Earlier, we introduced the Total Funnel Narrative Approach (TFNA), a groundbreaking content strategy designed to revolutionize how we engage with potential customers throughout their buyer’s journey. In that introduction, we explored how TFNA integrates the various stages of Initial Research, Consideration, and Final Conversion into a single, cohesive narrative. This approach ensures that every piece of content is tailored to meet the evolving needs of the audience, guiding them seamlessly from one stage to the next.
The Total Funnel Narrative Approach
In this go around we are diving deeper into the structural intricacies that make the Total Funnel Narrative Approach so effective. To begin with, let’s explore the importance of content length in the TFNA framework, where each piece is crafted not just to inform but to fully engage and guide the reader.
TFNA Content-Length
In crafting content under TFNA, we take on a task that requires meticulous research, iterative editing, and a deep understanding of our audience’s needs.
The expansive nature of TFNA content pieces, ranging from 2,500 to 10,000+ words, reflects our commitment to covering every facet of the subject. This wide-ranging word count isn’t arbitrary but is thoughtfully aligned with the subject’s complexity and the industry’s demands.
Given these narratives’ substantial length and depth, on-page navigation—or a TOC—becomes an indispensable tool, guiding readers directly to the information they seek without unnecessary scrolling or frustration.
To contextualize the scale and intention behind TFNA content, consider the common experience of searching for a recipe online. It’s a scenario many of us are familiar with: you’re searching for a simple grilled cheese sandwich recipe. But you find yourself navigating through a lengthy narrative about the author’s great-grandmother’s adventures in Italy and her profound love for goats. While engaging, these sprawling stories, often followed by detailed discourses on the nuances of creating a grilled cheese sandwich, can frustrate users who simply want the recipe. While rich in storytelling, such content typically lacks user-oriented navigation, forcing readers to scroll endlessly past ads and unrelated anecdotes to reach the crux of their search.
This is where the TFNA diverges significantly from less user-centric approaches. While acknowledging the value of comprehensive, in-depth content, our strategy is fundamentally designed with the user’s journey in mind. Every section of a TFNA piece is meticulously crafted to align with the searcher’s needs, ensuring that the content delivered is relevant and easily accessible.
Implementing a TOC or similar navigational aids allows users to bypass content that may not be immediately relevant to them, offering a pathway to precisely what they’re looking for, whether it’s an overview, detailed analysis, or actionable insights.
Our philosophy centers on the belief that while depth and detail are valuable, they should not come at the expense of user experience. TFNA content is constructed to empower the reader, allowing them to explore content in a way that best suits their needs and preferences.
An Important Note From John Mueller:
“There is no universally ideal content length. Focus on bringing unique value to the web overall, which doesn’t mean just adding more words.”
Each piece is a carefully orchestrated ensemble of information presented in a manner that respects the reader’s time and intelligence. By prioritizing accessibility and relevance, we ensure that our content genuinely serves the interests and requirements of our audience, distinguishing our approach from the one-dimensional narratives that dominate many online experiences.
The length and structure of TFNA content are designed to reflect our deep engagement with the topic and our commitment to delivering a user-first experience.
Through strategic planning and thoughtful execution, we create content that is comprehensive, authoritative, and considerate of the reader, setting a new standard for content that truly resonates with its intended audience. (Back to Top)
TFNA Content Structure
TFNA utilizes a meticulously structured format to enhance readability, navigation, and user engagement. This structure is characterized by the strategic use of header tags, creating a clear hierarchy of content that facilitates easy access through in-page navigation.
Each header serves as an anchor point, seamlessly integrated into the TOC, allowing readers to jump directly to sections of interest.
Example Breakdown of the TFNA Structure:
H1: Main Title
Introduction to the topic, setting the stage for the narrative.
TOC (Table of Contents)
A navigable list of sections, each linked to its corresponding header tag within the content.
H2: Initial Research Phase
Introduction to Initial Research
Brief overview of the phase and what readers can expect to learn.
