- MOFU queries are middle-of-funnel consideration searches: compare, best, alternatives. BOFU queries are bottom-of-funnel decision searches: pricing, demo, trial.
- Rank the combined list by impressions. A consideration query with 770 impressions is a higher-priority row than a decision query with much lower impressions, even if the decision query feels closer to pipeline.
- Our rank is this site's Google Search Console (GSC) average position. When competitor rows appear, impressions on those rows are SEMrush search volume, and source tells you whose universe you are looking at.
- TOFU (informational how-tos) is out of this queue on purpose, so the consideration and decision rows stay readable.
- Answer engines are often asked comparison and pricing questions. The URLs that already rank for those queries are the ones they can cite. The list itself still comes from Search Console (and optional SEMrush), not from ChatGPT.
You may already rank for queries that sound like a buyer: alternatives, best, pricing, demo. Much of the blog may still be informational: what is, how to, why it matters.
Teams often notice MOFU and BOFU in a sales call, then brief a comparison page from memory. The MOFU-and-BOFU play is a short queue of those queries as Search Console sees them, ranked by impressions, so you work the consideration and decision strings people already search.
Why MOFU and BOFU queries are worth the work
Consideration and decision queries are closer to pipeline than a definitional how-to, and they are still SEO. Someone searching launchdarkly alternatives or unleash pricing is usually comparing options or looking for a buying detail, not a history of the category.
Impressions tell you which of those strings Google is already showing you for. Position tells you how close the URL is to earning the click. A MOFU query at position 3.3 with 770 impressions is a different week from a BOFU query at 10.7 with 338.
Building or tightening the URL that should own a comparison or a pricing query is usually hours to a few days, not a new opinion or thought-leadership brief. The purpose is to work consideration and decision queries in Search Console, instead of leaving them only to sales conversations.
Keep the list short enough to work through. Ranked by impressions, 20 rows is a practical amount of work. A dump of every query that contains “best” is a regex match, not a short working list.
Answer engine optimization (AEO) is especially relevant here. Models are asked for alternatives and pricing in the same breath as Google. The URL that already ranks for those queries is often the one they can cite. This list still comes from Search Console (and optional competitor SEMrush), not from an AI citation report. Comparison and pricing URLs are also common answer-engine questions. How to write competitor comparison landing pages [with examples] is the page-level companion. If you are weighing this against net-new AEO spend, how to budget for AEO and SEO is the planning frame.
How to use Search Console to build a MOFU and BOFU queue
Start from classified Search Console queries. Funnel rules tag consideration (compare / best / alternatives) as MOFU and decision (pricing / demo / trial) as BOFU. Drop TOFU from the table so the high-intent rows stay visible.
Then:
- Keep MOFU and BOFU queries.
- Rank by impressions, highest first.
- Attach our rank: GSC average position.
- Optionally merge competitor keywords from SEMrush, using search volume in the impressions column and labeling the source.
The columns that matter are query, source, position, type (MOFU or BOFU), impressions, and our rank.
You don't need érculespot to run this. Export Search Console queries, tag them with a consideration/decision regex, sort by impressions, and stop at a short queue. érculespot is one way to see that list assembled.
How to read a MOFU or BOFU row
The pane title in the example is “MOFU and BOFU queries.” That is the diagnostic name. The work is to improve how you appear for consideration and decision searches.
Read a row left to right. Query is the string. Source is your site (GSC) or a competitor (SEMrush). Type is MOFU or BOFU. Impressions are GSC impressions on your rows, or search volume on competitor rows. Position is the source's rank. Our rank is your GSC average position.
In the example, launchdarkly alternatives is MOFU, position 3.3, 770 impressions. That is a consideration query you already appear for, near the click. unleash pricing is BOFU, position 2.6, 391 impressions: decision, already a strong position. launchdarkly pricing is BOFU at 10.7 with 338 impressions: decision, not yet a strong position. feature flag best practice is MOFU at 12.8 — the word “best” put it in consideration, and the intent is closer to a guide than to a vendor bake-off. Read the full query, not only the MOFU or BOFU tag.
