The consideration stage is the most underinvested yet high-impact phase of the marketing funnel. Sitting between the awareness stage (where buyers realize they have a problem) and the decision stage (where they select a final vendor), this middle-of-funnel (MOFU) phase is where 80% of leads drop off without targeted nurture, per HubSpot research. Effective consideration stage marketing techniques bridge the gap between casual interest and purchase intent, helping prospects evaluate your solution against competitors.
This guide breaks down 12 proven strategies to optimize your MOFU efforts, including content formats, lead scoring, retargeting, and sales alignment. You will learn how to create high-converting assets, measure performance, and avoid common pitfalls that waste marketing spend. We also include a step-by-step launch guide, tool recommendations, and a real-world case study to help you implement these tactics immediately.
Whether you run a B2B SaaS brand or a D2C ecommerce store, these actionable strategies will help you reduce lead drop-off, lower customer acquisition costs, and increase revenue from existing traffic.
What Is the Consideration Stage of the Marketing Funnel?
What is the consideration stage of the marketing funnel? The consideration stage is the middle phase of the buyer journey where prospects who have identified their core problem evaluate specific vendors, products, or solutions to address it. This stage sits between the awareness stage (where buyers recognize their problem) and the decision stage (where buyers select a final vendor).
Unlike the awareness stage, where content focuses on educating buyers about their problem, consideration stage marketing techniques prioritize helping prospects compare solutions. For a B2B buyer looking for project management software, this stage involves researching tools like Asana, Trello, and Monday.com, reading case studies, and watching product demos. A 2023 Google study found 71% of B2B buyers consume 3+ pieces of vendor-provided content during this stage before engaging with sales.
Actionable tip: Interview 5-10 current customers to identify the top 3 criteria they used to evaluate your solution vs competitors. Use these criteria to guide all your middle-funnel content creation.
Common mistake: Many brands repurpose awareness stage blog posts for the consideration stage, which fails because prospects already understand their problem and want solution-specific information, not general education.
Why Consideration Stage Marketing Techniques Matter for Revenue Growth
Most brands allocate 60-70% of their marketing budget to awareness campaigns, but this is a costly mistake. Gartner research shows 70% of the buyer journey is complete before a prospect contacts sales, meaning the consideration stage has the largest impact on final conversion rates. For every $1 spent on MOFU content, brands see an average $5 return in revenue, compared to $2 for awareness content.
A D2C skincare brand that optimized its consideration stage marketing techniques saw a 30% increase in average order value and a 25% lower return rate. By adding detailed product comparison guides and before-and-after customer case studies to product pages, the brand helped prospects feel confident in their purchase decision before checking out.
Actionable tip: Allocate 30-40% of your total marketing budget to MOFU initiatives, and track MQL to SQL conversion rates to measure ROI instead of vanity awareness metrics like social media likes.
Common mistake: Over-investing in top-of-funnel traffic generation while ignoring the middle funnel, leading to high bounce rates and wasted ad spend on leads that never convert.
Top Consideration Stage Content Formats That Convert
The most effective consideration stage marketing techniques rely on content that helps prospects evaluate solutions, not just learn about their problem. High-performing formats include case studies, comparison guides, educational webinars, product demo recordings, and FAQ pages tailored to common evaluation questions.
A cybersecurity firm created a gated “2024 SMB Firewall Comparison Guide” that compared its tool to 4 top competitors, highlighting unbiased pros and cons for each. The guide generated 1,200 MQLs in 3 months, with 18% of downloaders requesting follow-up demos. Ahrefs data shows comparison guides have a 17% average conversion rate, the highest of any MOFU content format.
Actionable tip: Gate high-value assets like 10+ page comparison guides or webinar replays to capture lead contact information, but leave shorter FAQ pages ungated to build trust with casual visitors.
Common mistake: Using only blog posts for MOFU content, which lack the depth and social proof prospects need to feel confident evaluating your solution.
