Inbound marketing is a kind of “new” marketing that’s all about customers coming to you, rather than you having to go out and find them through traditional advertising methods.
There are a number of benefits to this kind of marketing: it helps you build real relationships where customers are happy to refer you to others, it helps build trust, and it can help get you noticed in a world where people are more and more infuriated by junk mail and intrusive ads.
How can you incorporate more inbound marketing into your business?
- Give out free reports,
- Make connections on social media,
- Provide free education to your customers via video sharing site e.g YouTube/ Vimeo,
- Run a blog or podcast, share your experiences and engage in discussions,
- Take part in daily discussions, offering reasonable advice to forum participants,
- Create shareable content etc
In other words, work hard to build the trust of your readers and customers so that they go out and spread the word, doing your marketing for you, and helping you get higher up in the search engines. In no time your subject area or topic will go viral …
“Rather than doing outbound marketing to the masses of people who are trying to block you out, I advocate doing "inbound marketing" where you help yourself "get found" by people already learning about and shopping in your industry.” – Brian Halligan (HubSpot)
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask
Sometimes when you want something, you have to be bold enough to ask for it directly. Here are some things you could ask for to improve your business:
- Ask some of your top customers to provide testimonials or feedback on a new product or service,
- Ask affiliates to promote your next product or service launch,
- Ask your social media followers why they attract to your new product or service and then develop it further
Find out more about your subscribers by asking questions via email (research into a question and learn how to ask it more intelligently). Of course, it doesn’t make sense to ask things of people unless you’ve built up a prior relationship (as in the inbound marketing strategies). If you have, however, you’ll be surprised at how willing people are to help you out!
Don’t Be Afraid To Show Your Personality
Online marketers often build a brand around themselves, rather than a faceless company. This is an excellent marketing strategy, as it means you can make real connections and provide value by helping people personally. But it’s hard to connect with people properly unless you show your personality. This doesn’t mean telling people about every aspect of your personal life, it simply means letting some of your characters shine through.
“In order to rise above the competition you have to find out what YOU have to offer that nobody else can, and milk it.” – Pat Flynn (Smart Passive Income)
Pat Flynn is one marketer who uses this to his advantage. People see him as a genuinely nice and helpful guy, and he’s always transparent about his online business. Sometimes he shares personal stories about his family, too. It is all about building a personal relationship with customers or subscribers.
