If I had to choose only one marketing discipline to grow any brand in the world, I’d choose inbound marketing. Hands down. Not only is it fun to do, but it’s great for building sustainable growth in the long term.
Inbound marketing is for the patient, the dedicated, and those who have vision. It’s also for those who want to raise brand awareness and a great customer experience. If that sounds like you, keep reading. I’ll go through:
- What inbound marketing is and how to apply it.
- My four favorite approaches to inbound marketing strategy.
- And eight creative inbound marketing examples from some of my favorite brands.
Ready to fall in love with inbound marketing?
What is inbound marketing and how to apply it?
Inbound marketing is a discipline that focuses on creating high-value content to lead the customer’s journey. These approach enhances the client’s willingness to work with a brand through nurturing techniques.
Simply put, inbound marketing attracts clients through playing it cool. Contrary to outbound marketing, which is disruptive in nature.
One thing I’d like to clarify, though, is that inbound marketing isn’t inherently better than outbound marketing. In some cases, outbound marketing is more effective. And, in most, you need a well-rounded marketing strategy that combines both to succeed.
4 winning inbound marketing strategies you can implement today
#1 Education
Education, in the form of content marketing, is a universally good strategy. Not only does this approach work for every single brand on the planet, it also can adapt to fit most strategies. The educational approach works because it nurtures customers and helps overcome their objections. As a result, educational inbound marketing helps convert clients much more simple.
To apply this strategy, provide relevant educational content. The key to make it right is to teach your target audience what they need to know, rather than geeking out.
#2 Community
Building a community is, by far, one of the most labor-intensive and patience-exhausting goals we can have. However, having an engaged community is priceless. This is one of the reasons why some brands like Apple and Taylor Swift have such loyal fan bases. These brands make people feel understood and like they belong, and as such, they become clients for life.
To use the community strategy, you need a clear understanding of your audience. Create a detailed customer avatar — or a few, if you have more than one segment — and focus on them, exclusively.
#3 Support
Providing support to your audience, and helping them solve their needs, is a great why to build trust. But not only that, it shows your willingness to make their lives easier. Brands that use customer support as a pillar in their strategy, quickly become the path of least resistance for their clients. Which, in turn, makes it simpler to keep them hooked with their offers.
Regardless of your industry or the type of products or services you offer, you can apply this strategy. You just need to keep an eye on your customer experience and ease of use. Try to make buying from you and interacting with your brand as close to inertia as possible.
#4 Entertainment
Last, but never least, we have entertainment. Entertaining content comes in many forms. It can be fun, it can be interesting, it can be inspiring, or it could leverage storytelling. The how isn’t as relevant as why entertainment makes customers connect with a brand. Through entertainment, we can relate with audiences on an emotional level. And emotions prompt them to trust and identify with brands.
To use entertainment in your inbound marketing, forget all the posing. Be real, normal, imperfect, and marvel at the little things. The term authenticity, though overused, is the keyword here.
Awesome inbound marketing examples to inspire you
2 great inbound marketing examples of the education strategy
Notion and ClickUp are outstanding examples of how to use educational content to make complex topics accessible. They offer constant training, in-depth guides, and double down in honest influencer marketing.
Despite they are in the same space, their marketing is drastically different. And you can see it in how these brands support two very different needs.
Excellent inbound marketing examples of 2 community-driven brands
Payoneer and Metricool are great at dominating their niche’s needs and desires. Both of these brands have a very community-driven approach. Their marketing team understands they aren’t but a tool to help their user achieve success.
Both brands have top-notch webinars and programs to help users dominate their niche. And who wouldn’t want to partner with a brand that supports their goals?
2 inbound marketing examples that put customer support as the centerpiece
Canva and Figma are tools that have a great focus on building a massive support system for their users. Their strategies double down on making things effortless for their customers.
These brands keep them hooked with the massive resource libraries and integrations they provide. And as soon as users get started, they fall in love with their ease of use and accessibility.
Entertainment inbound marketing examples from 2 surprisingly funny brands
Slack and Grammarly show us how to be entertaining and relatable. Even in “dry” industries like workplace communications and proofreading. These two brands leverage tedious activities to highlight the usefulness of their tools.
The trick is how they manage to build an emotional connection with their users through relatable humor and storytelling.
Winning inbound marketing approach
You don’t need to commit to one inbound marketing approach. It’s actually ideal to incorporate all of these marketing strategies with an understanding of how different platforms and mediums work.
To call back one of the examples above, Grammarly both entertainment and education. It’s a super fun brand, but it does have a gigantic and extremely well-researched blog. It also, has excellent support and keeps you in the loop, helping users track their progress and compare it with its community.
Entertainment, education, support, and community. Four or four.
Want to leverage inbound marketing for your brand?
Want clients to love your brand, like in the inbound marketing examples I showed you? Reach out or book a free call with me. I’ll be happy to chat for a bit.
