Inbound Marketing Misfires (And Stunningly Successful Alternatives)

For the uninitiated, inbound marketing is the practice of making your website a destination that attracts potential customers.

As opposed to outbound marketing, which sends ads and pitches directly to consumers, it’s about bringing people to you instead of expecting them to come knocking on your door.

Inbound marketing is most effective when it’s done right, but even the most seasoned marketers can get tripped up by missteps along the way. Here are 15 common mistakes we see inbound marketers make again and again.

Inbound vs Outbound Marketing Strategy For A Successful 2022

Takeaways
Understand the pitfalls of inbound marketing misfires.
Explore alternative strategies that can lead to remarkable success.
Embrace a people-focused and conversational approach in marketing.
Consider the power of hyper-personalized storytelling for better engagement.
Learn from real-world examples of successful alternatives to traditional methods.

Table of Contents

Misfire #1: Forcing High-Frequency Blogging

Blogging Is Not For Everyone

If you’re a marketer who identifies as an introvert and finds yourself more comfortable behind a keyboard than in front of the camera, blogging might not be the best strategy for you.

While there are certainly exceptions to this rule, many marketers are better at social media than they are at blogging because it requires a different set of skills and knowledge to succeed at each platform.

Blogging only works if your audience is actively seeking out content from you on a regular basis which means that even if you do have a loyal following that enjoys reading your blog posts and sharing them with their friends.

Unless those readers show up frequently and consistently visit your website through Google search results or direct links shared on Twitter/Facebook/LinkedIn (and beyond), then there’s little chance that anyone will see any return on investment (ROI) from all the work involved in creating those articles in the first place.

In the realm of inbound marketing, tactics play a crucial role in achieving a high ROI from your content. Learn more about these effective strategies in our guide on Inbound Marketing Tactics to Get a High ROI from Your Content and unlock the potential of your marketing efforts.

Misfire #2: Using “Click Bait” Headlines

Headlines are a critical part of your inbound marketing strategy. They’re the first thing that a reader sees, so they need to be eye-catching and relevant. But they also have to be accurate. And exciting! And not misleading.

The wrong headline can leave readers dissatisfied with your content and unimpressed with your brand, as well as make it harder for them to find what they’re looking for on social media or Google searches in the future and that’s just not good business practice!

To avoid this misfire at all costs:

Misfire #3: Badly Targeted Advertising

You’re probably familiar with the importance of targeting. If you want to reach a broad audience, you can spend as much money as you like on advertising and still get nothing but a waste of time and money.

Conversely, if your product is niche and targeted at just one very specific group of people, for example, a certain type of dog owner then spending money on any kind of mass-market campaign would be inappropriate and pointless.

The best way to make sure that your marketing efforts are reaching the right audience is by using tools that allow you to fine-tune your targeting settings based on information about users.

Preferences (such as their location), demographic characteristics (such as gender or age), buying history, interests or hobbies, and more.

These kinds of advanced targeting options will give you access to high-quality leads who have already demonstrated an interest in what it is that you offer them by visiting your website or signing up for your newsletter on social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter.

Don’t overdo it! Targeting too many different groups will dilute efforts and confuse potential customers who don’t know who they’re supposed to be listening out for anymore;

Conversely, if we only target one group then there’s no way we’ll reach anyone outside this narrow scope unless they already happen across us by chance (which could take ages).

And don’t underdo it either! Don’t assume that everyone within an industry sector should be considered an ideal client;

Some industries may actually have very little crossover between them which means reaching out through channels which cater specifically towards these particular niches would be more effective than trying something generic such as banner ads online instead

Every inbound marketer knows that having the right tools can make all the difference. Discover the essential resources in our article about Top Inbound Marketing Tools You Can’t Live Without and take your marketing game to the next level.

Misfire #4: Not Using Marketing Automation To Its Fullest Potential

Automation is the backbone of inbound marketing. In fact, it’s one of the most important elements for a successful digital strategy.

Marketing automation helps you automate your marketing by collecting customer data, tracking customer behavior and leads, sending automated emails and messages, managing websites and landing pages, automating social media engagement and more.

This way you can focus on other things than manually updating blogs or posting content across different channels every day.

There are many types of marketing automation including email marketing software like Mailchimp; CRM (customer relationship management) software like Salesforce; A/B testing tools such as Optimizely;

Analytics tools such as Google Analytics; chatbots like Chatfuel that let you set up automated conversations with visitors based on their responses to questions asked via chat or through email forms etc…

Misfire #5: Overlooking The Importance Of Content Quality

“Content is king,” they say. “Content is the foundation of your marketing strategy,” they claim. But are they right?

Not if it’s not high quality, that’s for sure. For inbound marketers, content is the most important part of their strategy but even then, you need to ensure that your content meets a certain standard before you can consider it truly effective.

If we’re being completely honest with ourselves (and each other), we all know how important good content is to our success as marketers:

It helps us engage our audience and keep them coming back for more; it helps us drive traffic from search engines;

It shows potential customers that we’re an authority on the subject matter at hand; and so much more! So don’t let bad writing or shoddy design get in the way of reaching these goals!

