Inbound marketing is the most valuable attraction and retention strategy you can invest in. It brings your ideal customers to you by creating value for your brand. And it forges lasting relationships with your buyers by building trust and providing solutions.
It might be easy to look at marketing in a traditional sense and think that it all comes down to pop-up ads and a successful email campaign. But even in a saturated market where it feels impossible to get your brand to stand out, your marketing efforts shouldn’t focus on outbound methods. While it may be tempting to believe that the only way to stand out is to force yourself onto the screens of your target audience with paid ads, your most valuable long-term strategy begins with inbound marketing.
Inbound Marketing vs Outbound Marketing
When you think of marketing your brand, your mind may immediately jump to traditional methods like promoted posts, pop-ups, and web ads. And you wouldn't be alone. Many businesses spend up to 90% of their marketing budgets on outbound marketing.
But the truth is many aspects of outbound marketing are outdated. They interrupt potential buyers with unwanted content. They’re high cost for low yield. And they “rent” attention for a limited amount of time.
Inbound marketing flips the cycle. Inbound marketing brings the customers to you, exactly when they’re looking for you. This ensures that your brand pops up, ready to answer questions and provide value when your potential customers are searching for it.
Inbound marketing can deliver up to 30 times the campaign conversion rate of traditional campaigns according to Wordstream. And according to Weidert Group, content marketing gets three times more leads than paid search advertising. Not only that, but using an inbound marketing strategy is significantly less expensive and lasts for the long-haul. Think of it more as an investment in your brand’s lifetime success.
So how does it work?
So glad you asked!
Inbound marketing is rooted in the idea that buyers hold the purchasing power, and it’s the brand’s job to create value for the buyers. Buyers now have an entire virtual marketplace at their fingertips, and according to CXL 87% of purchases begin with online research.
So it would make sense that you want your brand to pop up and attract buyers during that research phase.
The problem with ads and email campaigns is that they reach buyers when they aren’t looking to buy. The best time to begin your relationship with your potential customers is when they’re actually interested in looking.
On top of reaching potential customers at the best possible time, inbound marketing also grows on itself with time. The more you incorporate inbound marketing practices, the more credibility you gain for your site. This process is more about building a reputable following and deepening your relationship with your customers, and less about trying to pitch your products to the void and hoping for a response.
eCommerce Inbound Marketing Strategy
Inbound marketing methods rely on one another, so it’s important to create a full strategy to tackle your needs. Some methods you need to include in your strategy are:
SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, is your absolute most necessary attraction tactic. SEO is what takes your products and sites from unseen to popping up in search results. SEO uses targeted keywords in written content to help Google and other search engines figure out what your web pages are about, and then show them to the potential buyers who are searching for them.
Finding your SEO strategy involves
Identifying your target audience
Determining what they’re searching for when they look online
Using that information to pick out keywords you want to include in your content
Strategically putting those keywords in your product descriptions, landing pages, and web content
Ensuring that those keywords are leading customers to helpful, engaging content that they’ll actually want to read
While it’s important that your content is using keywords to be picked up by search engines, you won’t see results unless your content motivates your readers to take further action.
Blogs
Blogs are the most common form of inbound marketing and a great way to take your SEO keywords and put them into engaging content. The great thing about blogs is that every time you make a new blog post, it sends off signals to Google that your website is regularly updated with new content. Well-written blogs attract potential customers by providing value and establishing your brand’s authority. The best ways to use your blogs to their full potential are to:
Post 1,000-word blogs once a week. This tells Google that your content is regularly updated with fresh information. This goes a long way with their ranking algorithm.
Incorporate those SEO keywords. This tells Google that your website is relevant to what your buyers want to see, and gives credibility to your entire website.
Make your blogs at least 1,000 words long, but make sure those 1,000 words are worth reading. When your audience stays on your blog to read, this tells Google that your page is worth the attention and will continue to rank your website higher.
Use your blog to connect with your audience! This one is kinda the most important part. If your audience feels they’re getting value out of your blog, they’ll continue to trust you and be more willing to engage with your brand. This is massively important in building a lasting relationship with your customers.
Email Opt-Ins
You may already know how important it is to build a mailing list. But it’s also important that your mailing list is filled with customers who are actually interested in what you’re sharing. Otherwise, you’ll be sending out mass blanket emails to no one in particular, hoping at least someone will be interested enough to click.
Email opt-ins help you build a list filled with interested buyers. Your audience will be willing to trade in their email address if it means they’ll get something they value in return. Which means they’ll be more likely to open the emails you send afterward, and more likely to respond positively to your calls to action. Some examples of opt-ins you can use to bridge the gap are:
Discount codes! Who wouldn’t trade their contact information to save some money?
Special offers. Ensure your customers that they’ll never have to worry about missing a deal if they’re signed up for your emails.
Exclusive memberships with deals you can only get by joining. Give your customers something extra for signing up.
Free gifts with purchase
Sweepstakes entries
There are many other methods you should include in your eCommerce inbound marketing strategy, including product description optimization, landing page design, and social media engagement. In a successful strategy, all these components work together to attract and maintain your customers with minimal marketing costs.
The Bottom Line
Trying to get your brand noticed in a marketplace as vast as the Internet can feel impossible. Especially with low-yielding methods like paid ads and blanket emails. But with the right strategy, your marketing can do the work for you.
You’ve come to the right place if you’re looking for an eCommerce copywriter and inbound marketing specialist. I’ll partner with your brand and help you create a long-term strategy that reaches your ideal audience.
I’d love to chat about your goals and how we can work together to reach them. Drop me a message or schedule a no-obligation consultation and we can get started on your personalized plan of action.
