You’re bound to have heard about inbound marketing by now – it’s one of the top growing types of marketing for ecommerce, even achieving records in conference attendee growth. But is it just a buzz word, or could inbound marketing truly add value for your ecommerce business? We believe it can take you to the next level, here’s how..
Your focus is on the right target audience.
How often do you actively think about who your buyers are, and what that means for your business? The first step of inbound marketing is focused on reflecting – and researching if necessary – just who your buyers are, and what their wants and needs are. You’re going to approach copywriting tactics differently for a stay at home soccer mom than you would for a “my only child is my motorcycle” woman. But how do you really know which is which, or which pain points to appeal to without figuring out your buyer personas? Finding the right target audience helps you narrow down focus to increase the amount of qualified leads coming in.
You’re attracting the right audience naturally.
Do you want to fight for your audience, or to have them strolling through your (metaphorical) front door on their own? Once you know your audience’s needs, you can appeal to them with content both on your blog, and behind landing pages to add them to your contact lists.
Make sure your content answers the following questions
- What information does my buyer want to know?
- What tips and tricks would help their business grow? (B2B)
- What tips and tricks would make their lives easier? (B2C)
- What content will keep bringing them back?
Create a relationship with your buyers by making them familiar with your voice – and your expertise. The more they associate you with your niche, great!
Buyers stay engaged.
Remaining on top of your buyer’s mind is essential – but how exactly can you do it? If that’s a question you’ve ever asked, you should probably give inbound marketing another look.
What are a few ways to keep your readers engaged? Use social media to make businesses seem more personable. You want to build a community around your products, services, and brands to encourage growth and mutual interaction. Social media (and blogs!) is one way to easily do that. Are you already using workflows to reconnect with leads after they reach out to you? Automated workflows help you
Stay relevant naturally.
Staying current is one of the keys to your business staying strong; what worked for you five years ago may not work for you today, and it’s up to you to assess why. Have your buyers changed? Do they want different things? As time passes, you should be realigning yourself, and checking in with your buyer is and what their needs are.
How often do you study what your buyers want? How often do you update your methods to reflect that?
In close, inbound marketing is becoming more and more crucial to any business, especially ecommerce where website traffic is essential to an increase in sales. Think about where your budget is going now. Do you want to focus your budget on widely attracting an increase of hits to your site, or do you want to focus on the people your business is most relevant to? With inbound marketing, you can draw in potential buyers who are already actively looking for something within your niche – why turn that down?
