Its fair to say that the British character, far from being overbearing and self promotional tends to lend itself to a more subtle and modest tone which in the digital age can simply get drowned out by all the noise. I’ve commented before about how difficult it can be to find the balance between being too noisy and promoting your online activity and the more people that come onboard with the idea of Inbound Marketing the more important it becomes to recognise the need for reserve and judgement.
Business Development is data driven, targeted and it works
I’ve been accused of being too subtle when it comes to business development and that I need to be more aggressive and persuading in my use of language. If that doesn’t sit too well with you, as it didn’t with me at the time and still doesn’t, and your against the idea of pushing yourself upon people then your probably one of the many who think there’s a better way of doing business in this day and age in which case Inbound Marketing is for you.
Today’s marketing and PR is about content creation. Your personal brand is also about content creation – David Meerman Scott
Don’t shout – Inbound Marketing gets you heard by those who matter
Inbound marketing and the use of data in developing business is something, having spent over 10 years in sales, that I firmly believe in. Far from being loud and aggressive it is aimed at working with people who already have an interest in what you do. Far from having to beat people down with your message Inbound Marketing puts you in position to get the right people coming through your door, isn’t that what you want.
“But this is the way we’ve always done it”
David Meerman Scott, author of The new rules of Marketing and PR speaks about the FEAR companies have when it comes to doing things differently and he has first hand experience of that fact. Overcoming this fear factor is something that people who run these companies need to overcome if they’re going to succeed in the Digital Age. When you’ve spent your whole life doing something and you’ve seen it work (Outbound Marketing) it’s hard to accept that your business environment has changed and so their might be a better way of doing things (Inbound Marketing) and its understandable. Change has an element of the unknown and losing control of your marketing is a scary message but to make full use of what’s available that’s an obstacle that business has to overcome.
Lose control of my Marketing – you must be mad
Let me give you an example. When Cindy Gordon was at Universal Orlando Resorts she was tasked with launching the new Harry Potter Theme Park. She had millions of pounds to spend in her budget, a dream for any marketer, and could have used any number of strategies to get the message out but instead of this she decided to tell just 7 people. Madness I hear you cry, tell 7 people, what’s that ever going to achieve, but the beauty of her plan was not just in telling 7 people but in telling 7 of the most popular bloggers and within 24 hours those 7 people had ballooned to over 350m, and that’s a big audience in anyone’s books!
Don’t be afraid to jump in – you won’t regret it
Obviously, at least as far as I know, this is an extreme case but one that highlights the possibilities that present themselves to industries that are willing to embrace the changes that the Digital Age can bring. So the message to anyone who’s thinking about jumping into Online World but just doesn’t understand what or how it works is don’t be afraid, if you value what you do, appreciate your customers and respect their opinions the Internet is the most powerful tool you’ll ever need.
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