Inbound Marketing has increasingly attracted the interest of Information Technology (IT) companies, with many of them investing part of their Marketing budget in this approach. Despite all the uk number list potential that Inbound brings with it, its function is not to replace Outbound, but rather to complement it, in order to bring more and better results.
Better understanding the concepts of Inbound and Outbound Marketing
Inbound + Outbound Marketing = Success
Better understanding the concepts of Inbound and Outbound Marketing
Inbound marketing is a methodology focused on “attracting” visitors, converting them into leads, nurturing them until they become qualified, helping them become customers and promoting their loyalty. Inbound Marketing bases its strategy on producing relevant content for the potential customer ( buyer persona ), taking into account the purchasing journey . In this way, it arouses interest, engages and creates a relationship with the potential customer, communicating the right content at the ideal time. Basically, it is a series of integrated and interconnected online initiatives to attract visitors/leads to your website. Some examples of Inbound Marketing actions are: SEO, SEA, Landing Pages, eBooks, Blog, among others.
In turn, Outbound Marketing, or traditional Marketing, is a methodology focused on “presenting” the company to potential customers. It is a more aggressive, commercial type of Marketing focused on the company itself.
Although it is often said that Outbound Marketing is outdated, this is far from the truth. In reality, it continues to be widely used, and why? Because it also works and brings results if it is well thought out and implemented, especially if it is in conjunction with Inbound Marketing initiatives.
The secret lies in knowing how to strategically combine Inbound and Outbound Marketing approaches. In this world of IT, B2B where sales are highly complex, this is even more important.
How to reconcile Inbound and Outbound Marketing initiatives
By combining “push” and “pull” initiatives, it becomes possible to have an integrated way of approaching the market, taking advantage of the best that Inbound and Outbound Marketing have to offer.
Since Inbound Marketing is based on digital, the investment in it may be lower than that of Outbound Marketing, and it is also easier to measure the results of the actions taken (by analyzing performance indicators such as clicks, visits, etc.), as well as to correct a given campaign. In this sense, Inbound Marketing is particularly critical at the beginning of the purchasing process, by attracting visitors to the website and converting them into leads. In these initial stages, potential customers will be more receptive to educational content than commercial content, such as blog articles or eBooks.
Through a Content Marketing strategy , focused on the business pains of your potential Client, sharing rich and relevant content, you naturally contribute to the positioning of your IT company on the web, thus giving you authority and notoriety about your business expertise.
In the more advanced stages of the purchasing process, Outbound Marketing initiatives take on greater importance. Once you have a qualified and nurtured lead , the sales approach becomes easier and more personalized, and even here, you can and should continue to take advantage of Inbound Marketing tools. For example, instead of directly promoting the company's product/service, a salesperson can share relevant content (opinion articles, eBooks) via email or social media, in order to engage and establish a relationship with the lead. In this way, your contact becomes more assertive and targeted to the potential Customer and, consequently, you position yourself as an authority on what you sell.
Another practical and effective example of the combination of Inbound and Outbound Marketing initiatives, which work very well and have an impact on IT companies, are events. Here, registration can be done online, through a Landing Page, even if the event is offline. In addition, the event can be promoted on digital channels (website, social networks), while sales teams establish contact with prospects, either by phone or email. During the event, in addition to direct and interpersonal relationships, the salesperson can always use printed support content (e.g. Success Stories and Datasheets with a QR Code directing to specific conversion pages).