H3: Understanding the Basics
Detailed exploration of fundamental concepts.
Visual Element: Infographic or video summarizing key points.
H3: Exploring Options
Comparative analysis or list of options available to the reader.
Visual Element: Comparative chart or slideshow.
H2: Consideration Stage
Introduction to Consideration
Overview of the stage, emphasizing the evaluation of options.
H3: Deep Dive into Features and Benefits
In-depth analysis of product/service features and benefits.
Visual Element: Video testimonials or detailed product images.
H3: Comparing Alternatives
Comparative analysis of the product/service against alternatives.
Visual Element: Side-by-side comparison images or interactive comparison tool.
H2: Final Conversion Stage
Introduction to Conversion
Explanation of the stage, focusing on making the final decision.
H3: Addressing Last-minute Concerns
FAQs or concerns with detailed answers to reassure readers.
Visual Element: Assurance video or certification badges.
H3: Why Choose Us
Persuasive argument presenting the unique value proposition.
Visual Element: Success stories or case study highlights.
H2: CTA
Direct Invitation
Encouraging the reader to take the next step, be it contacting for more information, signing up, or making a purchase.
Visual Element: Engaging CTA Button or Interactive Form
Positioned as a natural conclusion to the journey, inviting immediate action.
Throughout the TFNA structure, visual elements are strategically placed to complement the text and deepen engagement. These elements are aligned with content to provide a break from text-heavy sections, offer visual explanations, and present real-world applications of the concepts discussed.
The goal is to create a repeating cycle of engagement where textual content draws the reader in, and visual elements encourage further exploration of the subsequent text. The TFNA’s structured approach to content creation offers a dynamic and interactive reading experience.
Combining detailed, stage-specific information with engaging visual elements and efficient navigation ensures that each piece of content delivers value to the reader, regardless of their position in the buyer’s journey. (Back to Top)
The TFNA Micro Funnel
The concept of a Micro Funnel within TFNA offers a sophisticated expansion of traditional content marketing strategies. This is similar to the relationship between a pillar article and its interlinked supporting content, content silos, conversion funnels, or topic cluster methodologies – but it is also none of them.
In the TFNA framework, this Micro Funnel model is refined and strategically deployed to support and enhance the main narrative’s reach and effectiveness. A Micro Funnel consists of several shorter, supporting articles that delve into specific nuances or offshoot topics related to the main TFNA piece.
These articles are typically concise, ranging from 750 to 1,500 words, offering focused deep dives into areas that the broader TFNA piece might touch upon more generally. The goal of each supporting article is to explore a particular aspect in greater depth, providing additional value and insights to the reader.
One of the key features of the Micro Funnel structure is the strategic interlinking between the TFNA piece and its supporting articles. This interconnected web allows users to easily navigate from the main narrative to these detailed explorations and back again, creating a cohesive content ecosystem.
This seamless navigation ensures that users remain engaged within the TFNA ecosystem, enhancing their understanding and relationship with the content.
The Micro Funnel strategy is not just about enriching the user experience; it also plays a significant role in search engine rankings. By surrounding the main TFNA piece with a constellation of interlinked, topic-relevant supporting articles, the entire structure gains authority. This comprehensive coverage and interconnectivity help the TFNA piece, and its supporting articles rank higher in SERPs.
Alongside this, the authority of the main TFNA piece is shared with its supporting articles through their interlinks. This mutual reinforcement means that when users search for more niche or specific aspects of the main topic, search engines are more likely to present them with one of the supporting articles.
Once users land on these articles, they’re seamlessly brought back into the broader narrative of the TFNA, closing the loop of the Micro Funnel.
The Micro Funnel within the TFNA framework represents a strategic, user-focused approach to content creation and depth. It leverages the strengths of traditional content marketing structures while introducing a level of depth, interconnectivity, and SEO optimization that sets it apart, ensuring that the content not only meets the audience’s diverse needs but also achieves prominent visibility and authority online. (Back to Top)
The TFNA Macro Funnel
The TFNA Macro Funnel represents a grand architecture of interlinked content ecosystems that comprehensively cover an entire domain or industry.