Comparison of Top Consideration Stage Content Formats
| Content Type | Primary Goal | Best For | Avg. Conversion Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case Studies | Build trust with real customer results | B2B SaaS, Professional Services | 13% |
| Comparison Guides | Help prospects evaluate your solution vs competitors | B2B, Ecommerce | 17% |
| Educational Webinars | Demonstrate expertise and product value | B2B, Enterprise Brands | 19% |
| Email Nurture Drips | Stay top-of-mind with segmented leads | All Industries | 12% |
| Retargeting Ads | Re-engage website visitors who didn’t convert | Ecommerce, B2C | 8% |
Data sourced from HubSpot’s 2024 Middle-of-Funnel Benchmark Report.
How to Use Lead Scoring to Segment Consideration Stage Prospects
Lead scoring assigns point values to prospect behaviors to differentiate high-intent MQLs from casual website visitors. For consideration stage marketing techniques to work, you must prioritize leads that have shown intent to evaluate solutions, such as downloading a comparison guide or visiting a pricing page.
A manufacturing equipment company implemented lead scoring that assigned 10 points for downloading a case study, 15 points for visiting the pricing page, and 20 points for watching a product demo. Leads with 30+ points were passed to sales as SQLs, resulting in a 50% higher sales acceptance rate and 22% shorter sales cycle.
Actionable tip: Create a shared lead scoring system with your sales team to ensure all behaviors tied to points align with their definition of a qualified lead. Update scores in real time as prospects consume more MOFU content.
Common mistake: Using static lead scores that don’t adjust when prospects go cold (e.g., no website activity for 30+ days), leading to wasted sales outreach on uninterested leads.
Email Nurture Campaigns for the Consideration Stage
Automated email drip campaigns are one of the most scalable consideration stage marketing techniques. These sequences trigger when a prospect takes a specific action (e.g., downloading a comparison guide) and send 1-2 emails per week with educational, non-salesy content tailored to their evaluation stage.
A fitness app used a 5-email nurture sequence for free trial users who hadn’t upgraded after 7 days. Emails included customer success stories, feature comparison guides, and links to on-demand workout demos. The sequence drove a 22% conversion rate from free to paid users, and 15% of users who clicked through requested 1:1 onboarding calls.
Actionable tip: Reference the specific content the prospect downloaded in your email copy (e.g., “Hi [Name], here are 2 more case studies to complement the comparison guide you downloaded last week”) to increase open and click-through rates.
Common mistake: Sending generic, one-size-fits-all emails that don’t reference the prospect’s past behavior, leading to high unsubscribe rates.
Retargeting Ads to Re-Engage Consideration Stage Leads
70% of website visitors leave without converting, and retargeting ads are the only way to re-engage these high-intent prospects. For consideration stage marketing techniques, retargeting ads should highlight social proof, comparison benefits, and low-risk offers like free trials or demo requests.
A B2B HR tool retargeted visitors who viewed its pricing page with LinkedIn ads reading “See why 500+ SMBs chose [Tool] over BambooHR and Gusto” with a link to a 2-minute product demo. The campaign had a 35% lower cost per lead than top-of-funnel ads, and 12% of clickers requested a sales demo.
Actionable tip: Use dynamic retargeting to show ads featuring the specific products or content a prospect viewed on your site, rather than generic brand ads.
Common mistake: Retargeting users who have already converted (e.g., requested a demo or made a purchase) with the same ads, wasting ad spend and annoying customers.
Building Social Proof to Accelerate Consideration Stage Decisions
What is the most effective social proof for the consideration stage? Third-party verified reviews, detailed case studies with quantifiable results, and industry awards outperform internal testimonials by 3x in conversion impact, per a 2024 Moz study. Prospects in the consideration stage trust peer feedback more than brand messaging.
An ecommerce electronics brand added comparison tables to product pages that included user reviews, star ratings, and “why customers chose this over X competitor” callouts. The brand saw an 18% higher conversion rate on product pages with these elements, and a 12% increase in average order value as customers felt more confident in their purchase.
Actionable tip: Embed short case study snippets and star ratings on pricing pages and product pages to reduce friction for prospects evaluating your solution.
Common mistake: Only using internal testimonials from employees or founders, rather than third-party reviews from verified customers or industry analysts.
Comparison Content: The Highest-Converting Consideration Stage Asset
Do comparison guides need to mention competitors? Yes, unbiased comparison guides that mention 3-5 direct competitors build trust with prospects, who are already researching alternatives. Hiding competitors reduces credibility and lowers conversion rates.
