Marketing's Greatest Hits - Vol. 1

I've taken a break recently from blogging as its been a hectic few months for me. With a wedding a new house and a new job, it seems I've taken on just as much as I can.

With that said however, I wouldn't change a thing. I am as happy as I've ever been and am do enthusiastic and focussed on the future.

I'm excited to announce a new web series that will be published weekly to my blog as well as other content hubs focussed on marketing.

Each week the series will showcase an interview with one of the GTA's top marketing talents. The series will be mostly Q&A with some surprises thrown in.

It's been an exciting week for me and I'm already booked up for December.
However if you or somebody you know would like to be featured please inbox me and I'll see if we have some room left for the January bookings.

The profile is someone who is currently working as a Marketing Manager, Director or VP level within a Toronto organization.

Please send all enquiries to corey.barker@me.com

Look for the new series to be published here in the new year.

Thanks for reading and please share amongst your peers.

Not your typical Campaign Ad? Richard Tisei: Not Your Typical Ad, Not Your Typical Politician

Oh, the horror! Another Pre-Roll....

Among the long list of problems threatening the planet -- civil war in Syria, economic collapse in Greece, the potential demise of the European Union, earthquakes in Japan -- it’s the world’s population of Internet users who clearly face the biggest hardships of all, having to suffer through paper towel and laundry detergent commercials before getting to watch the latest “kitten in a cardboard box” video.

Oh, the horror!

If the frustration expressed by viewers over having to wait 30 seconds to watch an online video for free is a little bit silly, then the readiness with which our entire industry empathizes with their plight is outright inane.  But be that as it may, and regardless of whether or not the anxiety over an otherwise harmless commercial is warranted, there are other (and better) advertising options for marketers to explore. 

To begin with, not all pre-roll is created equally, and some are clearly just lazier than others.  Taking a standard-issue TV spot and placing it in front of an online video doesn’t require a tremendous amount of money (at least from a production standpoint), but it also doesn’t take full advantage of the medium;

Look at this from another angle: Suppose a brand that typically markets itself through print advertising decides to run a TV spot.  To save money on scripting, casting, shooting and editing a unique production, they simply take the print ad and hold it in front of a camera for 30 seconds. It wouldn’t work, or at least, it wouldn’t work that well.  They’d be ignoring the true benefit of the medium – TV gives you the opportunity to entertain, inform, capture interest and tell a story.  Similarly, the Web gives marketers an opportunity that TV doesn’t: the power to engage, and connect with your viewers through direct interaction.  You’ve got your entire audience watching your spot with their fingers on the mouse button, just waiting for a good reason to click on something, and (apparently) bored and antsy because they have to suffer through your ad at all. So give them something to do; a reason to feel better about the delay.  Instead of running static VAST ads, invest some time and money into V-PAID ads, creating brand-associated games or interactive storylines that use the medium more effectively to interact with online consumers.

Even better, skip the pre-roll altogether and expand beyond the 30-second format.  Branded content can be a far more powerful tool, turning your marketing message into an informational, entertaining video that viewers will want to watch and benefit from, without even realizing (or at least not minding so much) that they’re being marketed to. A well-written, well-produced piece can appeal to viewers and be written around points you want to make, without it becoming a heavy-handed sales piece.  For example, an ongoing series called “Everyday Savings” that provides quick, easy to implement tips on how to save more money is content that many people would have a use for, and watch more of.  If that same series was “Presented by Some Bank,” it frames the sponsor as experts, helps build their brand, and entertains as well as informs – all without the perfunctory pre-roll.  What’s more, with many video networks and partners, brands can arrange deals so that rather than pay a flat CPM rate, they only pay when viewers watch a minimum percentage of any one video. 

Other opportunities are also available to brand interested anxious to take advantage of online video for marketing purposes.  Product placement is a growing and beneficial opportunity, in which brands may sponsor a video producer to mention their product, or include their products as part of the content.  Interactive overlays on specific videos, which collect answers given by viewers and provide a customized product offering at the end, based on those answers, are also strong but underutilized options to get closer to consumers. 

Pre-rolls, while by far the predominant method of online video-based marketing, isn’t without value.  But in a medium whose strength lies in extended storytelling and enhanced connectivity with viewers, it’s just a scratch on the surface of what can actually be accomplished. 

Credit: Jay Miletsky - MediaPost's Video Insider
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/185839/beyond-the-pre-roll.html

How to Create Compelling Video on a Small Budget

Video is a wonderful tool for telling a compelling story. It can be valuable for SEO, useful as a straight-forward marketing tool, and increase the reach of your message via social media in countless ways.

That said, one of the challenges a number of my clients face is a desire to use video but a very limited budget with which to work.

