Using strategic inbound marketing to drive revenue

The numbers don’t lie when it comes to the power of technology: 89 percent of U.S. Internet users search online before making a purchase decision (even if the purchase is made locally); 93 percent of adult Internet users are on Facebook; and companies that blog (compared with those that don’t) see a 67 percent increase in leads per month.

While business owners today understand that in order to reach their revenue objectives, they have to embrace technology, they’re not always sure how to do so in a cohesive, strategic way.

There’s Facebook, Twitter, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and email marketing, just to name a few. Oftentimes, business owners engage disparate vendors to handle different digital marketing venues and are frustrated when they don’t reach their goals.

That’s where strategic inbound marketing comes in. Whereas outbound marketing (the lion’s share of most company’s marketing budgets) is difficult to measure and historically low yield, inbound marketing is different.

Costs drop dramatically because you are targeting your audience. People are not disrupted by your message because they are looking for it. And — best of all — it’s measurable.

Strategic inbound marketing takes a combination of tools — organic SEO, Pay Per Click, email marketing, blogging and social media — and turns them into a lead generator for your business.

Instead of having five voices all singing a similar song in different keys, you now have a perfectly harmonized choir, and all of their voices are pointed at your demographic.

If you’re considering hiring an outside consultant to implement a strategic inbound marketing plan, business owners should ask the following questions:

 

Do you have real offices and do you answer the telephone?

A design company’s commitment to a brick-and-mortar presence demonstrates a commitment to their business, and having someone answer the phone indicates a desire to serve clients.

 

What results have you seen in the past? May I see some samples?

Beware of novices in the industry. Pick an agency that has tenure and has worked with clients from various industries. Ask for samples of their work and results that their clients have seen.

 

What metrics do you provide and how often do you report?

Let’s be honest. You don’t just want more traffic to your website or more Facebook likes. You want more business and more sales. An agency that focuses on getting you more leads and that brings you clients outperforms agencies who gathered 500 new likes.

Another question is how often do they report to you? Keep them committed and ask to see updates on their results several times a month to ensure there is constant improvement.

 

What is your breadth of skill?

You need more than good blogging skills for a successful inbound marketing campaign. Pick an agency that is a pro at keyword research, social media, search engine optimization, email marketing and that can help you with website design and development.

If your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. You need someone who can offer a custom solution and can back up their services.

 

Do they offer support services?

Pick a reliable agency that can provide support services and respond quickly every time a problem might arise. Will they respond quickly to your requests for website changes? Do they provide email services? Can they design branded email templates and segment your list of contacts for personalized marketing campaigns?

Your website is the cornerstone of all your inbound marketing activities. A good Web design company will ask potential clients questions like: What are your marketing goals? What types of visitors would you like to have come to your site? What are the pain points or desires of each visitor type and how do you respond to them? What would you like each visitor type to do when they visit your site?

They will then build a site that encourages visitor action by understanding and applying trust building techniques, using content and call outs to create a sense of urgency and implementing layout and design to focus the eye on objectives.

Just remember that strategic inbound marketing is innovative in that it engages people at all stages of the sales cycle. It allows you to track leads, convert those leads into customers, close sales and delight the customer.

Strangers become visitors, who become customers, who become promoters. And that kind of marketing is priceless.

 

Andrew Reilley is the Chief Experience Officer at United WebWorks Inc. He can be reached at andrew@unitedwebworks.com or 912-231-0016.

Using strategic inbound marketing to drive revenue