Things Inbound Marketers Need To Get Right

Inbound marketing is changing the way we do business. Gone are the days of interrupting your customers with pushy advertising and annoying sales calls. Inbound marketing takes a different approach: Make yourself useful, and they will come to you. 

The key to inbound is that it’s all about knowing your audience and understanding what they’re looking for. 

It’s all about getting them to find your brand on their own while providing enough value that they’ll want to stick around. In this post, we’ll cover ways in which inbound marketers can make sure they’re doing things right!

Takeaways
1. Focus on delivering value through valuable content.
2. Understand your target audience and their needs.
3. Implement effective SEO strategies for visibility.
4. Utilize social media to engage and connect with users.
5. Nurture leads with personalized and relevant content.
6. Measure and analyze campaign performance consistently.
7. Continuously adapt and refine your inbound strategies.
8. Build trust and authority in your industry.
9. Embrace data-driven decisions for better outcomes.
10. Prioritize building lasting relationships with customers.

Know Your Target Audience

If you don’t know your target audience, then your marketing efforts will be unsustainable. You’ll get some people to convert initially, but they won’t stay converted for long. 

That’s because the foundation of inbound marketing is understanding who you’re marketing to and why they would care about what you’re selling or telling them.

You need to know what they want, like and dislike; what they need and don’t need; and even things that scare them so that you can avoid those things altogether!

This also means knowing where these people hang out online (in forums/Facebook groups etc), which social media platforms are most popular with them (Reddit vs LinkedIn) and how much time do they spend online during a typical day?

Inbound marketing tactics play a crucial role in achieving a high ROI from your content. Discover effective strategies in our guide on Inbound Marketing Tactics to Maximize ROI and unlock the potential of your content marketing efforts.

Communication Is Key

This is one of the most important things inbound marketers need to get right.

We know you’re busy and we have a lot going on, too. But communication is the key to understanding and getting things done. We can’t stress this enough: if you’re not communicating effectively, you won’t be able to hit your goals as an inbound marketer.  

Communication helps us understand what each person on our team needs from their workday so they can be successful with their tasks (and vice versa). 

It also allows us all to be part of the same team without feeling like we’re working alone or competing against each other for recognition or reward. 

If someone isn’t talking about their progress with someone else (or at least having those conversations internally), there’s no way for anyone else to know how well they did any given day or week.

Which means everyone will end up doing more work than necessary because there were no clear plans set beforehand. Keeping everyone accountable for results only works when each person knows exactly what those results should look like. 

For example: if a sales rep isn’t hitting their quota every month then that could mean they aren’t working hard enough (or it could mean something else entirely). 

But if both sides aren’t communicating well enough then neither side knows where this disconnect is coming from. Here are some ways we communicate effectively within our teams:

Consistency Is A Must

Consistency is a must when it comes to inbound marketing. By sticking to brand identity and strategy over time, you can create a polished, professional impression that will help you stand out from competitors.

Keep these tips in mind as you develop your inbound marketing strategy:

• Be consistent with the content of your website the look, feel and tone should be the same on every page.

• Use the same language throughout your marketing materials whenever possible, this includes words like “we” or “us.” The last thing you want is for people to get confused about who’s talking!

Success in inbound marketing requires a mix of essential ingredients. Dive into our comprehensive article on The 14 Vital Ingredients for Inbound Marketing Success to ensure you have the right elements in place for your marketing strategy.

Consistency Is Key

Consistency is key to long-term success. Time and again, we’ve seen companies that focus on consistency see great results.

Your audience will trust you more if they know what to expect from you.

You’ll build brand awareness through consistent messaging across all channels and mediums.

You’ll build brand loyalty when consumers feel like they have a relationship with your company, rather than just a one-off interaction that leads to nothing else (if even that).

Consistency is also important for building up a strong brand identity as well. 

If your messaging changes drastically from month to month or week to week, it’s difficult for consumers who have only interacted with you once or twice in the past year or even longer to remember exactly who you are when they see something new from the company next time around!