Maybe video wasn’t initially a part of the plan, or perhaps it was but the budget for it was eaten up by other urgent needs. Thankfully, creating a video doesn’t always have to mean heading out with a camera or hiring a crew to shoot new material.

What options do you have to create compelling content while minimizing your out-of-pocket investment?


Use what you’ve got

My #1 piece of advice for clients who find themselves in this situation is to use what they’ve got.

Maybe you’d like to illustrate a couple key points from new research for an audience that won’t wade through a 30-page report. Does the report have graphs, charts and other graphic elements that could be re-used?

Working with existing assets and a graphic designer (as well as adding some low-cost music and recording a tight, focused narration track) can result in a compelling, graphic-driven piece for a fraction of the cost of shooting interviews about the research, or finding stock footage to try to illustrate your message.

Think about the emotional impact of your piece as well. Even lower-quality, non-professional video and photos can have great emotional impact if there is a wonderful story behind the images.

All you may need to do to bring a great piece to life is record an audio interview and spend time with an editor to put it all together.

Do some of the “heavy lifting” yourself

There is an unholy trinity that rules all video projects. That trinity is fast, cheap and good… and you only get to choose two.

Since most people have a vested interest in doing good work, that means time is your most expendable resource when your budget is limited. Spend time crafting your message and laying out your plans. Write a script by putting everything you want your audience to hear in one column, and in a separate column list the imagery you want on screen for each moment of run time. Enlist team members to dig through archives or reach out to stakeholders who may be able to lend good imagery to the cause.

The more time you spend on these tasks before bringing in a professional or sourcing materials you have to pay for, the less the project will likely cost you.

Keep your message short and sweet

Each page laid out in the two column format mentioned above will equal roughly one minute of video. If you find yourself with long stretches of narration and no imagery to go with it, it may be time to edit down your script or start thinking of ways to use text or other elements on screen to make your point… perhaps even some combination of the two.

Finding imagery

You may come to a point in the planning of your piece at which you realize graphics, text and the video and photos you have aren’t going to get you to the finish line.

What else can you use?

Stock footage is the obvious choice… but in my opinion it’s not always the best choice, particularly if you have a lot of time to fill. Great stock footage and stills are expensive, and finding good, inexpensive imagery can take hours and hours of time.

Someone (maybe you, maybe some unfortunate intern) will have to wade through page after page of cheesy stock shots to find ones that work for your piece, and even then the costs can add up fast.

If you find yourself in this position, it’s time to get creative.

Is there an excellent amateur photographer in your ranks?

Perhaps you can find a way to free up a day or two of their time to take photos that will be useful to your project (in addition to helping you build an archive of imagery for future projects)?

Maybe the National Archives has some great public domain footage that would work well for your project.

At this point, further brainstorming with your internal team or even bringing in a video production company or a producer to help you evaluate your options might be time well spent.

A strong idea executed well

This video is one of my favorite examples of well-executed concept using precious few materials. Video can be a daunting medium because of the time it can take and the potential cost, but it is also incredibly flexible and creativity can bridge a lot of gaps left by budget shortfalls.

Source: http://www.waxingunlyrical.com/2012/10/17/video-without-the-shoot/

Why Advertise on TV?

The most powerful advertising medium available - Period.

Television works. Here's why:

• Consumers will spend 50% more time with TV than they will with radio, and ten times more than they will reading the newspaper or surfing the Internet.
  
• 82% of the population say TV is the most influential form of media available.
  
• People decide which products and services they want based on what they see on television.
  
• Now, the power of television is available to almost any business as it has become more cost-effective and targeted than ever before. However large or small your company is, there is a television solution for you. Use the power of television advertising to grow your business.
  
• The right medium for the right business.
  
• Television works best for advertisers who want to build a longer term solution. Television advertising is, by its nature, a long-term strategy. Think about this for a moment—how many times did you have to see a TV ad before you immediately recognized the slogan or were able to repeat it? Chances are somewhere between 6 to 9 times. This is what's known as creating awareness.
  
• Your goal is to reach this 6-to-9-view threshold with your potential customers. Test after test has shown that this is the point when viewers become aware of your product, service, or brand. The longer you run your ad, the greater number of people will begin to remember you and potentially become your customers. Increasing awareness also helps reinforce your brand to your existing customers, reminding them of your business, and putting you top-of-mind for their next purchase.
  
• However, TV is also a powerful strategy for a special event or promotion, and can drive a lot of customers through your door for a one-time sale. This type of advertising can use a significantly smaller budget, as long as you carefully target the market you want to reach, and create a “blitz” of ads in the few weeks leading up to your campaign.
  
