Where do most B2B SaaS buying journeys begin? The answer is not on your pricing page or your demo page.
Yet many SaaS teams prioritize bottom-of-funnel keywords because they seem the closest to revenue. So, they invest heavily in pricing, demo, and comparison pages, hoping to capture buyers who are ready to make a decision.
But the problem is that most buyers aren’t at that stage when they begin searching.
In practice, before B2B buyers search “best CRM pricing,” they search for “how to reduce customer churn” or “signs your team needs a CRM.” These are top-of-funnel (TOFU) and middle-of-funnel (MOFU) keywords. And they attract buyers while they’re still researching the problem and evaluating possible solutions.
This is why if you ignore these early-stage searches, you miss the chance to educate buyers, build trust, and influence their decisions before they start comparing vendors.
In this guide, you’ll learn what TOFU and MOFU keywords are, how they fit into the B2B SaaS buying journey, and how to use them to attract and nurture qualified prospects. This guide also builds on our complete SaaS keyword research framework and shows you how these earlier funnel stages support your overall SEO strategy.
What TOFU and MOFU Mean
TOFU stands for top of funnel. On the other hand, MOFU stands for middle of funnel. Together, they describe the earlier stages of a buyer’s journey, before the buyer is ready to compare specific products or make a purchase decision.
Starting with TOFU keywords, these queries come from searchers who are still defining their problem. They may not even know a solution like yours exists yet. For example, someone searching “why is my team missing deadlines” clearly has a challenge, but hasn’t yet connected it to a project management tool or any other software category.
MOFU keywords are different. They come from people who understand their problem and have started exploring solutions, but haven’t chosen a specific tool yet. For example, someone searching “how to choose project management software” already knows software can solve their problem and is actively researching the features, options, and criteria to consider before making a decision.
With all that being said, here’s the thing: TOFU and MOFU keywords differ sharply from bottom-of-funnel searches, which our guide on SaaS BOFU keywords covers in depth. A BOFU searcher already knows what category of tool they want and is comparing specific vendors or checking pricing. TOFU and MOFU searches happen earlier, when the buyer is still forming their opinion.
Why TOFU and MOFU Keywords Matter for B2B SaaS
B2B buying journeys are long, often stretching across weeks or months and involving several people. A buyer rarely jumps straight from “I have never heard of your product” to “I want to see pricing” in one search session.
That’s why if your content targets only BOFU keywords, you’ll reach only buyers who have already completed their early research, often on a competitor’s site. This is a gap that TOFU and MOFU content cover. They let you enter the buyer’s journey earlier, build trust before the buyer starts comparing vendors, and stay top of mind by the time they reach the bottom of the funnel stage.
TOFU and MOFU keywords also give you a reach advantage. They often have much higher search volume than narrow BOFU keywords because far more people search for solutions to their problems than for a specific software product at any given time. Although these visitors may convert at a lower rate initially, attracting them early helps you build brand awareness, earn trust, and grow a much larger audience over time.
Examples of TOFU Keywords for SaaS
TOFU keywords typically fall into a few recurring patterns. And recognizing these patterns helps your team generate a strong list quickly. Here are practical examples of TOFU keywords for SaaS:
Problem awareness searches.
These are searches that describe a pain point without naming a solution category. Examples include “Why does my sales team miss follow-ups” or “signs your onboarding process is broken.”
Educational searches.
Searches in this category ask broad questions about a topic related to your product. Examples include “What is customer churn?” or “How does marketing automation work?”
Industry trend searches.
These searches reflect curiosity about a broader shift or trend. Typical examples include “future of remote team collaboration” or “why B2B sales cycles are getting longer.”
Now here’s the point: TOFU content built around these keywords should teach, not sell. A strong TOFU page answers the question fully and builds trust, with only a light, natural mention of how your product relates to the topic.
Examples of MOFU Keywords for SaaS
MOFU keywords sit between pure education and active buying. And this is because searchers already know a category of solution exists and are now evaluating what matters most.
Solution research searches.
These are searches that people looking for the best way to solve a specific problem make. They compare methods, technologies, or products to evaluate their options before making a decision. Typical examples include “how to choose a CRM for a growing sales team” or “what to look for in project management software.”
