The TOFU vs BOFU Keyword Mix Most B2B Firms Miss

TOFU vs BOFU keywords

I think about TOFU vs BOFU keywords in simple terms:

• TOFU keywords sit at the top of the funnel. They capture people exploring a problem, category, or approach (for example: “what is,” “why,” “how”).
• BOFU keywords sit at the bottom of the funnel. They capture people shortlisting solutions or vendors (for example: “services,” “pricing,” “reviews,” “[industry] provider”).

In plain language, TOFU is problem exploration. BOFU is solution and vendor selection.

The mix matters because it affects the numbers I actually care about: acquisition efficiency over time (as organic offsets some paid dependence), lead quality (because the page matches where the buyer is), and forecasting (because I can see how early research turns into higher-intent searches and, eventually, sales conversations).

Here’s a quick way I map outcomes to keyword types:

For B2B SEO, I rarely want “only TOFU” or “only BOFU.” I want a topic structure where TOFU opens the door and BOFU closes the loop - so keyword mapping reflects a buyer journey, not a pile of disconnected blog ideas. If you’re calibrating targets around this mix, Brand vs Non-Brand in B2B Search: How to Set Targets That Don’t Lie is a useful companion framework.

The power of search intent

Search intent is the reason behind a query - not just the words someone types, but what they want to happen next. Sometimes that’s learning a concept. Other times it’s confirming a brand, comparing options, or starting procurement.

When I match intent with the right page type, engagement usually improves and leads become easier for sales to qualify. More importantly, intent alignment filters out the wrong traffic earlier. A founder searching “what is CRM” is in a different place than a VP Revenue searching “b2b crm implementation pricing.” If they land on the same generic page, one of them leaves frustrated - or worse, converts into a lead that wastes everyone’s time.

This mapping keeps my site structure and expectations clean:

Take “B2B SEO” as a topic and the intent shift becomes obvious. “What is b2b seo” is informational. “Best b2b seo agency” is commercial. “B2B seo services pricing” is transactional. I get better results when each intent has its own home page, and each page has a next step that makes sense for that stage (without forcing a decision too early). For vendor-evaluation stage pages specifically, I like the structure in From Website to Shortlist: Designing Pages for Vendor Evaluation.

Types of search intent (and how I classify them)

Most queries fall into four buckets:

Informational intent: the query sounds like learning - “what is,” “how to,” “examples,” “framework,” “guide.”
Navigational intent: the query includes a specific brand, product name, or a “login”-style destination.
Commercial intent: the query signals evaluation - “best,” “top,” “vs,” “compare,” “review,” “alternatives.”
Transactional intent: the query signals action - “pricing,” “cost,” “services,” “agency,” “consultant,” “quote.”

I don’t treat these modifiers as perfect rules, but they’re a reliable first pass. If the modifier and the page type don’t match, I usually see it in either engagement (people bouncing) or lead quality (people converting for the wrong reasons). If you want a tighter definition to sanity-check your taxonomy, see Read definition.

And if you want primary research on how tech buyers gather information and evaluate options, you can Download the B2B Buyer Report: Tech Edition.

Top of funnel (TOFU) keywords

TOFU keywords capture category and problem education. In B2B, that often means someone is still shaping the problem, building internal consensus, and collecting language they’ll reuse in internal docs and stakeholder conversations.

For SEO, TOFU keywords typically live on educational content like guides and glossaries. They often include modifiers such as “how to,” “what is,” “guide,” “framework,” “examples,” and “strategy.” For a B2B service business, that might look like retention topics (“reduce churn in b2b saas”), enablement topics (“sales enablement process”), or SEO fundamentals (“b2b keyword research process”).

I still invest here even when visitors aren’t ready to buy because TOFU content tends to (1) bring in the right accounts earlier, (2) create internal linking paths into BOFU pages, and (3) earn trust before a formal vendor search starts. If you’re trying to build depth without publishing endlessly, Topical Authority Without 200 Posts: Building Depth the Lean Way maps well to this TOFU role.

I also try not to judge TOFU by rankings alone. When TOFU is doing its job, I usually see better engagement (not just raw pageviews), more assisted conversions (TOFU pages showing up earlier in journeys that end in inquiries), and more return visits as buyers move from research into evaluation.

There are a few TOFU pitfalls that quietly waste SEO effort:

1. Chasing volume instead of fit. Broad phrases can bring traffic that doesn’t match my ICP. I get better outcomes when TOFU topics reflect problems and contexts my real buyers actually deal with.
2. Publishing without a logical next step. If a TOFU page ends without guiding the reader to something deeper, I’m relying on luck for them to find the rest of the site. A simple bridge to a related guide, a relevant use case, or a comparison page usually improves flow.
3. Treating TOFU as “separate” from revenue pages. If TOFU content never links contextually into BOFU pages, I’m building awareness with no path to action. Internal links inside the main copy (not just a footer) tend to do more work.