• Television is the most powerful advertising medium available. The largest corporations around the world use it to build their brands, bring customers, add credibility, and grow their businesses. You should think about using it too.

For more information on how TV advertising can work for you or your business please send an email to corey@creativebubetube.com. 

Source: http://www.themediabox.co.za

What’s your favorite scary movie?

Mine’s the one where your sales team is wasting all of their time calling people who have no interest in your company or service.

All that wasted time, effort, and money. It’s chilling.

I mean, let’s say for the sake of argument that you don’t enjoy wasting time. Safe assumption? I think so.

But here’s the thing, there are still many marketing tactics performed by businesses and marketers everywhere that have simply lost effectiveness, or in most cases, have been replaced by more effective, modern methods.

Take the Internet for example. It’s enabled buyers to conduct more product research and even company research before they are good and ready to guy. Buyers have taken a great deal of power back from the sellers due to the Internet and the speed and availability at which we receive and digest information.

So why are so many salespeople still relying on cold-calling as a means of making a sale?

Interested in learning more about transforming your marketing to generate more qualified, sales-ready leads?

Content Creation vs. Cold Calling
Want to hear something scary? According to Harvard Business Review, cold calling doesn’t work 90.0% of the time. Talk about a waste of time.

Some other scary stats:

Cold calling costs 60% more per lead. (HubSpot)
Has a rate of less than 2% of phone calls resulting in a meeting. (Leap Job)
Only 5-10% of people pick up the phone. (Honest Selling)
These are terrible statistics. The bottom line is salespeople shouldn’t be used as a means to find customers, but rather as the end point for prospects that have come to your business based on demand and quality content creation.

As discussed earlier. due to the Internet, buyers do not want to be engaged with until they are further down the sales funnel, or more sales-ready. This is why statistics show very little people actually pick up the telephone for a sales call, and even less actually stay on the phone long enough to hear a pitch.

Basically, cold calling ignores the entire sales process that often occurs for a prospect to become a buyer. It’s main function is to skip ahead a few steps and make a sales. Well…as those statistics state, how well is that working out?

Creating Demand with your Content
So is there still value in the phone call? Absolutely!

However, it’s all about timing. Why are salespeople being forced to jump on the phone to talk with people who have no interest or aren’t ready yet? It’s a waste of everyone’s time and money.

However, scheduling a phone call or assessment at the right time (when prospects reach the bottom-of-the-funnel) will have a much more effective and profitable end result. But how do you get them there?

While cold callers rely on the phone call to unknowingly force their leads down a sales funnel they had no clue they were in in the first place, creating demand through content creation and other inbound marketing methods effectively qualifies all of your prospects for the eventual phone call.

Inbound marketing focuses on creating attractive marketing content that creates demand and generates leads, resulting in a much more segmented and qualified contact list for your sales team to contact. I mean think about it, wouldn’t you rather your sales team spend their time and effort making phone calls to prospects who have already taken an interested, rather than aimlessly dial the phone in the hopes you won’t get hung up on?

Of course you would.

This makes your sales team much more productive, as they’re only spending time on the phone with prospects who are actually interested in, or have already taken an interest in your company or service. Soliciation has taken a huge hit as the Internet weaves itself further into our lives. We’ve become so efficient about blocking unwanted marketing and advertising messages.

Ways we ignore solicitation:

Cold calling? Thanks to caller-ID I can enjoy my dinner uninterrupted.
Direct mail? You mean the stuff that actually comes in the mailbox? People even get their bills electronically now. Your marketing message could end up in the garbage.
Print ads? Newspaper subscriptions continue to plummet.
You get the picture. Create attractive content that creates demand and drives traffic to your website. Let your prospects come to you.

It’s how they would want it.

Transform your Marketing
Looking for a more effective way to generate leads for your business? Contact me today.

Source: ImpactBND,
http://twitter.com/bonini84

Five top tips to starting a successful business

I love this first blog post from Virgin founder Richard Branson:

As LinkedIn is a business that started in a living room, much like Virgin began in a basement, I thought my first blog on the site should be about how to simply start a successful business. Here are five top tips I’ve picked up over the years.

1. Listen more than you talk
We have two ears and one mouth, using them in proportion is not a bad idea! To be a good leader you have to be a great listener. Brilliant ideas can spring from the most unlikely places, so you should always keep your ears open for some shrewd advice. This can mean following online comments as closely as board meeting notes, or asking the front line staff for their opinions as often as the CEO's  Get out there, listen to people, draw people out and learn from them.

2. Keep it simple
You have to do something radically different to stand out in business. But nobody ever said different has to be complex. There are thousands of simple business solutions to problems out there, just waiting to be solved by the next big thing in business. Maintain a focus upon innovation, but don’t try to reinvent the wheel. A simple change for the better is far more effective than five complicated changes for the worse.