Poster Child For Your Brand

You are the face of your brand, and you need to be comfortable with that. This is true whether or not you have a team or an army of people working behind the scenes on your behalf.

If you’re going to be the most public face of your company and if you want to grow as a marketer and business owner you need to find ways to be accessible and approachable. 

This can mean being active on social media, hosting live events in person, or even showing up at conferences where people might want to meet with you in person. 

Whatever it takes for people who interact with your brand regularly (and for anyone who doesn’t interact directly) know how easy it would be for them contact you directly if needed because that’s important!

Utilizing the right tools can significantly enhance your inbound marketing endeavors. Explore our list of Top Inbound Marketing Tools You Can’t Live Without to discover the resources that can streamline your campaigns and boost your results.

Find The Right Balance Of Content

You can’t just stick to one type of content or one format. You need a mix of everything from blog posts to videos and case studies. 

And the length should be varied too; you need long-form content that teaches users something new, but you also need shorter pieces that are more snackable (like listicles).

You may think that this sounds like a lot of work: formatting different types of articles and creating different lengths based on your audience’s preferences. But luckily there are plenty of tools that make this easy!

Don’t Be Afraid To Experiment

Inbound marketing is all about experimentation. You’re going to be making mistakes and learning from them, so don’t be afraid to start experimenting now.

If you want some help with this, there are a number of tools out there that can assist you in your testing process. For example:

A/B testing software like Optimizely or Google Optimize (both free). These services give you the ability to test different elements of your website (such as copy or calls-to-action), enabling you to more easily discover what works best for your audience. 

Once they’ve been tested on separate groups within the same audience, they’ll then tell you which performs better overall across both groups so you’ll know if a certain change actually made an impact on user behavior.

Analytics software like Google Analytics (free) or Heap ($99 per month). These tools provide data about how people interact with your content across multiple platforms and devices over time.

And can help identify trends within this information so that subsequent campaigns will have an even greater chance of success than their predecessors did!

Adhere To The Hubspot Brand

It’s important to understand that HubSpot’s brand is based on three main pillars: friendly, helpful and authentic. When you work for or with an inbound marketer, you mustn’t try and impose your own ideas of what “branding” should be onto them. 

You might think that being authoritative is the best approach but this may not align well with their uses of social media platforms which are often very conversational in nature. 

By following these rules of thumb you will ensure that your content is consistent across all channels – including social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook etc.) as well as email marketing campaigns.

You’re Not Allowed To Be Boring Anymore. Seriously

The internet is filled with boring content, so people are getting used to seeing it all the time. If you want to stand out in a sea of boring blog posts, you need to be interesting. Your content needs to capture their attention and make them want to read more.

Be funny. Funny is the most effective way of getting someone’s attention on the internet because they’ll remember you better and be more likely to share your post with others if they find it funny or interesting.

Be personal. If someone can relate your message back to themselves in some way then they’re probably going to keep reading what you have written because they feel like it’s something that could happen directly related experience for them too!

Be Personal, Not Pushy

Being personal isn’t just about being a good listener and responding to customers’ queries. It’s also about being genuine, showing that you care about your customers, and putting yourself in their shoes (or boots).

Be real, be human. Your brand is more than just a logo or a website; it’s the people who run it. Let them show through with genuine stories and conversations that demonstrate how much they care about helping their customers achieve their goals. 

This will make them feel heard, which will make them want to come back again and again and maybe even refer other people as well!

Curious about the significance of inbound marketing and its impact on businesses? Our article on Why Inbound Marketing Matters and What the Heck It Is provides insights into the core concepts of inbound marketing and its role in the modern business landscape.

When In Doubt, Write It Out

When you’re feeling overwhelmed and unclear about what to do next, start by writing. Write down your thoughts, ideas, tasks, and goals. 

Write down the plan for your business and for yourself if it’s not already in place. Write down the steps required to reach those goals. Then write out the dreams that will get you there and keep on writing until they become reality!

