Written by: When it comes to developing your business’s advertising budget, it can be hard to decide what new trend is a fad and what is worth pursuing. So, the inevitable question arises: Do you continue to invest significant amounts of money into older, more comfortable, but also less profitable methods, or do you give the new wave of inbound marketing and digital strategies a try?
Well, to us, and to big spenders like Proctor & Gamble, the answer is clear. But we understand you might need a better reason than ROI. Curious about the ultimate game changer? In addition to providing a 61% lower average cost per lead, inbound marketing has the added benefit of being an investment right back into your brand -- not in another industry’s bottom line.
Traditional Marketing Costs
Traditional marketing covers the tried-and-true methods of interruptive marketing. Attach your brand your information to things that customers are already interested in -- namely, radio, magazines, newspapers, and TV commercials. But who is really benefiting from your investment? The consumer gets their favorite article or TV channel interrupted. The marketing method gets your money, and you get to hope it works.
Radio, Print, and Television Ads Are A One-Way Street
When you develop a 30 second commercial spot to put on the air, you’re continuing the old-fashioned, one-way street that customers are accustomed to tuning out. You’re also paying the radio station or corporation for the privilege. In much the same vein, when you invest in newspaper ads or magazine spreads, your investment is really going into the print medium. You’re paying the newspaper to display your information, and your investment can only hope to reach your target customer in the end.
Inbound Marketing Costs
Inbound marketing is less about interrupting your target customer and more about becoming the interesting thing the consumer wants to learn more about. The money you funnel into this kind of marketing develop the scope, reach, and interactivity of your brand, making you well-known and well-known for being interesting and informative. And if the money isn’t going directly into your brand? It’s going directly to your customer.
Website Design, Content Creation, and Social Media Strategy Are Investments In Your Brand
The first step in developing an inbound marketing strategy is to create a clear and purposeful website. In this stage, you’re paying for the face of your company -- literally an investment in your business that will last as long as you like it. And when you develop readable, shareable, and interesting content that is useful and attractive to your customer? Your are investing directly into the source of your revenue -- your customers.
This also applies to your company’s social media strategy. When you invest in a community manager, your investment goes right back into your company, literally, in creating an online persona and personality that attracts new customers to your brand and rewards loyal customers for interacting.
The results speak for themselves -- but so does the investment you’re making. Would you rather pay for radio stations and newspapers to increase their bottom line? Or more or less pay your customers, by providing new, interesting, and useful information out into the world on behalf of your company? There’s no competition.
