Most people tend to find themselves punching at their ad dashboard screen. Mainly when they’re noticing low Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) on their Top of Funnel (TOF) campaigns. To be completely honest, they’re not alone as we’re all sure we’ve been there before. It’s a common situation: TOF campaigns underperform in terms of the immediate revenue attributed with paid ads, and most people think, “Why should I even spend?”
Well, the truth is that turning off TOF ads can be the worst mistake you make as a marketer or paid advertiser.
Top of the Funnel (TOF): This is where people are introduced to your brand. They don’t know you yet, so naturally, conversion rates are low, and ROAS isn’t impressive.
Middle of the Funnel (MOF): Here, people are warming up. They’re learning more about your brand, exploring your offerings, and starting to consider making a purchase. ROAS improves because these audiences are closer to making a decision.
Bottom of the Funnel (BOF): By this stage, your audience has seen your ads multiple times. They’ve engaged, researched, and now they’re ready to buy. ROAS peaks here because these campaigns are laser-focused on driving conversions.
Seeing low ROAS in TOF campaigns, many marketers assume they’re ineffective and switch them off. It’s an understandable but flawed move. Why? Because TOF campaigns are the real MVPs of your funnel. They drive the traffic that eventually converts in MOF and BOF campaigns. Without them, your funnel collapses.
Marketing attribution often fails to give TOF campaigns the credit they deserve. It’s like a team sport: TOF sets up the play, MOF moves the ball downfield, and BOF scores the goal. If you only focus on who scored, you’re missing the brilliance of the setup.
TOF campaigns:
ROAS at the TOF stage isn’t meant to be high. The goal here is traffic, awareness, and priming—not immediate conversions. A healthy funnel sees ROAS increase progressively as people move from TOF to MOF to BOF.
Instead of judging TOF campaigns by ROAS, measure them by:
These metrics tell you how well your TOF campaigns are building the foundation for your funnel.
TOF, MOF, and BOF campaigns work best as a unified system. When you switch off TOF campaigns, you’re cutting off the very source of traffic that fuels your MOF and BOF efforts. To achieve long-term success, embrace the role of TOF campaigns and give them the credit they deserve.
Moral of the story: Don’t judge TOF campaigns by ROAS alone. They’re the unsung heroes that make the rest of your funnel work.