Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing

The best way to explain inbound marketing is to contrast it with outbound marketing. Most traditional marketing techniques are outbound. These include:

  • Print ads in newspapers and magazines
  • Billboards and signage
  • TV commercials
  • Direct mail such as postcards, flyers, and other "junk mail"
  • Radio advertising
  • Telemarketing

All of these methods have been around for many decades and are still used today. Of course, in the pre-digital age, these techniques weren't called outbound; they were simply advertising or marketing. Outbound methods are also used online. Think of banner ads on popular sites, email blasts (AKA spam), and unsolicited direct messages on social media. 

Think about what all of the above types of marketing have in common. Although they reach people using different platforms, they all blast out very broad messages. Some targeting is possible with outbound techniques. For example, advertisers can target the readers of a certain newspaper or TV program. However, a billboard on the highway is seen (if not always noticed) by everyone who drives by. One of the defining characteristics of outbound messages is that they are released to large numbers of people in a single style or format.

Inbound Marketing 

Inbound marketing has a shorter history than outbound, but has greatly transformed the way businesses think about connecting with customers. Here are some examples of inbound marketing:

  • Content Marketing - Creating relevant content is usually the foundation of inbound marketing. This may include blogging, posting articles, videos, podcasts, and social media posts and images.
  • SEO - Search engine optimization works hand-in-hand with content marketing. It allows you to target keywords that your customers are searching for.
  • Email marketing - This refers to permission-based email and not spam. Publishing a newsletter and getting subscribers to sign up in exchange for a gift are typical examples.
  • Pay-per-click advertising - While PPC may seem similar to outbound advertising, the difference is in the degree of targeting. Ads are directed at very specific populations based on location, age, gender, income, interests, and other criteria.

It should be noted that inbound marketing is not only about which platforms, channels, and techniques you use but how you implement them. For example, a PPC campaign that targets an extremely broad audience (e.g. "make money fast") and leads to a landing page with a generic pitch ("buy my e-book for $19.95") isn't really inbound as it doesn't actually connect with the specific needs of an audience. The same is true for poorly targeted content and email campaigns.

Essential Characteristics of Inbound Marketing

Hubspot Marketing sums up inbound marketing as strategies designed to "attract, delight, and engage." While these are all indeed important, it's perhaps the attraction factor that's most fundamental to inbound marketing.

Know Your Audience

The goal of researching your audience is hardly new. The field of market research, after all, has been around for a lot longer than the internet. However, with inbound marketing, targeting options are more precise than ever.

  • Keyword research. Finding keywords that your audience is searching for is essential for all inbound strategies. Whether you're writing a blog post, creating a video, or launching a PPC campaign, keywords let you narrow down your market. Identifying long-tail keywords is particularly important as these are highly targeted words and expressions that aren't quite as competitive as broader ones. For example, "healthy recipes" is fairly broad while a longtail alternative might be "best keto snacks for work" is a lot more targeted.
  • Create a buyer persona. Constructing a buyer or customer persona helps you visualize your customer as an actual person. Just keep in mind that a buyer persona is not an actual person but a composite of your typical customers.
  • Get customer feedback. Aside from data, it's helpful to talk directly to customers so you know what they're thinking. Ways to do this include polls and surveys, asking questions on social media and in your emails.
  • Engage in social listening.  Social listening or social monitoring is another valuable tool for learning more about your audience. This involves paying attention to conversations on social media sites that relate to your product, business, and industry. You can also set Google Alerts for relevant keywords to bring up the latest news stories and discussions. This can help you identify trends and preferences to inform your inbound marketing.

Provide Value

Outbound marketing inserts itself into the lives of viewers, readers, and listeners. While inbound tactics may seem to do this as well, there's a crucial difference. With inbound, the objective is to provide real value and elicit a response.

Consider a hypothetical inbound campaign to promote a fitness app. It might be an app that helps you count calories, make healthier shopping decisions, and cook more nutritious meals. There's a free version as well as a paid upgrade. Here are some inbound techniques you might employ.

  • Create a series of blog posts featuring healthy recipes.
  • Make videos for your YouTube channel with health tips. Share them on social media.
  • Place PPC ads on Facebook with links to the free app download.
  • Build an email list. Send out a newsletter with health and fitness tips.

This strategy can be customized to your own business and the channels where you're active. You can also create educational content with e-books, podcasts, and webinars. All of these techniques deliver value rather than directly selling anything. You are intent on attracting people who can most benefit from your product.

Tips to Make the Most of Your Inbound Marketing 

The goal of inbound marketing isn't to make a sale but to build lasting relationships with customers. Here are some ways to help you accomplish this.

  • Stay engaged with your customers. Reply to their questions and comments on social media and via email.
  • Use an omnichannel approach. Most of your customers are on multiple devices and platforms. Make it easy for people to access your content however it's most convenient for them. Cross-promote so you're sending email subscribers to your blog posts, placing opt-in forms on your Facebook page and website, and encouraging your audience to connect with you on multiple platforms.
  • Use analytics to track your results. Learn which topics are most important to your audience. Find out the best social media platforms, times to send out messages, and other metrics so you can finetune your strategy. 
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