3. Take pride in your work
Last week I enjoyed my favourite night of the year, the Virgin Stars of the Year Awards, where we celebrated some of those people who have gone the extra mile for us around the Virgin world. With so many different companies, nationalities and personalities represented under one roof, it was interesting to see what qualities they all have in common. One was pride in their work, and in the company they represent. Remember your staff are your biggest brand advocates, and focusing on helping them take pride will shine through in how they treat your customers.

4. Have fun, success will follow
If you aren't having fun, you are doing it wrong. If you feel like getting up in the morning to work on your business is a chore, then it's time to try something else. If you are having a good time, there is a far greater chance a positive, innovative atmosphere will be nurtured and your business will flourish  A smile and a joke can go a long way, so be quick to see the lighter side of life.

5. Rip it up and start again
If you are an entrepreneur and your first venture isn't a success, welcome to the club! Every successful businessperson has experienced a few failures along the way – the important thing is how you learn from them. Don’t allow yourself to get disheartened by a setback or two, instead dust yourself off and work out what went wrong. Then you can find the positives, analyse where you can improve, rip it up and start again.

Social Media: What You Want Isn’t What You Need

Admit it: You’ve self-diagnosed on WebMD. We all have. You find some mole that looks a little weird or a cough that sounds a little too rattly, and you diagnose yourself with some dread disease. Cancer. Whooping cough. The bubonic plague.

You march into the doctor’s office with your research in hand, complete with what course of treatment she should prescribe. Before you've ever talked to the expert, you’ve figured out your problem and your solution.

Any good doctor worth her salt is going to sit you down and talk you out of it. Any good doctor is going to help you realize that your mole is just that, a mole, that your cough is just an edge of a cold or whatever diagnosis is correct or appropriate. Or they’ll find out what the real underlying issue is. Because that’s what doctors do: they get to the real problem under all the symptoms.

In a way, no matter what business you’re in, we’re all doctors. It’s not our job to take our patient or client at their word when they tell us what’s wrong; it’s up to us to look past the flashy symptoms to the root cause.

I see this a lot. Folks walk in the door saying they want help with social media. They’ve heard they need to be on social media, so they want to be on social media. But when you sit down and talk to them, what they really need is more leads. What they really need is to mine a new demographic. What they really need is to galvanize their existing base. And depending on what that true need is, social media may or may not be the right path to take.

When it comes time to do your own marketing, sit down and consider what you’re really trying to achieve. Remember, the goal of marketing is not to be good at marketing. All the awards, all the Facebook comments, all the website hits aren’t worth a hill of beans if your business is floundering. Before you embark on any marketing endeavor, ask yourself what problem you’re trying to solve, what need you’re trying to fill, what isn’t working now. Next, make sure your marketing strategy is actually achieving those goals, not just making you feel better in the short term.

credit: http://www.roundpeg.biz

Old school vs. New School - Is your Marketing Mix Evolving?

I've been thinking a lot recently about my days as a Marketing Manager. Having to make daily decisions on where I should spend my money to get the most ROI. Only to report to my boss every quarter and try and explain any mediocre results I was having and the reasoning behind them. Mind you, back then the internet wasn't the tool it is today. Sure we used email and landing pages but social media for business wasn't in our marketing mix. Today, marketing managers are more savvy, they use technology and most are even experts in certain categories. However for the SMB marketing manager, their time can be focused on the day to day work which leaves little to no time to educate themselves on the most recent trends in advertising and marketing. So what is a marketing manager, working for a SMB to do? Most will hire outside help to manage chunks of their spend. Media buying here, creative over there, leaving Social Media and SEO to manage themselves or to push onto a junior coordinator to try and make sense of. Outside vendors tell you they can get you ranked the highest but from my experience you just keep spending and spending and never seem to get results you were promised.

So, with all this said - what is a marketing manager to do? Indeed in a world where everyone of us has to do more with less, most are doing what they can internally and outsourcing the rest. That's a fine strategy if you you have a big picture plan in mind and your vendors are delivering a holistic program that touches all the key points of your marketing program. Problem is, vendors work in silos and that's why most online marketing programs fail to deliver. Your SEO people aren't necessary the same one's doing your SMO. Your Google Adwords are being managed by someone else altogether. There was a time when you needed to work with specialists and the above would have been the way to go. However today there are far more advanced systems that can manage all the above and create a synergistic and holistic marketing program that generates results because it is being managed as one deliverable.

Recently I had the chance to work with a new client who was looking to do the following:
1. Increase Leads
2. Convert these leads into Customers
3. Retain their current client base

Not an easy task off the bat but something we could easily measure and provide concrete ROI for the customer.

