Inbound marketing is a strategy that draws people to your business by providing prospects with quality content they are already looking for. Examples of inbound marketing strategies include blogging, social media and search engine optimization.
“Inbound marketing refers to marketing activities that bring visitors in, rather than marketers having to go out to get prospects’ attention. Inbound marketing earns the attention of customers, makes the company easy to be found, and draws customers to the website by producing interesting content.” – Google answers
For more on inbound vs. outbound marketing, click here.
So how does inbound marketing lead to more sales for your business? Let’s take a look at the inbound marketing process:
Attract
Attracting new prospects with inbound marketing is about positioning your business in places your dream customers are already hanging out. This may be on a certain social media platform, or they may be browsing specific keywords when searching the internet for the products or services you offer. The more you can learn about your ideal clients, the better you will be able to tailor your content to them.
The key methods of attracting new customers are:
Blogging: Having a blog is an essential element of inbound marketing. Posting frequently on a blog keeps your website dynamic, which helps with search engine ranking, and it also provides your potential new prospects with valuable information they are searching for.
SEO: Your prospects begin their buying search online. This is where your website needs to show up in search results. Optimizing your website involves the more techy business of researching the keywords your prospects are typing in, building links, correctly structuring your site and optimizing your pages. Contact Oracast for an SEO analysis of your website, or to take a look at our SEO packages.
Pay Per Click Ads: Google and Facebook ads are a great way to attract new prospects, and get more clicks to your website or landing pages.
Social Media: Publishing content on social media allows you to broadcast your blog, videos, infographics and company culture far and wide. Social media can play a big role in inbound marketing by drawing in an audience.
Videos / infographics / podcasts: The use of multi-media is an excellent way to create more engaging content that prospects are more likely to share with friends and on their own social media pages, blogs and websites. Creating educational or entertaining content has a quality that can sometimes turn viral.
Convert
Once you have attracted new prospects, the next step is to convert them into leads. This usually requires collecting contact information from them and guiding them to the next step in your sales process.
Tools for converting prospects into leads:
Call To Action: A call to action (or CTA) is creating a clear step you would like your prospects to take. A CTA can be anything that prompts your visitors to take action. This can be a “buy now” button, a form they can submit, a free ebook to download. Whatever the next step is in your sales process.
Landing Pages: A landing page is where a visitor can be taken when a call to action is clicked. This is a specific website with details about the offer and where the prospect can make a buying decision, or where the prospect submits information so they can be contacted by a sales team member.
Build A List: Always keep the contact information of your prospects in a central list, and use it to build your relationship with them. Nurturing the relationship of your list can be done through email, calls, social media and events. It’s important to keep the conversation going and track your results.
Close
Now that you’ve attracted potential prospects and turned them into leads, it’s time to close the deal.
Tactics to turning leads into clients:
Drip Marketing – Maybe your prospect has filled in their email information or downloaded your free ebook, but they still have not become a customer. Sending them a series of emails focused on building your relationship and trust by providing them with more valuable information can help move them closer to a buying decision.
Track Results – Review your Google / social media analytics, and continue optimizing for sales. What tactics are resulting in the most sales? How many prospects are your sales team able to close?
Retain
You want to turn those customers into real fans and promoters of your business! 80% of business, after all, often comes from those 20% of loyal customers. Your inbound marketing tactics can continue to help you build a relationship with clients and turn them into promoters of the products or services they love.
Quality Content – Continue outputting engaging content for clients to share.
Special Offers – Offer exclusive deals to only your clients making them feel special.
Memberships – Provide a membership program for loyal customers
Listen – Survey your clients regularly to ensure you are meeting their needs. Interact with questions and answers on social media to keep them engaged.
Inbound marketing is one of the best ways of turning strangers into loyal clients online. It offers an excellent return on investment and beats traditional outbound marketing in today’s digital age. It offers a targeted approach to reach the right people at the right time.
