When people think of public relations it is very unlikely that inbound marketing comes to mind. However, inbound marketing is a new strategy that can strengthen the PR function in helping to drive business growth.
Inbound marketing refers to marketing activities that earn the attention of customers, make the company easier to be found online and draws customers to your product or service by producing interesting and most importantly, content of value.
Business growth relies on two main factors: having an attractive product or service and being able to attract customers to pay for that product or service. Inbound marketing can play a great role in helping with attracting customers whether it is through social media, blogging or email newsletters. The reality is that almost all of the millennial generation and a large percentage of others use the Internet whether it be computer, tablet or mobile to research new products and services.
When customers are able to find content on your website that helps educate them, they are much more likely to view your business as the one from which they should make their purchase. They will very likely share this blog or social media content with their friends and this will help lead to more revenue for your company.
There are too many websites to count that are almost nothing more than glorified business cards with just about zero dynamic content that changes from month to month far less week to week. Why should a customer check your website on a regular basis if new content is as regular as a lottery win?
The short answer is customers will visit a competitor who understands that persons want to be able to learn more about the product or service they are looking to purchase. This is particularly true for big ticket purchases such as a car, computer or real estate. If your business has products or services that need a high level of consideration before a purchase then you will definitely want to think about coming up with a blogging strategy that fits your industry. A B2B targeted blog, for example, would have quite a different strategy than a high end B2C product/service blog.
One of the other critical reasons why Inbound really matters for any business is that many savvy customers around the world are employing Ad-blocking software. In fact, over 200 million persons globally use Ad-blocking software to avoid advertising from brands. This means that those businesses that do not focus on generating organic traffic will lose out massively.
Ensuring your business focuses on using social media and blogging to attract and engage current and potential customers will give you a competitive advantage not just now but over the coming years. Your company’s business growth will increase further through forming real connections to your customers. Inbound marketing can play a huge role in doing just that.
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