Do you understand the difference between inbound and outbound marketing? The lingo is not exactly intuitive, yet critical to understand for every marketer operating in today’s business environment. It is essential to differentiate between the two to stay competitive no matter your industry, particularly considering our modern technological age and the changing behaviors of the consumer.

Outbound marketing utilizes a variety of traditional methods to PUSH OUT your message via direct mail, billboards, print and TV advertising. Costs remain high to maintain consistent outbound (or traditional) marketing programs, as the production and media placement fees can be significant. Effectiveness of this time-honored technique has become questionable with the explosion of the Internet and social media and the widespread adoption of these digital platforms into our everyday lives.

Inbound marketing PULLS customers IN and focuses on getting found by potential customers or clients. Today’s savvy marketer knows that new clients are earned through relationship-building and forges these connections through interacting on social media as well as high-quality content marketing like blogging, podcasts and targeted email marketing. Inbound marketing is also more cost-effective; as you can see from this Mashable infographic, three out of four inbound marketing channels cost less than any outbound channel.

So while traditional methods have not completely gone the way of the dinosaur, companies who historically based their outreach on outbound marketing have had to adapt to include more modern applications to generate sales leads. A well-conceived strategy that includes both inbound and outbound approaches, and schedules initiatives to specifically complement one another, will be most effective and bring in a lower CPI over time.

With so many of our collective waking hours spent online or on mobile devices, inbound marketing is really relevant and critically important. Determining how to dovetail this with a sound outbound marketing program today is key. Ready to adjust your strategy accordingly? Call us to discuss how you can more effectively generate sales leads through inbound marketing.