Top of Funnel Marketing Explained for Small Business Owners

As a small business owner, you know sales are essential. But here’s the truth: sales don’t just happen because you have a great product or service.

Sales happen when you understand the entire customer journey — from the moment someone first hears about you to the point they become a loyal customer who keeps coming back.

This journey is called the marketing funnel.

And if you want predictable growth, you need to master every stage of it — not just the sale at the bottom.

The Customer Journey: TOFU → MOFU → BOFU → POFU

Here’s the funnel explained in simple terms:

  1. Top of Funnel (TOFU) – Awareness
    • People notice you for the first time.
    • Your goal: win attention, be visible.
  2. Middle of Funnel (MOFU) – Consideration
    • They’re curious. They start comparing options.
    • Your goal: educate, build trust, show credibility.
  3. Bottom of Funnel (BOFU) – Decision
    • They’re ready to buy.
    • Your goal: make the decision easy, remove friction.
  4. Post Funnel (POFU) – Retention & Growth
    • After the sale, the journey isn’t over.
    • Your goal: delight them, turn them into repeat buyers and referrers.

👉 If you focus only on BOFU (sales), you’ll constantly struggle with “not enough customers.”

👉 If you forget POFU, you’ll always be chasing new customers instead of keeping the ones you already earned.

The Shop Location Analogy: Why Visibility is Step One

Imagine you own a retail shop.

  • Shop A is on the busiest street in town.
  • Shop B is hidden on a quiet backstreet.

Who gets more customers? Shop A.

Why? Because it has visibility.

Even if Shop A doesn’t spend money on marketing, people naturally notice it. Some walk in. Some buy.

Shop B, on the other hand, might have better products and service — but if nobody sees it, nobody buys.

That’s why businesses pay more rent for shops in shopping centers or high streets: they’re paying for attention.

When You Do Online Marketing, It’s the Same

The internet is no different.

  • Some businesses are on the “digital high street” → first page of Google, active on social media, visible in maps and reviews.
  • Others are on the “digital backstreet” → buried on page 5 of Google, with no presence on social media or Google Business Profile.

👉 The businesses with visibility attract more attention.

👉 The businesses without it remain invisible, no matter how good they are.

So the first question is not “How do I sell more?” but “How do I make sure the right people even know I exist?”

That’s what TOFU is all about.

Who Is Your Audience & Where Are They?

Not everyone is your customer. The key is knowing:

  1. Who they are.
    • A local café might target office workers and students.
    • A gym might target beginners, not just athletes.
    • A funeral service targets grieving families, not just anyone searching “flowers.”
  2. Where they are.
    • Families search on Google Maps for “pizza near me.”
    • Young professionals scroll Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube.
    • B2B buyers live on LinkedIn and industry forums.
  3. How they buy.
    • Do they walk in after seeing a sign? (offline equivalent = Google Maps + GBP).
    • Do they compare reviews before booking? (Google reviews, Yelp, TripAdvisor).
    • Do they follow influencers or friends’ recommendations?

👉 Once you know who, where, and how, you can focus your TOFU strategy on the right channels.

How to Get Visibility That Matters (TOFU Strategies)

Here are the main ways to win attention at the top of the funnel:

1. Paid Ads

  • Google Search Ads: Perfect for people actively searching. (e.g., “emergency plumber near me”).
  • Social Ads (Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn): Great for targeting demographics and interests. (e.g., showing a new café ad to local food lovers).

2. Google Business Profile (GBP)

  • Absolutely critical for local businesses.
  • Shows your business on Maps + “near me” searches.
  • Example: A dentist with optimized GBP shows up first when someone types “dentist near me.”

3. Personal Brand & Founder Visibility

  • People trust people more than logos.
  • Example: A gym owner shares workout tips on LinkedIn → people trust him → they check out his gym.

4. Influencer & Partner Marketing

  • Partner with micro-influencers your audience already trusts.
  • Example: A local bakery invites a food blogger to review their bread → her audience visits the shop.

5. Reviews & Word of Mouth (Boosted Online)

  • Ask happy customers for Google reviews.
  • Share testimonials on social media.
  • Example: A coaching business shares video testimonials → builds instant trust at TOFU.

Why Discounts Are Not TOFU

Most businesses make this mistake: they try to attract new customers with discounts.

  • “10% off your first order.”
  • “Buy one get one free.”
  • “Free appetizer for new diners.”

Here’s the truth:

  • Discounts only work when someone already knows your business.
  • If they’re already aware, a discount might push them to buy.
  • But if they’ve never heard of you, a discount doesn’t matter.

👉 Discounts belong in MOFU/BOFU.

👉 TOFU is about attention, awareness, and visibility.

Example Scenarios

Example 1: Local Restaurant

  • TOFU: Show up in “best brunch near me” searches on Google Maps. Run Instagram ads showing food photos to locals.
  • MOFU: Collect emails with a “VIP brunch list” sign-up. Share menus and reviews.
  • BOFU: Offer a “10% off first brunch” coupon to email subscribers.
  • POFU: Send loyalty rewards and invite them back weekly.

Example 2: Fitness Coach

  • TOFU: Appear on TikTok with short “beginner workout” videos.
  • MOFU: Offer a free “7-day workout plan” to email subscribers.
  • BOFU: Sell a paid fitness program.
  • POFU: Create a private group for clients with ongoing tips and support.

Example 3: Ecommerce Skincare Brand

  • TOFU: Run Facebook ads for a free “Skin Type Quiz.”
  • MOFU: Educate leads with product comparison emails.
  • BOFU: Offer a first-purchase discount.
  • POFU: Upsell with “subscribe & save” plans and referral bonuses.

Mistakes to Avoid

  1. Skipping TOFU. Jumping straight to sales.
  2. Targeting everyone. You need the right audience, not the biggest audience.
  3. Overusing discounts. Discounts are for consideration/decision, not awareness.
  4. Neglecting GBP & reviews. For local businesses, this is the #1 TOFU tool.
  5. One-channel thinking. Visibility needs a mix (ads, GBP, personal brand, partnerships).

Best Practices

  • Start with audience clarity: who they are, where they are, how they buy.
  • Focus on visibility in the right places, not everywhere.
  • Mix short-term tactics (ads) with long-term visibility (reviews, personal brand).
  • Capture leads at every stage to move people down the funnel.
  • Don’t forget POFU: keep customers engaged after the first sale.

Final Thoughts

Top of Funnel (TOFU) marketing is not about posting random content or giving discounts. It’s about visibility that matters — getting your business noticed by the right people, in the right places, at the right time.

The full funnel looks like this:

  • TOFU: Get attention (visibility).
  • MOFU: Build trust (education, reviews).
  • BOFU: Drive decisions (offers, discounts, easy purchase).
  • POFU: Keep customers (retention, loyalty, referrals).

If you only focus on sales at the bottom, you’ll always struggle. But when you build visibility at the top and retention at the end, you’ll have a healthy funnel that keeps sales flowing.