Misfire #6: Neglecting Website Usability And Design

There are many ways to make your website more usable and attractive. Here are just a few:

Make it easy to find the most important information on your site. If someone is visiting your website and has no idea what they should be doing there, they will leave.

The best way to keep them engaged is by clearly presenting the most important information at the top of every page. You can also consider adding “top tips” or “quick links” that lead users directly to what they want without having to scroll down through the rest of your content.

Make sure all links work properly, especially those in emails or social media posts, and don’t forget about mobile devices!

Nothing turns people away faster than broken links, especially when we’re used to instant gratification these days (think about how many times you’ve clicked on an email link only for it not work).

When using social media posts as an opportunity for promotion and advertising, make sure all links work correctly so everyone who sees them can be directed immediately where you want them without any frustration along the way.

Use images effectively throughout all channels (including web pages) rather than text alone because images have been found over time

Want to attract more customers and boost your revenue? Dive into our insights on Inbound Strategies That Can Bring You More Customers, Increase Revenue to discover effective tactics that can reshape your marketing approach and drive tangible results.

Misfire #7: Letting Your Website Get Outdated

It’s easy to let your website get out of date, and it can be hard to find time to update it with fresh content and design. But if you don’t keep things updated, your site will look dated—and that can have a negative impact on how people perceive your brand. To avoid this misfire:

Keep up with trends in your industry. If you know someone who does web design or marketing for businesses like yours, ask them what they think are the latest trends are in terms of appearance and function on websites.

Then make sure to implement those changes when updating your own website. You should also check out our recommendations below!

Make sure all pages are accessible from the homepage or “index page” (i.e., the one that lists all internal links).

Many companies make a mistake by having pages that no longer exist linked at the top of their site under “recently updated posts” even though they haven’t been updated in 10+ years!

This makes it impossible for anyone visiting those pages because they won’t know where else might be an option since there’s no navigation available from there either!

Misfire #8: Not Sending Abandoned Cart Emails

Creating an abandoned cart email campaign is an easy way to turn around even the most lackluster of sales.

You can use this strategy to offer discounts, free shipping, or even a little something extra as a gift. And if you’re feeling really ambitious, you can do all of those things at once!

Let’s start off simple with a discount offer. If your product line has any items that are marked down from full price or if you want to sell one particular item for less than it typically goes for.

You should send out an abandoned cart email with a coupon code offering 20% off the next purchase (or whatever discount applies). For example:

Dear Customer,

We noticed that you were about to buy [product name]. Thank you so much for considering our brand! We hope we can count on your business again in the future! Before leaving our site today, however…

Please consider entering this code into your shopping cart when making payment: [coupon code] That way we can give back some value on what will be a great product and hopefully keep you coming back again soon 🙂

Misfire #9: Not Sentencing Content Thieves To A Life Of Hard Labor

If you’re still reading this article, I’m going to assume that your inbound marketing is going pretty well or at least better than the average business. But just because you have a winning strategy doesn’t mean that it’s immune from missteps.

In fact, the most successful strategies can often run into trouble when they become complacent or lazy. That’s why it’s important to keep an eye out for common mistakes and think about how you can avoid them in future campaigns.

One common mistake is not taking action against content thieves (i.e., people who steal content from other websites).

In some cases, this may be an innocent mistake you might simply be unaware of how widespread copyright infringement is among your competitors and industry peers.

Because there are so many resources online that teach people how to steal copyrighted material without getting caught (though these resources are usually illegal and shouldn’t be trusted).

Other times, though, businesses intentionally allow others’ content on their site because they know it helps their rankings in Google search results but then they forget all about what happens next!

Misfire #10: Making Weak Calls-To-Action

I’ve talked about this a lot in the past, but it bears repeating: every call-to-action should be specific, actionable and clear. It should tell your visitors exactly what you want them to do next.

In other words, don’t just say “Sign Up.” Tell them why they would benefit from signing up with you.

Calls-to-action should also be easy to find throughout your site. If your page has several CTAs at once (e.g., “Subscribe Now!”), consider placing one CTA above the fold and another below it so both are visible without scrolling down (or up).

Finally, make sure that calls-to-action are easy to use and make sure there isn’t any additional clicking required before the user can take action;

This means there shouldn’t be anything preventing them from filling out forms right away or proceeding through checkout when purchasing something online

Ever wondered why inbound marketing works so effectively? Delve into the intricacies of successful marketing with our analysis in The Marketing Behind Why Inbound Marketing Works to understand the underlying principles that contribute to its impact.

Misfire #11. Writing For Search Engines, Not Humans

You might be thinking: “What do you mean?”

It’s easy to get confused about this. If you’re writing a blog post for your website, and that blog post is about how to make money online by doing keyword research, then it makes sense that you’d want to optimize that blog post for search engines.

After all, who doesn’t want more traffic from Google?

But if we’re talking about the human experience of reading the article if we’re talking about what happens when someone makes it to your site then optimizing your article for Google doesn’t actually matter at all.

In fact, it can actually hurt your site’s conversion rate because people won’t stick around long enough to learn anything useful if they can’t get past the initial barrier of understanding what’s going on!

