Inbound marketing is a business methodology that attracts customers by creating valuable content and experiences tailored to them. It is designed to draw visitors and potential customers in, rather than outwardly pushing a brand, product or service into prospects with the hope of lead generation or acquiring customers. The most widely used forms of inbound marketing are content marketing, social media marketing, search engine optimization, and branding. This strategy is more sustainable and it can generate relevant leads in the long run, that's why most businesses choose to invest in building a good inbound marketing plan.
When it comes to the cost of inbound marketing, there are several variables that can influence it. However, time and strategy are some of the required factors in establishing and maximizing your investment in an inbound marketing strategy. You will need to evaluate how you will manage and create the foundations and ongoing components of a successful inbound marketing strategy.
Foundational Elements
- Messaging Strategy
A communications strategy should be in place and it should clearly define our target personas. Dig into what and how these specific audiences think, how they view you, and what challenges they face. This information can be used to outline your competitive advantage and key messages for each target.
- Inbound Marketing Playbook
Without a playbook, there is a big chance where your inbound marketing strategy will fail. A playbook should include all the “answers” about your program: target personas, overall goals, competitor research, SEO evaluation, content promotion strategy, etc. Build your playbook as you go along the business.
- Inbound Ready Website
Delivering the best user experience is essential because as inbound lead attraction takes root, website traffic increases. You need to cope up with the demand and it would sometimes require you to do a comprehensive revamp, which requires time and carefully considered decisions.
Considering all of these things, you would ask: how much does inbound marketing cost?
For a business that hasn’t published a blog in two years and is currently asking someone to handle most of the inbound marketing, there’s going to need a lot more help and of course budget in order to even start and keep things rolling.
On the other hand, for businesses who have already laid a foundation, with regular content posting, and have a staff who can handle some of the workloads, it is expected to pay less for an inbound marketing program. The agency’s role is to act as an inbound marketing consultant, managing the program, providing recommendations, and working alongside the business to boost inbound efforts.
An effective inbound program should be customized in a way to address specific pain points and maximize marketing efforts that are tailored perfectly to the industry. Research about agencies who knows how to handle inbound marketing efforts within your industry. The business should be able to hire someone who has the expertise in the industry. Seek out an agency that specializes in your vertical to receive the highest potential ROI.
