What is Outbound and Inbound Marketing?

There are many different Marketing strategies that companies can employ - but at the basis of all strategies is an outbound reach or an inbound draw. We explain below what each of these Marketing strategies are used for and why at mbudo we choose to use an Inbound Marketing approach. 

What is Outbound Marketing?

Outbound Marketing is an easy concept to remember: Outbound means the company itself is reaching out to customers.Its mission is to seek out a wide audience in order to attain the highest number of leads possible. 

Examples of Outbound Marketing and Advertising include:

• TV, radio, print ads
• Cold sales calls and telemarketing
• Direct mail
• Door-to-door sales
• Events and trade shows
• Email lists and email blasts

There are numerous problems with Outbound Marketing: high prices, ROI that's hard to track, ad-blocking for TV and Internet, plus it's time-consuming for your business and generally disliked by audiences. Given the fact that the average person sees thousands of advertising messages per day, it's hard for brands to stand out. 

Outbound Marketing tends to work best for high-end products/services, older audiences that are used to traditional advertising methods, and some instances of B2B and niche markets. 

You're probably already thinking that Outbound Marketing sounds outdated, and you're right. Surprisingly, it is the method used by the majority of businesses, simply because it's the way Marketing has always been done...Outbound may have a place in your Marketing Strategy, but it's finding the right mix with Inbound Marketing that is essential. 

Continue reading to learn about Inbound Marketing. 

What is Inbound Marketing?

Inbound Marketing is pretty much the polar opposite of Outbound Marketing. It's purpose serves to attract the exact audience that needs your product/service and who is actively looking for information about it. While Outbound is more aggressive in its approach, Inbound Marketing is natural and extremely targeted. For a simplified look, discover our Inbound Marketing infographic. 

Examples of Inbound Marketing include:

• Website content
• Content Marketing and Blogging
• SEO
• Email Marketing campaigns
• Paid Search/Paid Social
• Social media

Inbound Marketing isn't obsessed with a huge number of leads - it only wants high-quality leads that are likely to convert into loyal, paying customers. Inbound Marketing is also easy to track and measure, given that's it's almost exclusively web-based.

Any business can take advantage of the ease and affordability of Inbound methods; all you really need is a great understanding of your ideal client (called Buyer Personas), great content in a variety of formats, and a great Inbound Marketing Agency to help you along the way. 

In conjunction with lead nurturing, automation, and social media support, you will find that your leads are more qualified and ready to buy when using Inbound Marketing techniques. Reach out to mbudo to get started on Inbound today!