What Is Inbound Marketing and Why You Need It in 2019?

One of the primary goals of any business is to find improved ways to engage their prospective clients while ensuring better visibility and trust in their brand. But, it’s not as easy as it may sound. As you would probably agree, traditional outbound marketing methods such as cold calls, cold emails, pop up shows, etc. are no longer as effective as they used to be.

Today, owing to high internet penetration, consumers are bombarded with constant information from marketers while they are researching their next purchase. Brands need a well-planned inbound marketing campaign to cut through the clutter and stand out from the competition.

Well, we are not surprised.

With search overtaking social as the primary source of referral traffic, inbound marketing has emerged as the lead generation priority for modern businesses who wish to grow organically, and affordably.

In fact that 50% of marketers agree that most of their high-quality leads are a result of inbound marketing tactics.

But first, let’s understand what inbound marketing is.

In simple terms, inbound marketing refers to a slew of activities that make it easier for customers to find your business via the internet, contrary to you trying to find them using traditional advertising techniques.

And, how do you that?

An effective inbound strategy is one where you create valuable experiences and interactions for your clients by sharing relevant and helpful content. Once they find value in your advice, you continue engaging them through emails, informational newsletters, etc. and guide them throughout their sales journey with empathy, without ever directly pushing for sales.

The aim is to establish yourself as an expert. By creating content that is meant to address or solve your ideal customers problems. This way you  attract qualified leads while building trust in your brand.

Inbound marketing is also cost-effective as compared to traditional outbound strategies! Think about it, a blog costs the same amount of money whether it attracts 100 or 100,000 visitors.

Did you know that content marketing helps in generating three times more leads than outbound marketing and costs a staggering 62% less?

Not surprisingly, inbound marketing continues to be the lead generation priority of modern brands. And for good reason too!

Here are some more reasons why you need inbound marketing in 2019:

Google Values Quality over Quantity

As mentioned, inbound marketing offers an inexpensive way of capturing your clients’ attention in a non-obtrusive manner. However, while you may be implementing some kind of inbound marketing already, like everything else in the world of digital marketing, inbound marketing strategies are constantly evolving. New platforms are emerging, and the way the audience interacts and buys from brands is also changing continuously. In line with the theme of constant change, Google implemented an algorithm change that makes inbound marketing even more important in 2019.

Remember SEO? A set of techniques that bridged the transition from outbound to inbound. Keywords have ruled internet marketing in the past few years, but with the evolved algorithms, things are changing fast.

Yes, after Google’s Medic update, if you are still only targeting keywords, you might be in for a shock. In 2019, Google is also looking at how well you are writing about a certain topic. The quality of content takes precedence over the number of keywords in your content.

So, your focus should be on creating genuinely helpful and good quality content, which is why 55% of marketers see content creation as their top inbound marketing priority.

The good news is that the content you post today will help your brand for all times to come. In case you are wondering, 38% of all blog traffic is for posts older than a month.

Customers are Demanding More

Unsurprisingly, about 70% of all online buyers do their research online before making a purchase. However, past research has found that approximately two-thirds of online consumers get frustrated by websites with content that has nothing to do with their interests.

There is no denying the fact that online content has a major effect on the purchasing decisions of your customers. However, customers are tired of salespeople and websites pushing products down their throats, making tall claims that often fall flat. In fact, potential clients don’t really care about your business anymore. Clients don’t want to know how great you are. They just want to know how you can add value to their lives or solve their problems.

So, even before you tell your customers who you are, this year, make it a priority to empower them with useful resources, engage them with meaningful conversations, and offer ace customer services so that they naturally want to know more about your business and buy from you.

How can you achieve this?

• Create educational content: Curate a great experience for your potential clients by offering educating material on your website such as blogs, e-books, checklists, training videos, etc. The aim is not to close a sale on the first visit to your website but develop trust and credibility in your brand.
• Make use of interactive content: Use interactive content such as infographics, quizzes, trivia, etc. to attract users to your brand and engage with them. It is an effective way to offer real value to users, boosting your conversion rate exponentially.
• Leverage videos for your brand: Focus on creating engaging video content to boost your brand. According to HubSpot, product videos can increase purchases by 144%.

Attracting Qualified Leads Is Going to Be Difficult in 2019

One of the most common challenges faced by marketing and sales teams is the quality of leads. And, as online businesses continue to grow in numbers, there will always be more competition in the market, making it more difficult than ever to attract quality leads unless you have an efficient inbound marketing strategy in place.

Did you know that Inbound marketing increases Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) by up to 45%?

Wondering how?

By leveraging thoughtful content, inbound marketing allows you to show up in the places that your customers look (read blogs, search engines, social media) when they start researching their problem. Therefore, a customer coming to you via inbound is already interested in your product, increasing the chances of conversion significantly.

As opposed to outbound marketing, where the aim is to create interest through cold calling or emailing, with inbound marketing, you are already attracting customers who found you because they were interested in your product or service in the first place.

Empower Your Business With an Effective Inbound Strategy in 2019

At Blue Beetle, we have partnered with many businesses to drive their organic growth via effective inbound marketing. We understand that your business is unique, and depending on your area, there may be a lot of competition to deal with. To make sure that you are able to compete, our experts will put together a measurable digital marketing plan for you, ensuring a steady stream of leads and revenue for your business. If you are eyeing growth, get in touch with us to scale your business in 2019.