As the first half of 2011 came to a close, marketers began the next stage of their campaign planning for the following year. This time, much of the focus has centered around choosing between a greater dependency on inbound versus outbound marketing strategies.
Today, most marketing campaigns focus the lion’s share of their attention on outbound marketing strategies because they’ve been time-tested and proven effective for decades. However, in today’s modern, internet-savvy environment, inbound marketing techniques are poised to become the new standard. Not only have targeting methods improved to the point where inbound messages are nearly guaranteed to reach their intended audience, but the many filter applications and spam-blocking mechanisms now employed online mean that outbound marketing is beginning to lose some of its effectiveness.
Outbound marketing: a long-lived tradition
Outbound marketing, which relies on techniques such as cold calls, direct mail and email blasts, display advertising and other ventures meant to push a company’s message out into the world in order to attract new business, has been the industry standard for years because it effectively yields results.
This type of marketing is, at least on some level, essential to the overall marketing of a business, as it keeps a constant flow of “new blood” pouring into the industry. It also gives businesses the opportunity to be the first point of contact to new clients who may not have experience or any developed relationships within the industry.
Inbound marketing: the new marketing method
Inbound marketing, also referred to as real-time marketing, instead focuses on making your company appear prominent and authoritative so as to attract the consumers and businesses already interested in your industry, products and services. This is a newer method that has been attracting a lot of attention over the past several years.
Marketing in real time is picking up popularity because these campaigns require less emphasis on outreach and more emphasis on brand-building and thought leadership. Established brands with solid ideas are attractive to clients who want to feel as though they’re in business with successful industry leaders. In addition, these campaigns typically require less of a capital investment up front, making them even more attractive, especially to new and emerging companies that may not have the start-up capital to invest in outbound campaigns right off the bat.
Use all tools available to achieve the best results
Outbound marketing campaigns are generally acknowledged to produce larger lead quantities, however, inbound marketing campaigns have been shown to produce more highly-qualified leads that are more easily converted to sales. In fact, inbound marketing techniques can lead to 10 to 30 percent sales conversions, much higher than most outbound marketing campaigns, according to research by Tiziani Whitmyre, Inc. In addition, inbound marketing is generally more cost-effective, especially on a cost-per-lead basis.
However, electing to use just one strategy will inevitably shut you out of at least some prospective sales. Marketers need to use all available tactics when it comes to orchestrating an effective campaign that offers maximum outreach.
Most marketers allocate the majority of their funds to outbound campaigns, however the new method calls for a larger investment into inbound campaigns. Despite the fact that marketing in real time yields fewer total leads, the potential for yielding greater qualified leads at a lower cost makes this avenue more attractive.
Those who are willing to experiment will likely find their investments rewarded and may find themselves one step ahead of the competition as well. By embracing real-time marketing sooner rather than later, businesses may take advantage of the opportunity to solidify their brand and establish themselves as industry leaders before their competitors are any the wiser.