A B2B SaaS brand published “Top 10 HubSpot Alternatives for Small Businesses” that included honest pros and cons for each tool, including its own. The guide ranked on page 1 of Google for 12 high-intent keywords, generated 2,000 organic visits per month, and drove 150 demo requests in its first quarter live.
Actionable tip: Highlight 1-2 areas where your solution outperforms competitors, but acknowledge areas where competitors are stronger to maintain trust.
Common mistake: Bashing competitors or making false claims about their solutions, which damages brand credibility and can lead to legal issues.
Webinars and Live Demos for Middle-Funnel Engagement
Educational webinars and live product demos are high-impact consideration stage marketing techniques that let prospects see your solution in action. Webinars focused on solving a specific pain point (e.g., “How to reduce project delays by 30% with [Tool]”) outperform sales-focused demos by 2x in attendance and lead generation.
A cloud storage company hosted a “How to Migrate Your Data to the Cloud Securely” webinar that attracted 400 attendees, 60% of whom were in the consideration stage of their buyer journey. 25% of attendees requested follow-up demos, and 10% signed up for a free trial within 2 weeks of the event.
Actionable tip: Send replay links, slide decks, and bonus resources (e.g., migration checklist) to all registrants, including no-shows, to maximize lead generation from the event.
Common mistake: Making webinars too salesy, with 50%+ of time focused on pitching rather than educating, leading to low attendance and high drop-off rates.
Aligning Sales and Marketing on Consideration Stage Handoffs
One of the most overlooked consideration stage marketing techniques is creating a shared service level agreement (SLA) between sales and marketing teams. This defines exactly when an MQL becomes an SQL, and sets expectations for how quickly sales will follow up with qualified leads.
A software company defined MQLs as prospects with 30+ lead score points who had downloaded 3+ MOFU content assets. Sales agreed to follow up with these leads within 24 hours, and marketing agreed to only pass leads that met these criteria. The result was a 60% higher lead acceptance rate and 40% shorter sales cycle.
Actionable tip: Hold monthly alignment meetings to review lead quality, adjust scoring criteria, and resolve disputes over unqualified leads passed to sales.
Common mistake: Marketing passing unqualified leads to sales to hit volume targets, which damages trust between teams and lowers overall conversion rates.
Measuring Success: KPIs for Consideration Stage Marketing
How do I measure consideration stage success? Track MQL volume, MQL to SQL conversion rate, demo request rate, content download rate, and retargeting click-through rate instead of vanity metrics like page views or social media shares. These metrics tie directly to revenue impact.
A boutique marketing agency tracked MQL to SQL rates for each piece of MOFU content, and found that case studies had a 22% conversion rate vs 8% for blog posts. The agency shifted its content budget to produce 3x more case studies, resulting in a 40% increase in SQL volume over 6 months.
Actionable tip: Use UTM parameters on all MOFU content links to track which assets drive the most qualified leads, and double down on high-performing formats.
Common mistake: Only tracking top-of-funnel metrics like website traffic, which don’t reflect how well your consideration stage marketing techniques are driving qualified leads.
Consideration Stage Techniques for B2B vs B2C Brands
Consideration stage marketing techniques vary significantly by industry. B2B brands have longer sales cycles (3-12 months) and need more in-depth, educational content like white papers and webinars. B2C brands have shorter sales cycles (hours to weeks) and prioritize social proof, short comparison videos, and user reviews.
A B2B cybersecurity firm uses 2000+ word comparison guides and live product demos for MOFU leads, while a D2C luggage brand uses 60-second TikTok videos comparing its suitcases to top competitors, plus user-generated review compilations. Both see 20%+ conversion rates from their respective MOFU content.
Actionable tip: Adjust content length to match your buyer journey: B2B content should be 1500-2500 words, while B2C content should be 500-1000 words.
Common mistake: Using B2B long-form content for B2C audiences, or short B2C social proof for B2B buyers, leading to low engagement and conversion rates.
Step-by-Step Guide to Launching Your Consideration Stage Marketing Strategy
- Map your buyer’s consideration stage journey: Interview 5-10 current customers to identify the top 5 questions they asked and content they consumed before purchasing.
