How to Combine Inbound and Outbound Marketing

You may recall in a previous post, we considered what outbound marketing was and whether it still worked. Outbound, we concluded, is a traditional form of marketing that largely involves cold calls, email blasts, TV, radio and newspaper advertisements. Although the Digital Age has certainly given way to the rise and rise of inbound marketing (i.e. strategies that draw potential buyers in through the effective creation and distribution of content), there is still a place for outbound marketing methods.
And so, this time, we’re going to be looking at some practical methods to combine inbound and outbound marketing, and how to get these separate disciplines working together to drive results. And we’ll do so by focussing on the strengths of each approach.

Inbound Marketing: The Strengths

The number 1 strength of inbound is in its broad appeal. Inbound marketing involves creating large volumes of content that is designed to garner the attention of many, many people online, who will then start to think about your brand and your business and visit your website.
Another core strength of the inbound approach is that it is non-invasive. Indeed, one of the perceived problems with outbound tactics is that they invariably interrupt people in order to slap them around the face with an unsolicited email, cold call, commercial or printed advertisement. Inbound tactics, by contrast, work like marketing magnets. They involve attracting prospects non-intrusively through the distribution of useful content that has value in its own right.

Outbound Marketing: The Strengths

Whereas inbound is about casting the net far and wide, there are certain outbound marketing tactics that take the targeted approach, and this is highly beneficial. Inbound may very well generate lots of traffic and attention, however not all of this will be relevant. By contrast, outbound tactics like PPC (pay-per-click) advertising and pixel-based retargeting methods (such as the Facebook pixel, for instance) can be used to directly target specific content to specific users who are displaying behaviours which indicate that they’re ready to convert.
Furthermore, if you’ve got some new offers that need mass marketing, want to garner contract renewals or win back old customers, then it is toward these types of outbound tactics that you must look.
And finally, the power that outbound methods have to raise brand awareness should also not be sniffed at. Branded, intrusive advertisements that are designed not to be missed will not be missed and deliver the brand lift you’re after. True, many users will not like having your messages forced upon them in such a way – which indeed is why a combination of outbound and inbound is important.

How to combine Inbound and Outbound marketing

Outbound and inbound marketing tactics both have their strengths, but the true power of them is released when put to work in combination. Indeed, when you get inbound and outbound toiling in tandem you will present a more well-rounded view of your company for your prospects to engage with. So let’s consider a couple of practical ways that you can combine the forces of inbound and outbound to best effect.

Targeting Inbound content with Outbound Tactics

As part of your inbound content strategy, you will of course be producing blogs and infographics and eBooks and videos and lots more besides. Some of these inbound content assets will be of more value to your MoFu (middle of the (sales) funnel) prospects than they will be to your broader ToFu (top of funnel) segment.
The trick, then, is ensuring that the MoFu cohort don’t miss these most valuable pieces. So, through the use of outbound tactics – such as banner advertisements, calls from sales reps, or promotional emails – you can target the people who have shown that they are ready to engage, and then deliver an eBook, infographic or link to a specific blog post directly to these people.
Retargeting pixels are of great benefit in this type of scenario. Let’s say you’re in business selling SaaS (software as a service) subscriptions to video editing software. With a retargeting pixel in place on your website, you can retarget anyone who experiments with your software across other channels on the web. I use this example, indeed, because I see it in action myself. I’ve personally experimented with the free version of Shakr – a video making platform. Since I’ve used the service, when I now visit Facebook, the following message is delivered to my news feed encouraging me to download an eBook:

Clearly, Shakr is using the Facebook pixel to complement its outbound marketing tactics and retarget users like me who have experimented with the platform. However, the eBook is also in circulation as part of Shakr’s inbound campaign – thus, providing us with a brilliant example of inbound and outbound tactics being used in conjunction.

Follow up communications

Another great way to combine outbound and inbound is to simply reach out with targeted communications to those that have engaged with you inbound content.
For example, those users who fill out a form before downloading an eBook or whitepaper can be contacted directly by a sales rep with a follow-up call or email. This way you know exactly who to target, and that they have already shown considerable interest in what you do and will therefore be more ready to buy.

Two sides of the same coin

You can see that inbound and outbound are essentially two sides of the same coin. By utilising the strengths of each you can make them work together to deliver better results. Indeed, a solid marketing strategy will encompass both inbound and outbound tactics and ensure that you’re targeting the right prospects with the right content, whilst simultaneously spreading the net wide with lots of inbound efforts, and creating brand lift through outbound.
Need a platform that can help you target customers? Check out the LeadSeed sales and marketing platform to find out how our solution can help you. And please use our Contact Page to reach out.