So how did we do it? Easy.

Increasing the Traffic to Their Website and Getting New Leads

Using our software, we can drive traffic to our clients website.  Since September 2011, their website traffic has increased by 180%. Our software’s SEO Tools replaced their need to hire the external SEO expert who wasn’t producing the results they were looking for.  They can now find and track their most effective keywords, track inbound links, and diagnose and fix poorly ranking website pages.  Since October 2011, their visits due to organic search have increased by 133%.

Another key step in developing an effective inbound marketing strategy was starting their blog in order to attract leads with valuable content. Using our Blogging Tool, we can easily create posts and get SEO tips along the way.  We share the posts on all their social media channels with the social sharing icons.  We can track the blog to see which posts are generating the most traffic, leads, and ultimately customers.  “Blogging has been instantly successful for us.  Right now we are blogging twice a week religiously.  People are sharing our content"(Customer). They currently have over 20,000 subscribers to their blog.

Using our Lead Generation Tools, website visitors can move towards becoming customers.  All the lead data they generate with us is integrated with their CRM account.  The CRM integration makes marketing and sales alignment easy.  In the past year, their leads have increased by 288%.  Leads from referrals have increased by 200%

Using Email to Nurture Leads

Using our software’s Lead Nurturing and Marketing Automation Tools allows us to warm up leads for our client's sales team with targeted content.  Personalized messages can be sent to leads based on their behavior using the Workflows app.  “Email marketing and lead nurturing helped us to build the relationships and trust we need in order to be recognized as experts in the business execution field" (Customer).

If you are an SMB Marketing Manager or are looking to have the same success noted above, please click here to contact me. I would love to discuss how I can be of service in optimizing your marketing planning and driving real success as in the above example.

What's the best strategy?: Inbound Marketing vs Traditional Marketing

Social media marketing strategy is at the top of most marketing agendas at the moment. Social networks have become a part of daily life for most of us. We use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn every day, to gossip, to catch up on news and to discuss the issues of the day. A lot of people check social media before they’ve even gotten out of bed.

That level of popularity has lead to the rise of a whole new set of marketing tactics. Marketers all over the world are working to leverage that popularity and use it to build brand awareness and generate sales. Different marketers will approach social media marketing strategy in different ways. But there are two main categories they fall into, traditional and inbound marketing.

These approaches have two main tactics; advertising for traditional and engagement for inbound marketing. Both of these approaches have value and both are viable marketing strategies. One thing that is becoming clear however is that users prefer inbound marketing engagement to traditional advertising.

Users Reject Traditional Marketing Tactics

In fact, users really seem to really dislike some versions of Facebook advertising. Last year, Facebook users filed a class action lawsuit over the social networks use of ‘sponsored story’ advertising. Sponsored stories allow advertisers to publicize their brand using the name and photo of a user in an ad stating that the user ‘Liked’ the brand. The lawsuit claimed that users should have control over a company’s ability to profit from their image.

This advertising system effectively taps into the same area that inbound marketing is trying to reach. Inbound marketing is about creating content and engaging with users so that they ‘like’ the brand in both the Facebook and actual sense of the word. The idea is to interact with users so that they take an interest in the brand. That interest then translates to activity, either on Facebook or on an official website, that ultimately leads to a sale.

A social media marketing strategy built on inbound marketing tactics avoids bombarding users with ads. This strategy is about generating content that leads to users promoting the brand of their own volition. It’s the direct opposite of advertising tactics that make use of a users name without their permission.

Users want to be Engaged, not Used

It’s this lack of permission that lead to the lawsuit and lead Facebook to settle the case out of court. That doesn’t appear to be the end of the matter though. Last week, a federal judge rejected the settlement and asked Facebook to clarify how they came up with the settlement. The judge seemed to suggest that the settlement in its current form failed to adequately resolve the situation. He worried that the plaintiffs’ lawyers “may have bargained away something of value.”

This case is just one example of the ways that users are rejecting Facebook advertising. Users clearly don’t want to become part of advertising campaigns. They are quite happy to talk favorably about products and ‘like’ business pages but they want to do this on their own terms. That’s where inbound marketing and engagement comes in. Social Media marketing strategy needs to work with users not use them to advertise. Users who feel engaged with a brand will promote it; they will comment, retweet and interact. Users can act as promoters, but only if they’re made to feel valued. The problem with promoted stories is that it turns users into walking billboards, something most users reject.

Stories like this reinforce the view that when it comes to social media marketing strategy there’s only one winner; inbound marketing.

If you would like to launch an inbound marketing campaign or have questions about how this type of marketing can help your brand, please click here.