You need a well-defined goal or two that are going to drive everything else in your marketing plan. 

When faced with a decision as an entrepreneur or marketer (e.g., “Should I do this?”), ask yourself: “Does this align with my goal(s)? If yes: Do more of it! If no: Do less.” If even still unsure after considering alignment with all relevant goals…write some more!

Use Calls To Action Everywhere And Anywhere You Can. (Note The Usage Of Both Everywhere And Anywhere Here)

You can’t just throw a call to action in there willy-nilly. You need to make sure it’s used in the right places and that it’s relevant to the content at hand. 

For example, you wouldn’t want to put a CTA in an email subject line if you’re sending out an article about how your company is working on reducing its carbon footprint it would seem out of place. 

The same goes for social media posts: if you’re writing about how useful your product is for small businesses, having a CTA that asks people to sign up for free trials isn’t going to fit with what you’re writing about.

So where do you use CTAs? Everywhere! And anywhere! For example:

• Email subject lines

• Content (blog posts, emails)

• Social media posts (Twitter, Facebook)

• Landing pages (the page someone lands on after clicking one of your ads)

• Websites

Know How To Build Links. For Example, If You’re Doing Outreach–Build Relationships First And Links Second

Link building is a long-term strategy. It’s about building relationships and being helpful, not just collecting links.

Link building is not a short game; it’s a long game that requires consistency and authenticity over time.

There are no shortcuts in link building. You can’t just go out there and start asking for links from other sites or you’ll be labeled as an SEO spammer by Google or other search engines, who will penalize your site by lowering its search ranking or de-indexing it altogether (this isn’t good). 

To build quality backlinks, you need to earn them by creating awesome content that people want to share on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest–and this takes time!

The future of businesses is closely intertwined with inbound marketing. Learn more about this concept in our post on The Future of Your Business Might Be Inbound Marketing, where we explore how adopting inbound strategies can shape the trajectory of your enterprise.

Conclusion

Inbound marketing is a fun, exciting, and ever-changing field. There are so many things for you to learn, and so many different ways to do things that it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed at times. 

We don’t want you to get discouraged though because we know how much potential there is in your mind and how amazing it would be if only you could reach out and grab it. 

That’s why we’ve written this post: so that when you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure about what direction your career should take next–or even just feeling bored with what’s been happening lately–you can come back here for some inspiration!

Further Reading

Here are some additional resources to further explore the topic of inbound marketing:

Things Inbound Marketers Need to Get Right: A comprehensive guide on the essential aspects of inbound marketing for marketers to succeed.

HubSpot Inbound Marketing Guide: HubSpot’s in-depth guide to inbound marketing, covering strategies, tools, and best practices.

Inbound Marketing Strategies Every Startup Should Use: Neil Patel’s insights into inbound marketing strategies tailored for startups.

FAQs

What is inbound marketing and why is it important?

Inbound marketing is a strategy focused on attracting and engaging potential customers through valuable content and experiences. It’s important because it builds trust, generates quality leads, and establishes your brand as an authority in your industry.

How does inbound marketing differ from outbound marketing?

Inbound marketing relies on attracting customers through content and experiences, while outbound marketing involves pushing messages to a broad audience. Inbound focuses on creating value, while outbound interrupts the audience’s attention.

What are some key elements of a successful inbound marketing campaign?

A successful inbound marketing campaign includes identifying target audiences, creating high-quality content, optimizing for search engines, engaging on social media, and nurturing leads with personalized experiences.

What tools can assist in implementing inbound marketing strategies?

There are various tools available, such as HubSpot, which offers marketing automation, content management, and analytics. Other tools include SEO platforms, email marketing software, and social media management tools.

How can startups benefit from inbound marketing strategies?

Startups can benefit from inbound marketing by establishing a strong online presence, building brand awareness on a budget, and attracting an audience genuinely interested in their products or services. It’s a cost-effective way to compete with established players.