Handled well, TOFU doesn’t “generate leads” in the same direct way BOFU does, but it often creates the conditions for higher-quality BOFU conversions later - especially in longer, multi-stakeholder sales cycles.

Bottom of funnel (BOFU) keywords

BOFU keywords capture decision-stage behavior. These are the phrases people search when they have a budget, a timeline, and a short list - explicitly or implicitly - of options.

BOFU terms often include modifiers like “services,” “provider,” “agency,” “consultant,” “pricing,” “cost,” “reviews,” “case study,” “for [industry],” and “vs” or “alternative.” Examples in a B2B SEO context include b2b seo services pricing, b2b seo agency for cybersecurity, or [agency name] alternative.

When I’m building for BOFU intent, I treat pages as purpose-built assets, not “blog posts with a CTA.” The most common BOFU page types are: core service pages, industry/vertical pages, comparison and alternatives pages, and case studies that match the target market. If you’re building comparison intent pages, Alternatives Pages That Rank and Sell Without Sounding Desperate is a strong reference point.

One practical move I like at this stage is a clear fit filter in the copy - plain language about who the offer is and isn’t for. It reduces time-wasting inquiries and tends to build trust with serious buyers, because most of them already suspect that not every provider fits every situation.

If I’m stuck on how to find BOFU keywords for a niche, I start with the language buyers already use: sales call notes, proposal requests, objection patterns, competitor comparisons that come up in deals, and the “what do you charge / do you do [industry] / how long does it take” questions that repeat every month. BOFU keywords are rarely mysterious; they’re usually hiding in plain sight inside the sales process.

Balancing TOFU and BOFU keywords

I rarely aim for a 50/50 split on day one. The right balance depends on how mature the site is, how much brand demand exists already, and how urgently I need near-term pipeline support.

As a rough model I’ve seen work in practice:

• On a newer or lower-authority site, I typically lean heavier into BOFU first, because BOFU pages are more likely to produce direct inquiries once they rank.
• As the site gains traction, I add more TOFU to broaden reach and to support BOFU pages through internal linking and topical depth.
• On a more established site with strong branded search, I can afford a more TOFU-heavy mix - as long as BOFU coverage stays current and competitive.

This also ties into ROI timing. BOFU tends to produce faster, more measurable returns because it captures buyers already in-market. In some cases, well-aligned BOFU pages can start influencing inquiries within a few months, but the timing still depends on competition, current site strength, and how well the page matches intent. TOFU can take a similar amount of time to rank, but its payoff is often indirect at first: assisted conversions, stronger performance of BOFU pages, and earlier entry into buyer research loops.

Structurally, I think in topic clusters rather than isolated posts. One high-intent hub page (BOFU) should have multiple supporting TOFU pages that answer the questions buyers ask before they’re ready to choose a vendor. The linking should work both ways: TOFU pages should naturally point to relevant BOFU pages when the reader starts thinking about solutions, and BOFU pages should point back to the best educational content for buyers who need to validate the approach internally. For a more tactical model, see B2B SEO Internal Linking: A Revenue-First Model for Service Sites.

Measurement shifts by funnel stage, too. For TOFU, I care more about engagement and assisted outcomes than last-click conversions. For BOFU, I care about direct inquiries, qualified pipeline created, and whether organic is influencing win rates or payback over time.

When the site is small and I need a starting point, I prioritize a tight set of BOFU pages tied to the core offering and the main industries I actually want, plus at least one strong, relevant case study. Once those pages exist and tracking is clean, adding TOFU content that supports those exact themes tends to compound faster than publishing broad, generic education. If your BOFU pages exist but aren’t ranking, Indexation Triage: Finding Why High-Intent Pages Don’t Rank helps diagnose the usual blockers.

For readers who want a broader refresher on SEO fundamentals that supports this intent-first approach, the Mastering Basic SEO guide is a solid baseline. And if your bottleneck is writing and on-page execution, 15 SEO Copywriting Tips to Rank Higher in 2026 is a practical next step.

Key takeaways

• TOFU vs BOFU keywords describe where the searcher is in the buying process: from problem exploration to vendor selection.
• Search intent usually falls into informational, navigational, commercial, and transactional - and each intent wants a different kind of page.
• TOFU content builds early trust and relevance; BOFU content converts existing demand into qualified inquiries.
• BOFU keywords generally drive faster, clearer ROI; TOFU tends to improve outcomes indirectly by supporting later-stage conversions.
• A topic-cluster structure (TOFU supporting BOFU hubs) makes internal linking and measurement easier to manage.
• I get the clearest SEO ROI when I evaluate TOFU and BOFU with different success metrics instead of one generic “organic traffic” chart.

When I want a practical diagnostic, I review my top organic queries, label the intent, and then check whether the landing page truly matches that intent. The mismatch gaps are often the highest-return fixes.

Glossary

If you want a broader reference library for demand gen and SEO terminology, the B2B marketing glossary is a helpful starting point.