Now That's What I Call Marketing: 4 Key Areas of Inbound Marketing

Do you have the time to listen to me whine, about nothing and everything all at once?

I didn’t think so.  But I’m sure you do get nostalgic at times, and that’s how I’m feeling today.  Remember the 90’s and all the great music that came with it? Don’t speak. I know just what you’re thinking.  It was a great decade, and you are sad that it is so far in the past.

Even if that’s not what you were thinking, today is a great day to “Remember the Time,” and explain inbound marketing with a 90’s music overlay.  It’s time to “Bring It All Back” to explain four very important aspects of inbound marketing.

4 Key Areas of Inbound Marketing

Blogging, “The World I Know”

Oh, so you’ve got one of those blogs?  That don’t impress me much.  You’ve got the looks, but do you have the touch?  Blogging is the heart of all of your content, so you need to make sure that it is “Unbelievable.”  A blog allows you the opportunity to show your current customers and prospects that you are an expert in your field, so share your knowledge.  Make your customers say that your blog has “All That I Want.”

Struggling to come up with ideas?  Write about “All the Small Things.”  Try writing about your customers’ pain points or simply write about the things related to your industry that you feel “You Oughta Know.”  Keep your content relevant, but keep it interesting so that people want to subscribe and come back for more.

Wondering how often you should blog?  The short answer: as often as you can.  You want your customers to have something to read “Every Night,” rather than just posting “One Week” and going missing the next.  Consistent posting will encourage more subscribers, and will benefit your site’s SEO at the same time.  With Google’s new algorithm, quality content is 75% of the influence on a webpage’s authority, so focus on creating amazing content multiple times per day. “No excuses.”

Search Engine Optimization, “I Want it That Way”

Search engines are primarily looking for quality content, relevant keywords, and inbound and outbound links.  Think of search engines as a “Genie in a Bottle;” you just have to rub them the right way.  Focus on your blog and premium content to drive your search engine rankings, but do not completely abandon the other aspects of search engine optimization.

Everyone knows that when it comes to the marketing budget you don’t want to spend more than is necessary.  “Mo Money Mo Problems”; so try focusing on your organic search.  Include plenty of links to your own content, and other relevant content in your blog posts, and try to choose relevant keywords.  Try to give a search engine what it wants, but do not abandon your goals to do so.

When choosing keywords, don’t go chasing waterfalls.  Try focusing on a key phrase, rather than a single keyword, to increase your chances of appearing in a search engine under those terms.  If you choose a generic term such as “marketing agency,” the odds of appearing on the first page of a search is about “One in a Million.”  Use tools such as HubSpot’s Keyword Grader to choose relevant keywords that will still allow your business to rank high on search engines and draw traffic to your site.

Social Media Marketing, “Come to My Window”

Social media marketing is a great opportunity to let your customers get a closer view of your company’s personality.  Try being active on social media to see if your site is picking up “Good Vibrations.”  Connecting with customers on social media is a great way to build a relationship, which will ultimately help to generate sales.  91% of experienced social marketers see improved website traffic due to social media campaigns and 79% are generating more quality leads, so don't miss out.

What should you post about on your social media outlets?  Easy, just tell your customers what is going on “Right Here, Right Now.”  Let your followers know about your newest blog post, or give them a sneak peek into a new product or promotion.  If you cannot think of something to say, be active in the various social media communities.  Post on industry group discussion boards to gain credibility and followers.  Do not over promote yourself, but be active and make your see if you can tell your customers to retweet “Baby One More Time.”  Sharing is the holy grail of social media for businesses.  If done properly, social media activity will help drive customers back to your website and give you more of a chance to convert your leads.

Premium Content, “God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You”

Having quality content on your website is great, but it does not necessarily generate leads for you.  You need to go the extra mile and provide the customer with a CTA through your premium content.  Think of your customer personas and consider “What a Girl Wants” when developing premium content.  Create webinars, Ebooks, and white papers that your customers will want to read.  Link to this premium content throughout your website and blog, so that if a customer wants to read more they can click and say, “Whoomp! There It Is.”  Don't make them search; tell your customers where to go next on your website.

All of your premium content should be accessible on its own unique landing page.  You can’t just “Give It Away” for free, but you don’t need to require a lot in return.  Place a well designed form on your landing page to collect some contact information in exchange for the premium content.  This generates an MQL that you can hopefully convert to an SQL through all of your lead nurturing efforts.  Focus on your content and soon enough all of your leads will be saying that they “Only Wanna Be With You.”

If you focus on these four areas of inbound marketing and execute them effectively, you should be able to generate more leads for your company at a much lower cost than traditional methods.  Remember, that “In the End” you “WannaBe” the “All Star,” rather than just a “Candle in the Wind.”

Don’t worry, “This is the End of the Road.”  I’ll show myself out.  I know you what you may be thinking.  "Good Riddance."

Me too! I hope you had the time of your life (and learned a thing or two).