Source: http://www.business2community.com/social-media/social-media-marketing-strategy-inbound-marketing-vs-traditional-marketing-0258002#rgJ6aJFm8eSprsum.99

How to Grow Your Business with Inbound Marketing

One of my favorite quotes about inbound marketing is from Guy Kawasaki, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist, best-selling author and former Apple executive: “If you have more money than brains, you should focus on outbound marketing. If you have more brains than money, you should focus on inbound marketing.”

Inbound marketing is a burgeoning area of marketing that focuses onattracting prospective customers online with valuable content, and then converting them into leads. Inbound marketing tactics include the use of blogs, social media, e-books, white papers, search engine optimization and webinars. In essence, inbound marketing is all about earning your prospect’s attention.

Outbound marketing includes the more expensive, traditional, interruptive marketing tactics, such as advertising, telemarketing, direct mail, spam email and trade shows.

David Meerman Scott, author of “The New Rules of Marketing & PR” describes outbound marketing as where one must “buy, beg or bug their way in” to a prospect (via paid advertising, issuing press releases or paying commissioned sales people).

The reason for the growing success of inbound marketing and the decline of traditional outbound marketing is because of dramatic changes in the way people buy.

Because of technology, consumers are increasingly able to tune out marketing messages. Examples of the technology that enables consumers to avoid unwanted marketing messages include DVRs, caller ID, satellite radio, iPods, email spam filters, Internet ad popup blockers, RSS readers and “do not call” lists.

Just a few years ago, when a customer wanted product information, soon into their buying research they would need to contact the seller. Then, the buyer became a lead and the seller, who controlled most of the product information, could exert control over the sale.

Now, a buyer can thoroughly research your company or product online and avoid your sales person until they are ready to buy. An example is a car buyer who thoroughly researches her purchase (costs, options, car reviews) and might know more about the product than the salesman. The same applies to business-to-business sales.

As a result, marketers are finding traditional, outbound marketing to be increasingly less effective. A few points to consider:

• 86 percent of people skip television ads.
• 44 percent of direct mail is never opened.
• 200 million Americans have registered their phone numbers on the FTC’s “Do Not Call” list.
• 91 percent of email users have unsubscribed from a company email that they previously opted into.
• 84 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds have left a favorite website because of intrusive or irrelevant advertising.

In contrast, inbound marketing is on the rise, primarily because of its return on investment (ROI).

• Inbound marketing costs 62 percent less per lead than traditional outbound marketing.
• The amount of money spent on company blogs and social media doubled in the last year.
• 57 percent of businesses have acquired customers through their company blog and 42 percent through Twitter

The inbound marketing process can be broken down into six steps:

1. Develop a successful marketing strategy – including goals, objectives, challenges, buyer personas, competitive analysis and a determination of ROI.
2. Create and maintain a powerful website – which is the hub of all your online marketing and lead generation. The site also needs to be mobile ready, search engine friendly and easy to update.
3. Generate more traffic – in order to increase the number of opportunities for visitors to turn into leads. Blogging, social media and search engine optimization (SEO) play a large role in boosting site traffic.
4. Convert traffic to leads – by creating attractive offers and calls to action that appeal to potential buyers at all levels of their sales journey.
5. Convert leads into sales – using lead intelligence to score, segment and nurture your leads (with email), you can continue to build stronger links with your prospects until they are ready to buy.
6. Measure everything – and then do more of what’s working and less of what’s not working. Analytics to measure include site traffic, SEO, your blog, social media and email.

Will outbound marketing go away? Probably not. But the power it has enjoyed for the last 75 years will continue to decline and be overshadowed by inbound marketing.

__________________________________________________________________________

(This article originally appeared in Inside Business – The Hampton Roads Business Journal, on August 13, 2012.)

Is there a paradigm shift happening in Marketing?

The answer is undoubtedly yes! Today, savvy marketers are more aware that conventional tactics just are not hitting home with audiences. Whether it be TV, Billboard, Tradeshows, etc... customers just aren't interested.

So what then, what should companies be doing in order to reach their core customer demographic. In a nutshell - nothing. Yes I said nothing lol. My clients sit back and let the customers come to them. Want to know how? Well I'll tell you.

Inbound Marketing...
In a nutshell, Inbound (content) marketing is the process of creating valuable pieces of information that help you attract, connect with, and convert prospects into paying customers.

It isn't marketing in the "traditional" sense where you're interrupting your potential customers
with ads and flashing things.

Content marketing provides your audience with tips, advice, and solutions to their problems
so that they'll be more willing to stick around and take some sort of action.

Ideally, you'd want your visitors to read your content and join an opt-in list so that you have
permission to contact them regularly. Through this ongoing email conversation, you can offer them your products and/or services.

