With global ad spend projected to close out 2025 at $1.19 trillion, every wasted click is expensive. The teams that scale profitably don’t “run ads”—they build a measurable system: a performance marketing funnel. This funnel connects awareness to conversion to retention with one rule: each stage has a job, and each job has metrics you can improve.
In this guide, you’ll learn the core performance marketing funnel stages, the most actionable performance marketing funnel metrics, and how to choose upper and lower funnel marketing performance metrics that actually predict revenue. You’ll also get a practical blueprint to build a performance marketing funnel—plus 7 FAQs and a simple dashboard model for tracking sales funnel metrics without drowning in numbers.
What Is a Performance Marketing Funnel?
A performance marketing funnel is a structured way to plan, launch, and optimize campaigns across the buyer journey—so you can connect top-of-funnel attention to bottom-of-funnel revenue with measurable steps in between. The point isn’t to force every customer into a perfect “linear funnel.” It’s to create a system where: each stage has a primary goal, each goal has metrics, and each metric has levers you can pull.
- Clarity: you know what success looks like at every step (not just “more clicks”).
- Diagnosis: you can pinpoint where performance breaks (creative, audience, landing page, offer, or follow-up).
- Budget logic: you can scale without guessing because you understand constraints and conversion rates.
Key Performance Funnel Benchmarks (Quick Snapshot)
Performance Marketing Funnel Stages (TOFU → MOFU → BOFU + Retention)
Most funnels can be simplified into TOFU (top of funnel), MOFU (middle of funnel), and BOFU (bottom of funnel). Performance marketers usually add Retention and Expansion because that’s where profit is protected and LTV grows. (The TOFU/MOFU/BOFU model is widely used in marketing funnel frameworks.)
- TOFU (Awareness): earn attention from the right people and create demand.
- MOFU (Consideration): build trust and move people toward an intent action (trial, demo, quote, add-to-cart).
- BOFU (Conversion): remove friction and close (purchase, booking, paid signup).
- Retention/Expansion: increase repeat purchases, renewals, upgrades, referrals.
The most common reason funnels fail is misalignment: measuring TOFU like BOFU, or trying to force BOFU results from TOFU audiences. A correct stage model keeps your decisions calm.
Performance Marketing Funnel Metrics by Stage
Your funnel is only as good as the metrics you track. The goal is not “track everything.” It’s to track leading indicators (upper funnel) and lagging indicators (lower funnel) that connect to revenue. Below is a practical model for upper and lower funnel marketing performance metrics.
| Stage | Primary goal | Key channels | Core metrics (what to watch) | Most common lever |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOFU | Reach the right ICP + spark interest | Paid social, YouTube, display, broad search | Reach, frequency, CPM, video view rate, CTR, landing-page view rate, engaged sessions | Creative angle + audience fit |
| MOFU | Build trust + move toward intent | Retargeting, high-intent search, content offers | CPC, CTR, time on page, scroll depth, add-to-cart / start-trial / book-demo rate, lead CVR, CPL | Proof + landing page clarity |
| BOFU | Convert efficiently | Brand search, retargeting, shopping, CRM audiences | Conversion rate, CPA/CAC, ROAS, checkout completion, win rate, cost per qualified lead (CPQL) | Offer + friction removal |
| Retention | Increase LTV + reduce churn | Email/SMS/WhatsApp, in-app, loyalty, remarketing | Repeat purchase rate, churn, expansion, LTV, payback period, NPS/reviews, referral rate | Lifecycle messaging + value delivery |
In other words: your sales funnel metrics should tell a story— attention → intent → conversion → retention—not a spreadsheet of unrelated numbers.
How to Build a Performance Marketing Funnel (Step-by-Step)
To build a performance marketing funnel, start with the business outcome, then work backwards. The mistake is starting with channels (“Let’s run Meta + Google”) before you define the stage jobs.
1) Define the conversion event and the “true” success metric
Start by choosing what “conversion” means for you: purchase, subscription, demo booked, qualified lead, or application completed. Then decide the money metric: CPA, CAC, or ROAS. Everything else supports this.
