Last week I was on a Hubspot customer panel during the Hubspot for Startups event here in Phoenix. Prior to the panel, Dan Tyre and Juliana Nicholson shared their wisdom on the inbound marketing methodology.
Dan laid out how startups succeed with my comments in italics:
- Start with a great idea – but be careful as ideas are a dime a dozen and you must solve a real problem.
- Identify a market and scalable opportunity – I think it’s just fine to pursue a lifestyle business instead.
- Hire kick ass employees who share the mission –first 6 to 10 are critical – make sure they all sign agreements along with any contractors.
- Generate leads, close business and break through – please never forget that cash is king whether it’s investor money or even better revenue.
- Provide great customer satisfaction and REPEAT.
The old marketing playbook is broken. It simply does not work to spend big dollars on TV, spam emails, or direct mail. As I sit here, my cell phone is getting sales calls using unknown numbers, so I cannot even put them on the ‘do not call’ list or block (yes, I am talking about you Blue Cross sales representative!)
Inbound Marketing follows a methodology, or as Dan calls it, a holy grail: Attract, Convert, Close, & Delight. This approach is the “best way to turn strangers into customers and promoters of your business.†He was quick to point out that inbound or content marketing is a greater strategy, beyond your product.
Below is a summary of some of the highlights from Juliana’s deeper dive into the methodology.
Attract – Blog, Keywords, Social Publishing, SEO, Mobile Optimization
- 6 billion searches on Google every day – you need a solution that gets you found
- BUT 90% of searches on google are organic and 16-20% of inquiries on Google have never been done before. That’s a huge opportunity.
- 530K new business owners per month in US.
Convert – Forms, Calls to Action, Landing Page Optimization
- You need information to fuel and power your marketing
- Ask smart questions with low barrier to entry on landing page
Close – CRM, Email, Workflows
- Baby steps, kind of like a first date – get a bit of information to start. No marriage proposal right away, but how do you take that next step, like a second date?
- Lead nurturing – work flows and series of communications.
Delight – Surveys, Smart Content, Social Monitoring
- Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a simple & effective method to determine customer satisfaction.
- You cannot out-spend the behemoths; 54% more leads with inbound v. outbound
- 3X more Return on Investment (ROI) with inbound
- Up to $20K in savings per year using inbound v. pay per click advertising.
You might be thinking that this all sounds too complicated, but it’s easy and it starts with just one blog. At Traklight, we have been blogging for almost five years. We have ranged from sporadic to daily and it’s provided tremendous value for our business. But do make sure that you are using pictures and other content properly – check out our free business risk assessment. #onwards.
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