It’s all about attention & authority..
With all the ads, blogs and social media sites fighting for your prospects attention, grabbing that attention has become an essential part of your success. Your content must first grab your readers attention, just enough to get them to keep reading. The more read, the more they’ll learn from you – and the more they learn the higher your credibility and authority goes. In order to grab that attention, you need compelling & benefit driven headlines for your articles and content pieces.

You see, as customers we buy from people (and companies) we know, like and trust – and this is exactly what content does for your business. Content builds trust because you’re giving it away for free. It makes people like you because you’re solving their problems. And it encourages people to buy because you’re positioning yourself as an authority in their eyes.

I will share more about Inbound (Content) Marketing in an upcoming post. If you have questions or would like to start a campaign please email me directly by clicking here.

What is Inbound Marketing?

So what is Inbound Marketing and why is it the buzz these days? Well it's really nothing new. Permission-based marketing has been around for years but we are now seeing an influx of interest around the topic.

Permission Marketing (Inbound)

Inbound Marketing is a permission based methodology that focuses on driving relevant traffic to your website, converting that traffic to leads, and finally, turning those leads into sales. Relevant traffic is driven to your website through attractive blog articles, social media, and effective search engine optimization techniques. This method of attracting qualified traffic is much more effective than the alternative – blasting a message to thousands of uninterested people in the hopes you’ll have a return rate of around 2%.

Once qualified visitors are on your website, the inbound marketing methodology drives visitors to attractive offers such as premium videos and ebooks. In exchange for these offers, website visitors will provide their contact information. This method of sharing offers is much more effective at generating leads and filling your sales pipeline than the traditional “contact us” link on the navigation bar.

The obvious next step of the sales process would be to turn leads into sales. The inbound marketing methodology utilizes marketing automation to collect social media information about your leads, segment them into targeted leads, and manage the initial follow-up for you. Tools like lead nurturing and e-mail marketing could help close up to 50% more leads.

What Inbound Marketing is Not

Simply put, it’s not outbound marketing. This may seem obvious, but the differences between the two cannot be overstated.

Outbound marketing generally consists of marketing methods such as trade shows, e-mail blasts to purchased lists, internal cold calling, outsourced telemarketing, and advertising. There was a time when this was the standard and a very effective method of getting your message out there.

Times changed, and technology evolved. People were no longer using the yellow pages, unwanted marketing messages are easily blocked out by caller ID’s, DVR’s and spam filters. Not to mention the fact that everyone is too busy to meet with a door-to-door salesperson or attend a trade show. Times have changed but the demand for your product or service hasn’t. Are you marketing to those who actually want your product?

The “Let’s just blast this information out there to as many people as possible and hope that we receive a 2-5% response rate” method of marketing is no longer effective.

Why Inbound Marketing Works

Because the inbound marketing method generates more qualified traffic to your website, you’ll be in a much better position to convert this traffic into leads. In fact, studies show a 61% lower cost-per-lead than traditional outbound marketing efforts.

It’s quite simple really, if your website is attracting consumers who are in fact interested in the type of service or products you are offering, the result will be a higher percentage of leads who can be converted into sales.

Services in an Inbound Marketing Program

Marketers using inbound marketing techniques will utilize various services to help achieve their goals. We’ll break this down from start to finish here.

Building a Marketing Strategy for Success

The first part of any successful inbound marketing plan is to identify the goals and current marketing challenges a prospective client faces. The target market must be established and also how they currently use the Internet as part of their buying process. From there, an understanding of what the available budget is for an inbound marketing plan is discussed as well as how fast you want to grow. Lastly, it must be determined how this marketing program will provide a return on investment. Inbound marketing is not an expense; rather an investment in the growth of your business.

Website Development

A website is the hub of any inbound marketing campaign. It is critical that any inbound marketing strategy start with a lead generating website, preferably on a content management system. It must be clear to the visitor what you do and why they are on your website within the first 5 seconds of being there.  Your website also needs to be easy to navigate and has to be built using on-page SEO best practices. Lastly, with a rapid increase in the use of the Internet on smart phones such as iPhone, it’s now essential that all websites are mobile friendly.

Drive Relevant Website Traffic

Once a powerful website has been built, it’s now time to start generating some serious traffic. These are common inbound marketing traffic generating services:

• Blogging
• Search Engine Optimization
• Social Media Marketing
• Convert Traffic To Leads
• Development of Attractive Offers
• Landing Pages and Fillable Forms
• Calls-to-Action
• Convert Leads to Sales
• Lead Management
• Lead Segmentation
• Lead Nurturing
• E-Mail Marketing
• Closed Loop Reporting
• Measure Everything
• Website Analytics
• Competitor Tracking

Should You Hire an Inbound Marketing Agency?

