5 stages of awareness
Many e-commerce brands still focus their advertisements too much on direct conversion.
Many e-commerce brands still direct their ads too much towards direct conversion. That seems logical: bottom-of-funnel campaigns often deliver quick results. But those who only focus on that limit their scalability.
Only focusing on the bottom of the funnel limits growth
When ads are mainly targeted at people who already have purchase intent, the target group quickly becomes smaller.
This leads to:
higher frequency
rising costs
limited influx of new customers
You then keep circulating within the same small target group.
Scalability requires full-funnel coverage
Strong ad accounts touch all phases of awareness.
Not just the people who are ready to buy, but also the people who:
recognize the problem
are still getting to know the product
need to be convinced
That is where sustainable growth is created.
Our distribution for e-commerce brands
For most e-commerce brands we advise:
60% top of funnel
10% middle funnel
30% bottom of funnel
Why? Because top of funnel ensures a constant influx of new people. Middle funnel builds trust. Bottom funnel converts.
The five awareness phases are leading
Not every customer is in the same phase at the same time.
That is why you need to build ads for different levels of awareness:
Unaware: The customer does not yet fully know the problem.
Problem aware: The problem is recognized.
Solution aware: The customer knows that solutions exist.
Product aware: The product is being considered.
Most aware: The customer is almost ready to buy.
Why this directly impacts performance
When you only advertise on the final stage, you pay for limited demand. When you also invest higher up in the funnel, you create new demand. That reduces pressure on retargeting and makes scaling up more stable.
Good ads follow market sophistication
The more familiar your product is, the lower down the funnel you can communicate faster. The less familiar your product is, the more attention is needed first at the top. That is why ad distribution must always align with where a brand is situated.
Scaling requires balance
Not every euro has to convert immediately. Some ads build the market first, where profit is generated later. It is precisely that balance that makes accounts scalable.
