statistics About Project Failure (And What They Mean for Your Business)” could tick all the STIRC boxes:
- Surprising: The statistics are unexpected
- True: They're based on real research
- Important: Project failure impacts businesses significantly
- Relevant: It's directly related to project management
- Cool: Readers will look knowledgeable sharing these stats with colleagues
The power of sacred deadlines
I didn't set content deadlines until last year, and it was by far our best and most prolific year as a content marketing team. Once we committed to publishing weekly, everything improved. The engagement numbers went up, sure, but more importantly we learned to control our creativity. We no longer needed to wait for inspiration to strike, we just sat down and started working and we knew eventually something good would come out.
When you're starting out, especially if you're a small SaaS without a dedicated content team, it will be hard to make a deadline feel sacred. The best way to do it is to start a newsletter where you promise you'll publish on a certain day of the week, every week, rain or shine. This is painful, but necessary. The best way to improve your content marketing is to publish a lot of content. Hoarding drafts teaches you little.
| Week | Blog Post | Social Media | Email Newsletter | Lead Magnet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | "10 PM Best Practices" | 5 Twitter tips | Monthly roundup | PM checklist |
| Week 2 | "Agile vs. Waterfall" | LinkedIn poll | Product update | Comparison guide |
| Week 3 | "Customer Success Story" | Instagram carousel | Case study highlight | ROI calculator |
| Week 4 | "Future of Remote Work" | Facebook Live Q&A | Industry news digest | Remote work toolkit |
Content marketing for SaaS is like playing Battleship. You don't know how a piece will land until you put it out there. Over time, the more shots you take, the more you can form a map in your mind of what works and what doesn't for your specific audience and product.
A final word: Detachment from metrics
Never let the scoreboard (page views, email opens, conversion rates, etc.) affect your motivation too much. This is impossible, of course, but it's worth striving toward. If publishing content starts to feel like pulling the lever of a slot machine, you're in trouble. Marketers do awful things when they become addicted to metrics. It becomes a sort of game where they try to make the numbers go up, and they lose touch with the reason to create content in the first place. This eventually has the perverse effect of making the numbers go down, because readers don't want to be pandered to.
I learned this the hard way. In the first year of DataDab, the growth metrics were all up and to the right. Gradually I began to feel as if I was on a high wire—one mediocre piece of content away from alienating our audience. The stress consumed me, and I stopped having fun creating content. The numbers suffered, and I started publishing less often so I could “focus on building the business.” In retrospect, almost everything I did besides create or strategize about content was a waste of time that cost the company significant momentum.
At some point early last year, I pulled myself out of this funk. I committed to a weekly publishing schedule. This structure did not make my anxiety disappear, but it did force me to confront it. I realized an important lesson: content creation can and should be fun. You should do it because you get a thrill out of it. Sure, it can also be hard, but so can everything. Focus on the parts you like. When you sit down to create, remind yourself that you're doing so in order to experience those fun, joyful moments of connecting with your audience and helping them solve real problems. This taps into—and even expands—a much more durable form of motivation than metric-chasing: intrinsic satisfaction.
When you publish, of course you'll be happy if you get a good response. But the balanced reaction is more along the lines of “Huh, they liked that? Interesting…,” rather than, “OMG they like us!!! We are not worthless after all!”
If I'm being honest, the hopes and dreams of that guy sitting at the rickety IKEA desk in the converted closet were closer to garnering the latter reaction than the former. I wanted to create content so I could learn about SaaS marketing, partly because I found the subject valuable and interesting, but also so I could become a Smart Guy™ in the eyes of the SaaS Twitter crowd. Now I'm not so sure how much that matters to me. I'm more attuned to the work that gives me joy and brings genuine value to our clients' businesses. I still have an ego and perform my little routines to try and fortify it. But the ego has less of a death grip on me now. I can set it aside, and allow feelings like curiosity and joy take over when I create content. It is and always will be a work in progress—a bit of a mess at times. But it's me. I'm learning to feel okay with that.
And that, my friends, is how you create a SaaS content marketing funnel that not only works, but keeps you sane in the process. Now go forth and create some killer content!
FAQ
1. What is a SaaS content marketing funnel?
A SaaS content marketing funnel is a strategic approach to creating and distributing content that guides potential customers through their buyer's journey, from awareness to purchase and beyond. It's designed to attract, educate, and convert leads into customers for your SaaS product.
2. How long does it take to see results from a content marketing funnel?
Results can vary, but typically, you'll start seeing initial traction within 3-6 months. However, significant results often take 6-12 months or more. Consistency and quality are key to long-term success.
3. Do I need different types of content for each stage of the funnel?
Yes, absolutely. Top-of-funnel content should be broad and educational, middle-of-funnel content should demonstrate your expertise, and bottom-of-funnel content should directly address how your SaaS solves specific problems.
4. How can I measure the effectiveness of my content marketing funnel?
Track metrics like traffic, engagement rates, lead generation, and conversion rates. More importantly, align these metrics with your overall business goals, such as customer acquisition cost and lifetime value.
5. Is it better to focus on quantity or quality of content?
Quality should always be your priority. However, a consistent publishing schedule is also important. Aim for a balanced approach where you regularly produce high-quality content.
6. How can I come up with content ideas that resonate with my audience?
Use tools like keyword research, social listening, and customer feedback. Also, engage with your sales and support teams to understand common questions and pain points your audience faces.
7. Should I gate all of my content?
No, gating all content can deter potential readers. Use a mix of freely available content to build trust and gated premium content to generate leads. The key is to provide enough value in your free content to encourage users to exchange their information for more in-depth resources.
8. How does SEO fit into a SaaS content marketing funnel?
SEO is crucial, especially for top-of-funnel content. It helps your content get discovered by potential customers searching for solutions to their problems. Incorporate relevant keywords naturally, focus on user intent, and ensure your content provides genuine value.
9. Can I repurpose content across different stages of the funnel?
Absolutely! Repurposing content is an efficient way to maximize your efforts. For example, a detailed whitepaper (middle-of-funnel) can be broken down into blog posts (top-of-funnel) or condensed into a case study (bottom-of-funnel).
10. How do I align my content marketing funnel with my sales process?
Work closely with your sales team to understand the typical buyer's journey. Create content that addresses common questions and objections at each stage. Develop a lead scoring system to help sales prioritize leads based on their engagement with your content.