Misfire #12. Being Tone-Deaf And Off-Brand In Social Media Posts

Social media is a great way to connect with customers and see what they have to say about your brand. But if you don’t have the right tone, or if your content doesn’t match up with your brand’s values, it can hurt your credibility and even turn off potential fans.

Let’s say you’re selling a luxury car that costs $150,000. Would it make sense for you to post jokes and memes about how much money is in the bank account of an NBA superstar? Probably not!

Instead, consider making posts that are more relevant to your audience by sharing articles related to their interests or industry news on relevant topics (e.g., law enforcement).

That way, when someone sees one of those posts in their feed and clicks through because they think it might be useful information for them (and who knows? It could be).

They’ll be happy that they found something interesting and engaging rather than disappointed by an unrelated distraction from another brand altogether different from yours.

Or maybe even annoyed at being misled into thinking there was some relevant content somewhere within all those pics from last night’s party posted by people who couldn’t care less about whether anyone actually saw them getting drunk on cheap beer before stumbling home alone at 3am after falling asleep during The Bachelor finale…

Misfire #13. Not Understanding Your Audience Well Enough

You’re probably already familiar with this one. You’ve heard it from every inbound marketing guru, and you’re probably sick of hearing it by now.

The truth is that it’s still worth repeating: If you want to market your business online, you need to understand your audience.

In fact, understanding your audience is one of the most important aspects of any marketing campaign whether that campaign is an outbound or inbound marketing strategy.

“How can I possibly understand my audience? They’re too diverse!”

This may sound like an impossible task, but there are ways to make it easier on yourself (and your team). First off, try doing some research on demographics and psychographics as a starting point.

This will give you an idea of what kind of person might be interested in using a product like yours or at least help pinpoint where they spend their time online so that when they visit those websites or social media platforms.

They’ll see something relevant there instead of just advertisements for things unrelated or irrelevant to them.”

Misfire #14. Thinking Quantity Is Always Better Than Quality In Content Marketing

You’re probably thinking: “Of course quantity is better than quality! If I have twice as much content, then my business will grow twice as fast!”

Unfortunately, that’s not necessarily true. While it might be tempting to create more and more content with the hope of achieving higher rank on search engines, having too much of a good thing can actually hurt your results and make it harder for people to find your business.

To avoid creating too much content in one area of your site and potentially making it difficult for visitors to navigate we suggest creating a new section of your site (or an entirely different website) where each piece of content has its own page and URL.

This way people can easily find what they need without being overwhelmed by too many options at once.

For example: Let’s say we want our customers who want information about résumés and cover letters.

But don’t need any help with interviewing techniques or networking skills; we could create two sections on our main blog so that each post would go into one category or another instead of everything being mixed together under one umbrella topic like “career advice.”

That way all users looking for résumé-related advice know exactly where they can go without getting confused about whether their question falls within the scope of this category versus another one somewhere else on our site (or even another website altogether).

Misfire #15. Forgetting Lead Nurturing And Lead Scoring Along The Way

Many marketers are still making the mistake of thinking that lead nurturing is a one-and-done process. They think that once they’ve sent out some emails, their job is done and it’s time to move on to other things.

But if you’re going to be successful at inbound marketing, you need to understand that nurturing leads is not just about getting people to sign up for your blog or download an ebook;

It’s about building relationships with them so that you can help them along the way throughout their buying process from prospecting through to closing new business projects.

As the marketing landscape evolves, the future is all about hyper-personalized storytelling. Explore how this trend is shaping the industry in our comprehensive article on The Future of Marketing: Hyper-Personalized Storytelling Strategies, and get ahead of the curve in your marketing endeavors.

Conclusion

We’ve all been there: you read about a cool new tactic in your industry and you decide to try it. Maybe you’ve heard that blog content is dead, so instead of focusing on writing blog posts, you’re going to start a podcast.

Or maybe your competitor has been using social media ads, so now they’re going to do the same thing.

But when they try these things out, they don’t really work; the approach either isn’t right for their company or doesn’t have enough ROI (return on investment). So what’s a business owner supposed to do? Is it time for an overhaul of strategy?

FAQs

What are some effective inbound marketing strategies for startups?

Effective inbound marketing strategies for startups include creating engaging content, optimizing for SEO, leveraging social media, and nurturing leads through email campaigns.

How does inbound marketing differ from outbound marketing?

Inbound marketing focuses on attracting and engaging customers through valuable content and experiences, while outbound marketing involves pushing messages to a broader audience through methods like advertising and cold calling.

What are the benefits of adopting inbound marketing?

Adopting inbound marketing can lead to higher customer engagement, increased brand trust, improved lead generation, and a more personalized approach to connecting with your audience.

How can startups leverage inbound marketing for growth?

Startups can leverage inbound marketing by creating informative content, optimizing their website for search engines, engaging with their audience on social media, and implementing lead nurturing workflows.

What role does content play in inbound marketing?

Content is a cornerstone of inbound marketing, as it provides value to your audience, establishes your expertise, and helps attract and retain potential customers throughout their buying journey.

Costantine Edward

Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.