- Audit existing middle-funnel content: Review your current assets to see which are underperforming, then update or retire low-converting pieces.
- Implement lead scoring: Assign point values to consideration stage behaviors (e.g., downloading a comparison guide = 10 points, visiting pricing page = 15 points) to segment MQLs from casual visitors.
- Create high-value comparison and social proof content: Build 3-5 gated assets like case studies, comparison guides, and webinar replays tailored to your buyers’ evaluation criteria.
- Set up automated email nurture drips: Create 5-7 email sequences triggered by specific behaviors (e.g., downloading a comparison guide) with educational, non-salesy content.
- Launch retargeting campaigns: Use LinkedIn, Facebook, or Google Ads to retarget visitors who viewed MOFU content or pricing pages with tailored ad copy.
- Align sales and marketing on handoff criteria: Define exactly when an MQL becomes an SQL, and create a shared SLA to ensure only qualified leads are passed to sales.
Top Tools to Streamline Consideration Stage Marketing
- HubSpot Marketing Hub: All-in-one platform for lead scoring, email nurturing, and MQL tracking. Use case: Automate lead scoring and sync MQL data with your CRM for sales handoffs.
- Ahrefs Content Explorer: Tool to research high-performing MOFU content in your niche. Use case: Identify top-ranking comparison guides and case studies to inform your own content creation.
- SEMrush Lead Generator: Tool to find contact information for website visitors who consume MOFU content. Use case: Build targeted outreach lists for sales teams to follow up with high-intent leads.
- Canva: Design platform for creating MOFU assets like comparison guides, infographics, and webinar slides. Use case: Build professional, on-brand gated content without hiring a designer.
Consideration Stage Marketing Case Study: TaskFlow SaaS
Problem: TaskFlow, a small B2B project management tool, had 10,000 monthly awareness stage visitors but only 1.2% requested demos. 80% of MQLs (users who downloaded a free trial or guide) dropped off without engaging sales.
Solution: The team implemented three core consideration stage marketing techniques: (1) Created a gated “2024 Project Management Tool Comparison Guide” comparing TaskFlow to 5 top competitors. (2) Launched a 5-email nurture drip for users who downloaded the guide, sharing customer case studies and webinar replays. (3) Retargeted pricing page visitors with LinkedIn ads highlighting TaskFlow’s 30-day free trial and 95% customer retention rate.
Result: Over 6 months, TaskFlow saw a 42% increase in demo requests, a 28% lower cost per lead, and a 35% increase in free trial to paid conversion rates.
5 Common Mistakes to Avoid With Consideration Stage Marketing Techniques
- Ignoring lead scoring: Treating all leads equally leads to wasted sales time on unqualified prospects and higher drop-off rates.
- Using generic, one-size-fits-all content: Prospects in the consideration stage have specific evaluation criteria, so generic blog posts will not drive conversions.
- Over-gating low-value content: Gating a 500-word blog post will frustrate prospects, while gating a 20-page comparison guide will generate high-quality MQLs.
- Not aligning sales and marketing: Passing unqualified leads to sales damages trust between teams and lowers lead acceptance rates.
- Skipping retargeting: 70% of website visitors leave without converting, and retargeting is the only way to re-engage these high-intent prospects.
Frequently Asked Questions About Consideration Stage Marketing
1. What is the difference between the consideration and decision stage? The consideration stage focuses on evaluating solutions, while the decision stage focuses on final vendor selection, pricing negotiation, and purchase logistics.
2. How long should consideration stage content be? B2B content should be 1500-2500 words, while B2C content should be 500-1000 words to match shorter buyer journeys.
3. Do I need different techniques for B2B vs B2C? Yes, B2B requires more educational, long-form content, while B2C prioritizes social proof, reviews, and short comparison videos.
4. How do I measure consideration stage success? Track MQL volume, MQL to SQL conversion rate, demo request rate, and content download rate instead of vanity metrics like page views.
5. Can I reuse awareness stage content for consideration? No, awareness content focuses on problem education, while consideration content focuses on solution evaluation.
6. What’s the average conversion rate for consideration stage campaigns? Average conversion rates range from 8% (retargeting ads) to 19% (educational webinars), per HubSpot data.