Cold Call Reluctance

Cold Call Reluctance

Cold calling is possibly the most dreaded and avoided task in any sales office.  As a rule, it involves lots of failure and a significant dose of rejection.  However, it is an essential part of the sales process and therefore needs to be given the investment it needs to succeed.

Professionalism and confidence breed success in cold calling.  Unfortunately, the reverse is also true. Lack of confidence leads to mistakes and vice versa.  Body language and tone of voice can convey to the prospect on the other end of the line and undermine everything that is actually said.  So, it’s important that whenever a sales person conducts their cold calling, they do it with the right attitude, training, preparation and support.

 

  1. Add value 

The recipients of cold calls aren’t necessarily that keen on them either.  You’re interrupting their day with something that’s on your agenda, not necessarily theirs, no matter how well profiled your data is.  If the output of the call is something tangible which requires nothing of the audience – such as a report based on the information they give you – then there’s a reason for them to stay on the line.  Having this clear goal, that has obvious benefits and value to the prospect, at the start of the call will help both parties – either they immediately turn off or give permission to continue.  Either way it is a clear signal to follow.

 

  1. Know your stuff 

We are all human.  Sometimes the mind goes blank, sometimes we are asked questions we don’t have a clue how to answer or sometimes we end up going into a topic that we don’t really understand.  Preparation is key here – knowing your subject matter is a given, but also knowing something about who you are calling if previous calls or engagement have been tracked in a CRM or marketing automation tool.

 

  1. Strike the balance 

Having clear structure and next steps can provide massive support to a cold caller, but scripting can have the effect of making the caller come across as amateur.  What’s needed is a blend of natural style, a structured approach and clarity of direction.

Cold call scripting tools which allow for this flexibility in conversation enable sales training to be put into practice in a “safe” way, signposting what to ask next and building caller confidence.  Confidence will, in turn, encourage the prospects’ trust as the caller demonstrates knowledge about potential solutions to their problems.  Ultimately, the more the prospect trusts what is being said, the better the chances of them engaging on next steps down the sales funnel.

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The Many Benefits Of Using Marketing Automation

The Many Benefits Of Using Marketing Automation

Despite the hype, the adoption of Marketing Automation remains limited in today’s business landscape. However, once mastered, automation can lead to a wealth of benefits each one of which contributing to create the optimal marketing strategy.

According to data from MarketsandMarkets, Automation software sales amounted to an estimated $3.65 billion in 2014. In 2019, sales are anticipated to reach $5.50 billion as the technology matures and businesses begin to realize the full potential of marketing automation.

So what are the key benefits?

With the use of an automated marketing tool it's possible to create, test, manage and deploy multiple campaigns simultaneously. Campaigns assets such as blog posts, tweets, LinkedIn or Facebook status updated can be prepared ahead of time and then scheduled for posting. Automation can also be effective in terms of making repetitive tasks redundant and improving the efficiency of the team. It eliminates manual processes using automated systems so employees no longer have to deal with the more mundane marketing tasks which are  handled by the tool.

 

More than just time, financial savings can also be enjoyed by having an automation tool for your marketing strategy. Automation minimizes the time needed for the creation and distribution of messages, which means your team can focus their time and budget on creating new, exciting and engaging content.

 

Another significant benefit of Marketing Automaton is that its foundation is built around the principles of  ‘relationship marketing’. Using simple nurture techniques marketing automation engages buyers across different channels, including both online and offline platforms, with relevant, timely, dynamic and personalized content.

 

As long as you choose the right platform for automation, it is going to offer simplicity. Even if users are not tech savvy the experience will be effortless whilst you deliver great business benefits.

 

In one piece of research from the Harvard Business Review, it was revealed that “businesses that tried to contact potential customers within an hour of receiving a query were nearly seven times as likely to qualify the lead”.

 

It provides Monitoring and can help identify and Determine Improvements
With Marketing Automation, you can also easily determine the progress of each campaign. Whether it’s social media, content marketing or email, automation software will help you to keep track of progress. It can provide custom reports to ensure users and senior management are making informed decisions about sales pipeline management and are prioritizing opportunities. In turn, you can use this intelligence to determine the improvements that are needed providing you with better business outcomes...

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