Marketing in the 21st century has seen intricate challenges that we’ve never experienced before. With new innovation, marketing strategies have grown at an unprecedented rate. Following in the footsteps of the likes of Coca Cola with their “drinkable ads” to Ikea’s idea to allow people to pay for their time, is an entire feat in itself. As quoted by the former Vice Chair of General Electric, Beth Comstock, “Marketing’s job is never done. It’s about perpetual motion. We must continue to innovate every day.” Today marketing is more about guiding your customer toward a purchase in a smooth transitory fashion. Rather than just letting people know you exist; your marketing strategies need to be based around your consumer and why the need your product or service. This is where the concept of inbound marketing comes into play. The idea is to follow a business approach that is tailored to your customer. The effect this creates is that when your customer is convinced your product or service is adding some sort of value to their life, it makes the buying decision much easier for them. Basically, it gets them over the decision hump which is exactly where you want them to be.
With inbound marketing you are aiming to make your marketing an experience instead of a commercial. Make the purchase of your product as a full-fledged journey for the customer, map out contact points and target those areas to involve the customer as much as you can. It has been proven that the human brain tends to respond most to emotional appeal. When your customer experiences emotion from your marketing, there is a good chance they are not forgetting about you anytime soon. That is the goal of a marketing specialist, staying in the forefront of your consumer’s thoughts.
Through trial and error, the way to implement inbound methodology has been revisited and refined to narrow the process down to three core strategies:
- Attract– the basic concept is to attract the “right” audience for your business. This includes your target market and the group of customers whose needs you are trying to fulfill.
- Engage – build a relationship with your consumers by doing your homework on their needs. Have insight into what the pain relievers can be for them and what will push them to buy particularly from you.
- Delight–leave your customers with a sense of satisfaction when they purchase from you. Build a reward-based system to ensure your customers understand exactly how valuable they are to you.
The quest of creating the perfect journey for your customer requires extensive research and patience. However, the end result is a domino effect that will bring immense traction to your business. The odyssey that comes to life by keeping the inbound strategy at the core of your marketing decisions is a one that can pay off for a lifetime. Forming connections with customers on the basis of their existing needs rather than forcing them to reflect on a need you created, is bound to create profitable relationships.
Although having a sound marketing plan is part of the equation, the conversions of individual prospects into actual consumers is what accounts for your revenue. Executing that plan in a manner that fulfills all your customers’ needs while remaining within the resource constraints of your business and gaining a competitive advantage is the ultimate goal. How to implement a successful inbound marketing technique is an avenue that should be a question on every marketing team’s table. There are many ways to integrate this methodology into your marketing plan. The largest task is to dig deep and identify the ones that will work best for your specific product or service offering.
Search Engine Optimization and Web Design
This involves the journey of what gets people to your website, and how the design then causes them to actually become customers.
Video Marketing
One of the most highly respected and tested tools for inbound marketing, a video that delivers the right message can create a wave of conversions for a business.
Email Marketing
This strategy involves two core aspects. You have to get people to open your business’ email and once they do, getting them to engage. Use catchy subject lines, make them informal and direct it towards their needs. What you have to do is create enough appeal and deliver enough incentive for your consumers to engage.
Social Media Integration
With this type of approach, you need to first know which platform your target audience is using the most. Is the majority of your audience on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook? Once you know where to invest your time and marketing capital, you move forward with creating tailored marketing campaigns. Create content that your customers cannot help but engage with it.
Blogging and Content Efforts
Start creating original content and tailor it to your business. Today this is a necessary tool to have a fighting chance in the war for your customer’s attention.
The best way to sum this up is to follow the advice by the chief marketing officer of Integrate, “It is simple as everything starts with this: Marketing is the truth well told. Your customer, company, brand, product narrative, design, messaging, programs, experience, etc. should all start with this foundation.”
This is the basis of which inbound marketing strategies grow as well; build plans around the true pain points and needs of your customers. Just like any other relationship, once your customer feels valued by you, they are more likely to stick with you for the long run. It’s time you gather your team and start brainstorming!
Author bio.
Sheikh Adil is a keynote speaker on social media strategy, LinkedIn marketing & social media marketing trainer, MediaHicon digital marketing author, and MediaHicon SEO consultant for global organizations.
