Inbound Marketing refers to marketing activity where a business starts the process of attracting the attention of prospects. It does this by providing content, materials and experiences they find useful. Using tools such as blogs and social networking, marketers hope to attract and inform viewers and generate leads and enquiries.
Inbound marketing provides value to prospects who are actively searching for information about a product or service. Inbound marketing offers choice and interactivity. Its purpose is to attract and convert prospects into customers and, ultimately, promoters of your business.
Younger audiences tend to respond well to inbound marketing. This generation is more familiar with search and interactive content and finds the process more engaging. It is an effective strategy for a wide variety of businesses, particularly when combined with more traditional marketing.
Inbound Marketing Activities
Inbound Marketing often includes creating content, such as:
- Articles, Blogs or White Papers
- Ebooks
- Search Engine Optimised (SEO) website content
- Social media campaigns
- Viral videos
- Webinars
Engaging Prospects
Inbound marketing engages prospects by providing useful content found via search engines or social media platforms. The rise of Influencers on Instagram and YouTube is a very effective way to reach an audience in a way that a banner advert cannot. Younger consumers routinely use smartphones, tablets or search engines and like and share content. It is essential to define your audience and target customers when defining your strategy, tools and tactics.
An inbound approach to online marketing can give your business a competitive advantage. There are four stages to inbound marketing; Attract, Convert, Close, and Delight. The ultimate goal is to find prospects, turn them into consumers and then to become promoters of your business.
Attract, Convert, Close, and Delight
ATTRACT: The first step in any relationship is Attraction. You need to think like your customer and understand their motivation and where they are looking for information. You need to put your business in the right place at the right time with the right message. It takes hard work, perseverance and dedication to build an online presence. Remember, don’t focus on selling but how you can help solve a problem. You need to create the content they want to read and share.
Attracting your target audience to your website is vital for this strategy to succeed. You want to draw in prospects who can become your customers to justify your inbound marketing efforts.
CONVERT: After attracting prospects, you need to convert them into qualified leads. You need to get the contact information of visitors to your website. Ideally, you want their name, company name, phone number and email address, but how do you get it? It would help if you offered them something they want – eBooks, whitepapers, blog posts, webinars, demos – something your audience would find valuable.
CLOSE: The next step is closing your leads and turning them into customers. Marketing and Sales can work together using techniques such as Lead Scoring, Email Marketing and Marketing Automation. The lead should be ready to buy by the end of this step.
DELIGHT: Once they have become a customer, you need to nurture them and engage with them via social media, email and marketing automation. This approach will help establish brand loyalty and make them feel valued. Aim to delight your customers, and they will share their positive experiences of your business, creating further sales opportunities.
Want to Attract More Leads?
Blackberry Design can help you achieve marketing success. We work with you to create a range of marketing tools to deliver exceptional results. Our team can design and create email newsletter templates, landing pages, websites that work. We can help with content marketing; blog articles, case studies and social media graphics that engage your audience. Blackberry can do keyword research, improve SEO or manage PPC campaigns that attract and engage your audience.
About Blackberry Design
Blackberry is a creative design agency. We work with businesses in Redditch, Worcester, Birmingham, the Midlands and nationally. We help our clients build strong brands that can create loyalty and add value.
Got any questions about marketing? Speak to Blackberry Design to see what we could do for your business. Get in touch on 01527 517309 or fill in our contact form.