Method and framework searches.
Examples of these searches include “how to build a customer onboarding process” or “steps to reduce customer acquisition cost.” The reality is that they often connect closely to your product’s core value, even without naming a specific tool.
Category comparison searches.
These searches show a buyer weighing a decision, even if they have not narrowed down to specific vendors yet. Typical examples include “CRM vs spreadsheet for sales tracking” or “in-house vs outsourced customer support software.”
MOFU content should go deeper than TOFU content. This is the stage to introduce your product as a strong way to solve the problem, without pushing a hard sales pitch. A buyer researching “how to choose a CRM” wants a genuinely useful framework, with your product naturally positioned as a strong option within that framework.
How Search Intent Shapes TOFU and MOFU Content
Getting the funnel stage right depends entirely on correctly reading the intent behind each keyword. This is critical because two searches that look similar on the surface can actually sit at very different funnel stages.
Take “what is a CRM” versus “how to choose a CRM.” Both mention the same product category, but the first is a pure TOFU educational search, while the second is an MOFU search from a buyer already comparing options. This means that building the wrong type of page for either keyword will underperform, even if you rank well.
Our complete search intent framework shows you how to classify keywords before you create content. Use it to determine whether a keyword belongs in a TOFU or MOFU page before you start writing.
Matching TOFU and MOFU Content to the Right Buyer
TOFU and MOFU content performs best when it targets a specific buyer instead of a generic audience. For instance, a VP of sales searching “how to reduce sales cycle length” wants a different angle than an operations manager searching the same phrase.
This is where TOFU and MOFU keyword research connect closely to your work on buyer personas and use cases. Our guide on use-case and persona keyword research shows you how to tailor content for the specific roles and situations your buyers come from, which sharpens both your TOFU and MOFU pages far beyond a one-size-fits-all approach.
How to Build a TOFU and MOFU Content Plan
Building this content takes a clear, repeatable process rather than a scattered list of blog post ideas.
Start from real buyer questions.
Pull questions from sales calls, support tickets, and customer interviews. These reveal the actual language buyers use before they know your product exists.
Group keywords by theme, not just the funnel stage.
Cluster TOFU and MOFU keywords around shared topics, the same way you would with any other keyword research. A cluster of related problem-awareness keywords often performs better as a strong pillar-style page than five thin posts.
Plan a clear path from TOFU to MOFU to BOFU.
Every TOFU page should link naturally to a related MOFU page, and every MOFU page should link naturally toward a relevant BOFU page. This creates a guided path that moves a reader through the funnel over multiple visits.
Keep the sales pitch light at these stages.
TOFU and MOFU pages that push too hard for a demo or sign-up often underperform, since the reader is not ready yet. Save the strongest calls to action for your BOFU content.
Common Mistakes B2B Teams Make With TOFU and MOFU Content
Mistake one: skipping TOFU and MOFU entirely.
Teams that focus only on immediate conversions often ignore this stage and then wonder why their BOFU pages attract so little organic traffic.
Mistake two: writing generic content with no unique angle.
A huge amount of TOFU content already exists on the internet. Bring a specific angle, a proprietary data point, or a stronger framework to stand out.
Mistake three: forgetting internal links to the next funnel stage.
A TOFU page with no path forward leaves a reader stuck, with no next step toward learning more about your product.
Mistake four: confusing TOFU and MOFU intent.
Building an educational and broad page for a keyword that actually signals active solution research undersells the opportunity. Check intent carefully before you decide on the funnel stage.
Building the Full Funnel, Not Just the Bottom
TOFU and MOFU keywords are not a distraction from revenue-focused SEO. They are the foundation that makes your BOFU content perform better, since a buyer who trusts your brand from an earlier stage converts more easily once they reach a comparison or pricing page.
Now you can go back to our complete SaaS keyword research guide to get the picture of how TOFU, MOFU, and BOFU content work together, along with intent, clustering, and mapping. It ties every stage of the buyer journey into one system built for B2B SaaS teams who want a content hub that earns trust long before the sales conversation starts.