This advanced strategy involves the orchestration of multiple Micro Funnels, each dedicated to the different nuances of each buyer persona for each product or service the site offers. This tailored approach enhances relevance and conversion potential as users encounter content that speaks directly to their needs and preferences at scale.
Whether they enter through a Micro Funnel’s supporting article or the main TFNA piece, users can navigate effortlessly across related topics, deepening their engagement and understanding of the subject matter.
The cumulative effect of implementing the TFNA Macro Funnel strategy is the transformation of the site into an unassailable authority within its niche.
This is achieved through several fundamental mechanisms:
- Comprehensive Coverage: The Macro Funnel’s expansive scope ensures that virtually every aspect of the industry is covered, making the site a go-to resource for information seekers.
- Organic Growth: The interlinking of Micro Funnels within the larger Macro Funnel framework creates a network of SEO-friendly content. This lifts the site’s overall search ranking, as search engines favor sites that provide comprehensive, logically interconnected content.
- Building Trust and Credibility: The depth, accuracy, and user-focused design of the TFNA Macro Funnel content build trust and credibility with users. Over time, as users consistently encounter and benefit from the site’s content, this trust translates into loyalty and advocacy, further amplifying the site’s authority.
- Endless Scalability: The TFNA Macro Funnel’s modular structure allows for endless expansion, enabling the site to adapt to emerging trends, new products, and evolving user interests. This adaptability ensures long-term relevance and dominance in search.
The TFNA Macro Funnel strategy represents a visionary content marketing and SEO approach. The strategy ensures unparalleled reach and engagement by creating a dense network of interlinked Micro Funnels, each addressing specific aspects of the industry and buyer personas.
Within the broader architecture of the TFNA Macro Funnel strategy, traditional content methodologies can play a role in enhancing and refining the overall approach. By integrating these conventional frameworks, marketers can leverage the strengths of each model to create a more robust and comprehensive content strategy. Some of these traditional content methodologies are content silos and topic clusters.
Content Silos refer to the organization of content around specific topics or themes without necessarily linking individual silo structures together. While this approach can lead to depth in individual subjects, integrating these silos within the TFNA framework can provide a more structured and interconnected user experience. Each silo can act as a standalone pillar within a Micro Funnel, contributing to the funnel’s overall narrative and supporting the user’s journey through targeted information.
Topic Clusters involve creating a series of related content pieces that are linked to a central ‘pillar’ post, which broadly covers a main topic. This method enhances SEO through semantic relevance and internal linking while building a larger and more comprehensive informational layer that contributes to deepening overall topical authority.
Marketers can create a dynamic and versatile content ecosystem by weaving traditional content methodologies into the TFNA Macro Funnel. This integrated approach not only respects the principles of traditional SEO and content marketing but also aligns them with a larger, more ambitious strategy. The result is a more comprehensive, user-centric, and search-optimized content framework that elevates the standard for industry-specific marketing. (Back to Top)
TFNA Frequency
Every piece of content that comes under the TFNA umbrella needs to hit the mark regarding value, accuracy, and engagement. This isn’t just about filling up space on a site; it’s about building brand reputation, cementing authority, and genuinely connecting with the audience. And let’s not gloss over the importance of doing your homework. Thorough research and thoughtful content development take time and effort; this isn’t the place to cut corners.
There’s an art to getting the balance right between how much content you put out there and ensuring each piece is up to scratch.
Whether you’re crafting a keystone TFNA piece or a deep-dive article for one of your Micro Funnels, the goal is to ensure every piece of content is informative, meticulously researched, and perfectly tailored to what your audience is looking for.