If the query is a competitor's pricing string and your rank is 10, the URL may need a comparison section, not a copy of their pricing page. If the query is your own brand pricing and you are not number 1, that is also the branded play.
Why consideration and decision are the right split
Informational how-to queries fill most keyword reports. Leaving them in this table makes the consideration and decision rows harder to see. MOFU versus BOFU then tells you which template to open: comparison versus pricing/demo.
The regex will mis-tag some rows (best practice is not “best vendor”). That is expected. The queue is a starting set. You still read the query.
A new URL for every competitor-alternatives string is a common way overlapping pages appear. For MOFU and BOFU, the default is a small set of comparison and decision URLs, improved, plus honest sections on the product pages that should own pricing and demo.
What to do with a MOFU or BOFU row
Search the query. Look at who occupies 1–3. Then:
- MOFU comparison/alternatives: put the comparison on a URL that can name competitors honestly. Tables, criteria, and who the product is for are clearer than a vague claim that you are better.
- MOFU “best …”: make sure the page is a roundup with criteria, not a product pitch formatted as a roundup.
- BOFU pricing/demo/trial: align the ranking URL (often homepage, pricing, or docs) so the snippet and the H1 match the query.
- Avoid writing a long essay to win a query like brand + pricing.
How do you build a content system tied to pipeline, not just the blog calendar? is the operating model for why these queries belong on the calendar. Choose the row based on the query, whether it is MOFU or BOFU, and the ranking URL.
Ship a handful, then look at the next month's queue. Success looks like high-impression MOFU and BOFU rows improving in position, or leaving the list because you already rank well — not like a longer list of “best” strings.
MOFU and BOFU work is a filter on demand you already have
This list is drawn from queries Search Console already classified as consideration or decision. The impressions are already there. A short list ranked by impressions is a practical amount of work, without opening another informational article brief.
Making the comparison and pricing answers explicit on those same URLs can help with answer engines as well as Google. You do not need a separate AEO dashboard to start. Getting started with AEO is the on-ramp. This list is one working set inside that system.
Frequently asked questions
What do MOFU and BOFU mean in search engine optimization?
MOFU is middle of funnel: consideration queries (compare, best, alternatives). BOFU is bottom of funnel: decision queries (pricing, demo, trial). This play is those two buckets, ranked by Search Console impressions, with your average position attached.
Why leave top-of-funnel queries out of the MOFU and BOFU queue?
Because what-is and how-to rows can fill the table. The point of this list is the smaller set of consideration and decision queries. Informational demand has other plays.
Why rank MOFU and BOFU queries by impressions instead of by how close they feel to pipeline?
Because impressions are the demand Google is already measuring. A consideration query with 770 impressions is more of a SERP job this month than a trial query with 12. Pipeline intent still tells you which template to use.
What is “our rank” on a MOFU or BOFU row?
It is this site's GSC average position for that query. On competitor (SEMrush) rows, impressions are search volume, and our rank is still your GSC position when you have one.
Do comparison and pricing queries still matter with AI Overviews and answer engines?
Yes. Those are the questions models get asked in buying cycles. The list is still GSC, not a citation report. The useful overlap is the URL: pages already associated with alternatives or pricing are the ones a model can cite once the answer is explicit. You can start this work in Search Console. A separate AEO tool is not required to improve a URL sitting at position 3.3 for an alternatives query.
Related reading
- How to write competitor comparison landing pages [with examples] — The page template most MOFU rows in this queue are asking for.
- How do you build a content system tied to pipeline, not just the blog calendar? — Why consideration and decision queries belong on the calendar next to thought leadership.
- Getting started with AEO — How comparison and pricing answers on ranking URLs carry into answer engines.