2) Map your funnel stages to real user actions
Don’t label stages with abstract words. Label them with actions you can measure. Example: “TOFU = video viewers + engaged visitors,” “MOFU = pricing visitors + lead form starts,” “BOFU = checkout starts + demo requests.” For lead generation this becomes important.
3) Assign the right offer to each stage
Stage mismatch kills conversion rates. TOFU offers should be light (education, value, curiosity). MOFU offers should reduce uncertainty (demo, comparison, proof). BOFU offers should remove friction (trial, guarantee, onboarding help, limited-time incentive).
4) Design the post-click path (landing pages + follow-up)
Your funnel is bigger than ads. Post-click includes landing page clarity, speed, form friction, and the sequence after the conversion (email/SMS/WhatsApp, sales outreach, onboarding). If BOFU is weak, improve post-click before raising bids.
5) Instrument tracking so your metrics are trustworthy
Decide attribution rules (platform vs analytics vs CRM), define events consistently (view content, lead, qualified lead, purchase), and ensure you can separate upper funnel lift from lower funnel capture. Clean tracking makes optimization rational.
Performance Marketing Funnel Optimization Playbook: Fix the Right Stage (Not Just the Bid)
Most teams over-optimize the bottom of funnel and under-invest in top of funnel quality. A better approach: treat each stage like a mini-system with a few controllable levers.
TOFU: improve quality of attention
- If CTR is low: your hook is weak or audience is too broad. Refresh creative angles and tighten targeting.
- If CTR is fine but bounce is high: your ad promise and landing page mismatch. Align message → page.
- If reach is high but downstream is weak: you’re reaching the wrong people. Rebuild audiences around intent signals.
MOFU: increase trust and intent
- Swap proof, not slogans: testimonials, case studies, demos, pricing clarity, guarantees.
- Segment landing pages: different objections for different personas (SMB vs enterprise, first-time vs repeat).
- Retarget by intent: don’t lump all visitors together; split by pricing views, product views, cart starts, demo visits.
BOFU: remove friction and improve conversion economics
- Fix form/checkout friction: fewer fields, faster load, clear next steps, fewer surprises.
- Offer ladders: trial, demo, consultation, bundle—match offers to intent level.
- Use “quality metrics”: SQL rate, close rate, refund rate—so you don’t buy junk conversions.
Performance Marketing Funnel Dashboard & Reporting (Simple, Actionable, No Noise)
A good dashboard helps you decide what to do next. It does not show every metric available. Here’s a simple reporting structure that covers TOFU → MOFU → BOFU → Retention.
| Stage | Primary KPI | Diagnostics | Decision you make |
|---|---|---|---|
| TOFU | Qualified traffic (engaged sessions) | CTR, CPM, bounce rate, LP view rate | Which creatives/audiences earn attention? |
| MOFU | Intent actions (form starts, demo views) | CPC, scroll depth, time on page, lead CVR | What proof removes doubt? |
| BOFU | CPA/CAC (and ROAS where relevant) | CVR, checkout completion, CPQL, win rate | What fixes conversion + economics? |
| Retention | LTV, churn, repeat rate | Cohorts, activation, expansion, refunds | What increases payback and profit? |
This reporting model also keeps your team aligned: creative teams know what TOFU success looks like, landing page teams know MOFU/BOFU priorities, and finance can track CAC payback and margin impact. This becomes ever necessary to SaaS teams, where tracking these has a direct impact on future business decisions.
FAQs: Performance Marketing Funnel
What is a performance marketing funnel?
What are the main performance marketing funnel stages?
What are upper funnel marketing performance metrics?
What are lower funnel marketing performance metrics?
What sales funnel metrics should I track weekly?
How do I build a performance marketing funnel fast?
What’s the most common funnel mistake in performance marketing?
Conclusion
A scalable performance marketing funnel is not a set of campaigns—it’s a connected system. Define the stage jobs, choose the right performance marketing funnel metrics, and optimize the stage that’s limiting growth. When you align TOFU attention, MOFU trust, BOFU conversion, and retention economics, you get what every team wants: predictable performance without burning budget.