So, while we’re pushing the envelope on the amount of content and possibly ramping up the frequency of our efforts, remember that this is all in pursuit of a larger goal. It’s not just about filling up your content calendar; it’s about consistently delivering quality that speaks volumes about the brand and keeps the audience coming back for more.
Here’s how to lock onto your content’s target rhythm:
- Focus on your team. You need to match the pace of content production with their capacity. Pushing out content too hastily will compromise its quality.
- Monitoring what your competitors are doing is valuable recon, helping you determine if you need to accelerate your content cadence to stay ahead in the race. This is the top metric we use for initial pace decisions within industries.
- Engagement and feedback are like your applause meter here. If your posts get a lot of love, comments, and shares, it’s a good sign your audience is asking for an encore.
- And then there’s search placement—frequent, high-quality content deployments can help you break through, but it’s important to avoid flooding your site with material that doesn’t serve your strategic goals.
Each piece of content should be a strategic move on the chessboard, not just a move for the sake of moving. (Back to Top)
TFNA Distribution
After successfully deploying a TFNA piece or one of its supporting pieces, we head straight to Google Search Console. At this point, we have an integrated sitemap. Odds are also high that we have a tool auto-updating that sitemap and a function to ping Search Console of the change. I don’t care. I’m immediately telling Google to scrape and index those new URLs.
After that, it’s straight off to social feeds. Whether immediate or scheduled, these will be shared on those platforms alongside their usual mix of social-focused, engaging posts. We’ll leverage some other social link-sharing platforms, like Tumblr and Pinterest, and get them shared there.
After we know the content is indexed, we may syndicate that content on sites like Medium.
But one of our favorite things to do is hit Reddit and Quora. Because of the depth of these content pieces, we can almost always find someone asking a question that we have answered inside. When we find those, we have our profiles in place to naturally engage, give that answer in our own words, and say, “Here’s a link that really breaks this down.” Simple, effective, and unintrusive.
Then, we have newsletter flows. We’ll integrate these content pieces as useful add-ons in newsletter campaigns. Because they are so insightful, they meet the user at any stage of their journey, and have expanded information that even current customers will find helpful – engagement goes immediately up.
If the business happens to be local and has a GBP (Google Business Profile), we will also utilize these as posts on that platform. To do this, we’ll grab the cover or featured image for the post we created on the site and make it the image for the GBP post. We then create an interesting yet short description of the post in the text area and utilize the “Learn More” button option with the article link inserted. This offers another way to keep that platform updated and engaged without too much extra work.
With that little flow of events, we’ll see traffic start flowing to these URLs, and we push the needle for faster organic growth simultaneously.
If the campaign fits, we add this as a site link or primary landing link inside a Google PPC campaign. We’ve actually seen great success running ads against these large TFNA pieces, leading to considerable conversion numbers. You can also leverage a cheaper alternative and gain some user insight and exposure simultaneously by running these through a Google Performance Max Campaign. Super cheap clicks that spread all over various platforms.
See: Running Google Ads for Your Business
Wrap Up
The Total Funnel Narrative Approach (TFNA) a transformative content strategy. From its expansive content length designed to cover every facet of a subject, to its meticulously structured format that enhances readability and user engagement, TFNA is built with the user at its core. We’ve examined how this approach diverges from traditional content strategies by offering a seamless, user-centric experience that guides readers through the entire buyer’s journey, ensuring each piece of content is not only informative but also highly relevant and accessible.
The TFNA framework, with its strategic use of Micro and Macro Funnels, allows for the creation of a comprehensive content ecosystem that enhances SEO, builds authority, and fosters a deeper connection with the audience. By prioritizing user experience, integrating navigation aids, and tailoring content to specific personas, TFNA sets a new standard for how content can effectively drive engagement and conversion.
As we’ve demonstrated, TFNA is not just about creating content; it’s about crafting a narrative that resonates with the reader, respects their journey, and ultimately guides them to a well-informed decision. This approach redefines what it means to produce valuable content, establishing a model that we hope others will aspire to follow.
