The Inbound Marketing Approach
The 'AEC' Process
Our approach to Marketing is based on the Inbound Model ‘Attract, Engage and Convert’.
It’s truly amazing when you ATTRACT visitors to your website, ENGAGE with them using high quality content, and then CONVERT them into leads or customers. With this mindset, you can ensure a steady stream of leads to your business and avoid the ‘feast and famine’ syndrome that afflicts many small businesses.
Remember, this approach is not complex; it just requires you to overcome some hurdles. We are here to help you every step of the way. We have explained the 9 stages/processes within AEC, which you can easily undertake yourself. And for those tricky parts, we have provided deeper details when you click a button. It’s like a mini ‘INBOUND MARKETING’ training course, with the objective of getting your website to do all the hard work! So, trust the process and get ready to rise above the competition!
Marketing Goals & Objectives
Assess your current situation and your desired outcome in order to establish strong goals for lead generation. Although it's important to understand where you're starting from and where you want to go, don't allow yourself to over-analyze or become bogged down in unnecessary details. You have the expertise and experience to create an initial snapshot of your current position and identify attainable goals for the future. As your business evolves, these objectives will shift and mature. Embrace the opportunity to challenge yourself and build new strategies to achieve your goals. With a clear understanding of your starting point and a confident outlook for the future, your chances of success will improve.
Buyer Personas
Crafting buyer personas is a crucial part of any effective marketing strategy. It involves much more than just figuring out who your target audience is. It's about gaining a deep understanding of their needs, preferences, and motivations, and then using that knowledge to shape their perceptions and beliefs about your brand. By taking this approach, you can create powerful messages that resonate with your target audience on a deeply emotional level. This allows you to build a valuable database of highly engaged individuals who are more likely to become loyal customers over time. By nurturing these relationships through personalized and targeted marketing campaigns, you can build a strong brand reputation and drive sustained growth for your business. So if you're looking to create a truly impactful marketing strategy, it's essential to invest the time and resources into crafting buyer personas that truly resonate with your target audience. This approach will pay dividends over the long run, helping you to build a thriving community of loyal customers who are passionate about your brand.
Buyer Journey
You know your customers go through different stages in their buying cycle. Our approach is to offer them exactly what they need at each stage. Rather than push a discount when they aren't ready to buy, we deliver tailored content that matches where they are in the cycle.
Our approach defines three main stages of the buying cycle (Awareness, Consideration and Decision) and targets content to match those stages. By doing this, we have the confidence that we are providing exceptional value to our customers while building trust and long-term relationships with them. Our approach is all about understanding your customers and meeting their needs at the right time.
Keywords & SEO
When it comes to the mechanics of online visibility, there are differing opinions in regards to the true nature of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Some may argue that the concept of SEO involves manipulation of search engines, in order to secure a top-ranking position. However, others might posit that a more critical factor is the quality and substance of the content being presented. While the precise formula that Google employs remains a mystery to the public, what is clear is that a focus on producing high-quality and relevant material is vital to achieving long-lasting success with SEO. Ultimately, engaging in effective SEO practices means providing information that meets a high standard and positions your content as valuable and trustworthy. So, while the term SEO may be a misnomer, the value in producing high-quality content is indisputable.
Convert Visitors
Once a visitor lands on your site, it's important to have a clear strategy in place for keeping them engaged and moving along in their buying journey. Leaving things purely up to chance can result in missed opportunities to convert visitors into valuable prospects. So, how can you tell what stage of the buying cycle a particular customer is in? This requires careful tracking and analysis of how visitors interact with your site and the types of content they engage with most often. From there, you can develop a plan to move them from being passive observers to actively engaged prospects who are more likely to make a purchase. The key to successful conversion lies in clearly signposting the customer journey, so that sales teams can avoid wasting time on customers who are unlikely to buy.
Content
As we navigate through the digital landscape, we have come to realize that content is indeed the king of all marketing efforts. This is especially true in the realm of blogging. We have found that blogs are able to provide a level of fuel for marketing that is unparalleled. However, we must tread with caution, as not all blogs are created equal. In fact, many companies have fallen into the trap of using their blogs as little more than thinly veiled promotional efforts. This approach, while perhaps effective to some degree, often falls short of truly connecting with the intended audience. We have found that the best way to truly make an impact via a blog is to provide helpful content that truly resonates with the reader. Whether it's detailed how-to guides or fun top ten lists, this style of content is far more likely to influence your audience in a meaningful way.
Social Media
Social media is a powerful tool in today's digital era, offering various channels and outlets to engage and initiate conversations with potential clients or customers. While it's easy to dismiss social media as just another form of marketing, it's essential to recognize its vast potential and reach. Social media platforms can provide businesses with tremendous coverage and exposure precisely when they need it the most. In the B2B world, Google and LinkedIn undoubtedly rule the roost; however, it's crucial to acknowledge the reach of other platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Despite the stiff competition from the B2B-oriented social media platforms, Facebook and Twitter remain critical components of a successful social media strategy. They may not generate the same results as LinkedIn and Google; nonetheless, their immense popularity cannot be ignored. By actively engaging and communicating with your audience, you can maximize the potential of social media and derive tangible benefits for your business.
Campaigns
As businesses strive to stand out in the marketplace, building effective marketing campaigns has become a crucial part of any successful marketing strategy. However, creating and executing these campaigns can be an intensive and time-consuming process. That's why it's essential to have a structure in place to streamline the process and maximize the results. At our company, we understand the importance of planning and creating a solid foundation for successful marketing campaigns. That's why we've developed a portfolio of campaign templates designed to help marketing departments get their Inbound programs up and running quickly and effectively. By using our templates, businesses can save valuable time and allocate resources more efficiently. Our templates are customizable to suit individual business needs, allowing for flexibility and creativity while still maintaining a structured and organized approach. With our help, businesses can create powerful campaigns that connect with the target audience, generate leads, and ultimately drive sales.
Measurement
Marketing is a constantly evolving field, and staying ahead of the curve is essential for success. One way to do this is by gaining a thorough understanding of what works and what does not in your marketing efforts. To do this effectively, it is necessary to have a solid foundation of factual information and data. Simply relying on the number of visitors to your site is not enough. Instead, you must be able to identify the sources from which they originated, which campaigns were most effective in driving traffic, and how many of these visitors ultimately converted into valuable leads. A Marketing Automation System is a powerful tool to help you gather and analyze this critical information, providing you with the insights you need to optimize your marketing campaigns for maximum effectiveness. With this knowledge at your fingertips, you can confidently make informed decisions and fully leverage your marketing efforts for long-term success.