Answering this question is quite simple really. Ask yourself if you have the time and resources to fully immerse yourself into an inbound marketing campaign and all that goes along with it.

Do you have the time to generate blog posts and ideas with enough frequency for it to be a success? Do you have the tools necessary to help with lead generation and other analytical tools?

Are you well versed in the various social media platforms, and will you be able to engage with potential consumers in a frequent manner through them?

These are all questions you must ask yourself when determining if you should hire an inbound marketing agency. If you’ve answered no to many or all of these questions, then it sounds like you should strongly consider doing so.

By doing this, you’ll be free of the burden of constantly having to worry about engaging and staying current with these services. Let a team of “digital natives” handle all of these online tasks for you, and you will undoubtedly realize the value in having a website that is maximized for its potential.

What Does an Inbound Marketing Partnership Cost?

The cost of an inbound marketing program is really dependent on your needs as a company and what you’re looking to get out of it. You can expect to pay anywhere between $3,500-$15,000/month.

It’s important to view the partnership as an investment rather than a cost. Think of your fully optimized website as a potential return on investment once the necessary pieces are in place to help your company’s website realize its full potential.

Need Help?

If inbound marketing is something that you are interested in but don’t know how to get started, contact me today to schedule your free marketing analysis.

credit to hubspot/impact branding & design

A Recent Tweet - A Must Read

@MarketingCor: @KAMMOK_MOB love the TEDtalk, everyone needs to see and hear your amazing story. #motivationbyfear #kickstarter

bit.ly/TEDxKammok 

4 Tips for Crafting your Content Marketing Strategy

What are the main points that marketers should think about when crafting their content marketing strategy?

1. Know your audience. Who are they and what are they looking for online? Dig deep—their lifestyles are as important as their purchases.
2. Be a go-to resource for your customers. Content such as tips, how-to`s, and educational information will position you as an expert in your field.
3. When it makes sense, curate content. But don’t let that be the only part of your plan—it’s important to provide fresh, new content for your audience as well.
4. Provide a unique offering. Thinking outside of the box will give you an edge over the competition.

Zappos - Content Marketing at it`s Finest:

Source: Skyword Blog

Zappos, the largest online shoe retailer, is often thought of as the king of customer service. The reputation it built with its customers plays a significant role in the company’s rapid growth. Its website states, “We’ve aligned the entire organization around one mission: to provide the best customer service possible.” Always focused on the customer, it’s no surprise that Zappos doesn’t just excel at customer service—the company has an exemplary content marketing strategy.
How does Zappos do it? While its prospective and current customers are in the market for shoes, handbags, and clothing, Zappos understands it must create a real connection by providing relevant information beyond their buying decisions. The retailer isn’t just trying to sell to consumers; it’s creating an experience for real people.

Zappos’s YouTube Channel
According to ReelSEO, online video is seeing a 50% increase in viewership year over year. This indicates that integrating video into a content marketing strategy is an opportunity that marketers shouldn’t overlook.

Zappos’s YouTube channel isn’t a thinly veiled advertisement for the company—it’s a place where consumers can watch entertaining and educational videos. “On the Spot” is a fun series that features Zappos employees who talk about their fashion choices. The channel also features several how-to segments that teach viewers makeup and hair styling tips.


Zappos’s Pinterest
Pinterest, with over 18 million visitors, is the prime location to post images that will draw in an audience. Zappos does it right with a variety of tightly themed eye-popping boards comprised of user-generated content and its own that users can repin, which in turn creates a cascade of shares.

Considering the virtual pin board’s predominantly female audience in the U.S. and the impact it’s having on wedding planning, it’s likely no coincidence that Zappos created the board “Wedding Day.” Other highlights include seasonal boards and ones created by individual users (e.g., “Hope’s Board“), the latter of which adds a human touch to the page.

Zappos Now
Perhaps Zappos’s most innovative content marketing effort is its digital magazine, Zappos
Now, a.k.a. ZN, available on iPad. The publication “explores the exciting and ever-evolving world of style.” By downloading the app for ZN, readers can review seasonal fashion tips, try out interactive ensembles, and learn from how-to “work it” spreads. Unlike with other magazines, ZN readers can make purchases through the app (or create wish lists to save for later). A bonus is that users can get free next-day shipping without a minimum spend.

Content is King!

Content curation - a rapidly emerging content marketing discipline - is turning out to be a bona fide game-changer. Marketers for a wide variety of brands are seeing impressive results from their curation efforts. In the hands of smart marketers, content curation is an efficient and cost-effective way to generate more business for your organization.

For more information on content curation please visit http://www.curata.com/