KEO Marketing


Why You Need Both Inbound & Outbound Marketing

Most marketers now focus the vast majority of their efforts on digital marketing strategies like paid advertising, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, social media marketing, and more. Ask a handful of marketers which method they favor, and you will get answers both in favor of inbound marketing and others in favor of outbound marketing. This dichotomy sets up an “us or them” mentality. The battle lines are clear: inbound vs. outbound marketing.

But rather than try to make the claim that one is better than the other, consider combining your inbound and outbound marketing. From our experience, it only takes the right mix to find your marketing magic.

Here are 5 simple ways you can combine inbound and outbound marketing to generate the best results:

  1. Account Based Marketing with Content MarketingYou cannot reach everyone with inbound marketing. What do you do when your ideal customers have not heard of your company? How will they find your website or content?Account Based Marketing (ABM) lets you choose your ideal clients and target them with personalized messages. It works for known lists of target companies. Leveraging prospect research from LinkedIn and DiscoverOrg, you can personalize your content marketing around the decision makers for greatest impact. The beauty of content marketing is reaching a prospect or customer where they are in the buying process. With ABM, you can find where your target audience is in the buyer’s journey and send them informative, valuable content to help them decide.ABM requires you to know your prospects’ business intimately. Name their pain points and focus your content to address their specific needs. Instead of flooding your ABM targets with sales pitches, send them relevant educational and strategic advisory content that helps them become better at what they do. This will help them know, like and trust you before you share information about how your products and services will help them.
  2. Marketing Automation with Outbound CallingAutomated campaigns are an excellent way to extend the reach of your marketing to your email list. When you combine email touch points with outbound telemarketing, you will make a lasting impression on potential customers.Create personalized, segmented emails within drip campaigns to sequentially target audiences and find prospects who may be interested in your products or services. When these active prospects engage you back, send them to your inside sales team to set up a sales qualification call, schedule a demo, or answer questions. The goal is to generate the leads with marketing automation and nurture them with outbound calling, a perfect one-two punch.
  3. SEO with Paid SearchSearch engines change their algorithms more than 500 times per year, making search engine optimization (SEO) a challenge. SEO is great for matching your products and services with people who are searching for what you offer. Combine SEO with paid search, the ads that show above the natural search results, and you have two strategies that increase conversions.You need a well-rounded SEO strategy to boost organic searches and to help your website rise in search engine rankings. Paid search with retargeted display ads helps you find online visitors who search for specific keywords or products. The process entails bidding on keywords and making payments each time a visitor clicks on your ad.Paid search lets you target a specific audience, but it can get expensive if you are competing for high-demand keywords. Consider retargeted ads that focus on visitors who have engaged with your brand like paid social media advertisements. These are a great way to get in front of your audience. Make sure, however, that the focus for both SEO and paid search is centered around similar keyword themes so that you provide a great user experience for the searcher.
  4. Email Marketing with In-Person EventsIn-person events are excellent ways to get face-to-face with your ideal customers. Networking at these events can provide a great source of leads to open opportunities you may have missed otherwise. But in-person events can be expensive. Use email marketing to connect with your targets before and after these events to get the most bang for your buck.If your event is a conference, most organizers offer a list of attendees in advance. The names, titles, and email addresses are clean, so you can run the list through your email marketing automation. Drive people to find your booth or exhibit at the conference. Keep your message simple by explaining who you are, what you offer, and where they can find you. Include a give-away to incentivize them to head your way.Afterwards, send thank you notes to anyone who stopped by and more information to those who did not get the chance. Again, keep your messaging simple and use the list to get your company in front of them one more time.

    Also Read – Dive Deep Into Outbound Marketing

  5. Lead Scoring with Direct MailTrack the actions and behavior of your prospects as they interact with your website and other marketing collateral. Then, use this lead scoring to decide who is ready for another, more expensive, touch point. Then send them a personalized, highly targeted direct mail piece.Focus your efforts on providing the best and most unique experience to each individual. Your lead scoring should inform how you create a direct mail piece relevant to your audience. Beyond just building brand awareness, you want your direct mail to help you close the most valuable deals. Make sure you build in real value and offer the information they need to make the decision to buy. Include a promotional product or special offer to sweeten the deal.

Notice how each example above focuses our attention on the customer or prospect. The key to successfully combining your inbound and outbound marketing is simple. Look for places in your inbound campaigns targeted to your prospects’ buying journey where you can include an outbound touch point.

Still not sure how best to combine your inbound and outbound marketing efforts?

Contact KEO Marketing for a complimentary marketing audit to see how an effectively combined marketing mix can skyrocket your results.

 

With more than 25 years of hands on marketing strategy and operations experience, Sheila Kloefkorn is dedicated to developing marketing strategies and plans that help clients succeed. Some of the world's largest brands have depended on Sheila for marketing programs that delivered tangible and substantial results. Specialties: B2B marketing, lead generation, lead nurturing, sales strategy, marketing strategy, competitive marketing strategy, social media, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), mobile marketing, email marketing, website design, marketing plans.