Jay Leonard |
Say you’re a consumer…
Oh wait… you are. So how do you make your purchases?
Chances are, you use catalogues, take advantage of coupons, browse the internet and even do your buying online. The fact is… an ever-growing portion of consumers today do their research and purchasing on the internet.
According to TechCrunch.com, online spending in the fourth quarter of 2010 reached record levels (based on a comScore study).
(Graph Credit: TechCrunch.com)
So how do you get a piece of this pie? You convert your sales & business mindset to Inbound Marketing instead of conventional Outbound Marketing methods (conventional=ineffective).
Here’s how it works:
By simply thinking like a consumer, you are taking the first step towards understanding the Inbound Marketing concept. The reason for this switch is consumer behavior. People would rather click, text message, email and order online before speaking to a stranger who is speaking at them rather than trying to solve their problems and fulfill their needs.
Ask yourself:
- When’s the last time you took a sales call from a telemarketer?
- When’s the last time you talked with a salesperson who cold-called your company?
- How many SPAM emails do you read a day?
The hardest part about converting to Inbound Marketing is getting in the mind of your consumer to get a better grasp on their needs.
Read more:
- Inbound Marketing is Like a Holiday Party
- Inbound Versus Outbound Marketing: A Comprehensive Overview
- Best SEO Software
This article was written for Business 2 Community by Jay Leonard.
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Jeff,
Love that graphic of your brain on outbound and inbound marketing! Buyers, and not just consumers, but business buyers – are doing more of their research on the internet and spending less time a tradeshows, meeting with sales people and taking cold calls.
So inbound marketing makes sense. You need a strategy to be where your target buyers are doing their research so you can educate and share your point of view with them. And, so buyers can find you. If you wait until they are finally ready to meet with sales people face to face, you probably won’t be on the short list. You need to start each sales cycle with a digital dialog these days.
Hi Mark, Thanks for your feedback! I agree with all of your comments.
Agree with Jeff the brain illustration is spot on. Outbound marketing still has a role but i feel that the mix is certainly biased towards inbound.