With the latest technology, there are multiple channels for marketing a product or service online, some of which include search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), and many more. While most of these types of marketing are categorized into outbound and inbound segments, email marketing is difficult to define because it straddles the line between inbound and outbound marketing. The truth is that it can be both.
In this blog, we’ll cover everything you need to know about inbound and outbound marketing and how these strategies can be applied to promote your business.
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What Is Inbound Marketing?
Inbound marketing is a strategy for expanding your business by attracting new clients. It’s about embracing individuals wherever they are in their journey with you and giving them the tools they need to get where they want to go.
Why? For the simple reason that your success will be directly proportional to that of your clients.
There are three methods for using the inbound methodology:
- Attract: Attract the correct audience by establishing your credibility as an expert in your field through engaging discussion and material.
- Engage: Customers are more likely to buy from you if you engage them by sharing insights and offering solutions that address their problems and help them achieve their goals.
- Delight: Customer delight comes from going above and beyond to ensure they are able to make good use of their purchase.
If your clients are successful and they tell others about it, you’ll have more potential consumers interested in your business.
What Is Inbound Email Marketing?
Attracting clients with inbound email marketing requires the production of content and experiences that are of high value to the target audience. Inbound emails are those that come from potential customers who have already shown an interest in your business or product by subscribing to your email list. Some common examples are newsletters, content roundups, and coupon vouchers for repeat buyers.
The goal of inbound marketing, as a company strategy, is to bring in prospects and customers by producing and distributing high-quality, relevant content and delivering exceptional, personalized service.
The term “email marketing” refers to the method of reaching out to potential clients using electronic mail. Email’s outstanding metrics highlight its value as a promotional medium for businesses. There are 4 billion people who check their email every day; if you want to maximize your chances of success and capitalize on the benefits of increased sales, traffic, and leads, you need to develop a plan and follow best practices.
Inbound Email Marketing Examples
Inbound email marketing is the type of marketing that enters your inbox after you make a purchase online or sign up for a mailing list. Once a connection has been made, the corporation will send follow-up emails in an effort to keep you interested in their products and encourage more purchases. Here are some common inbound email marketing examples that a company can use to engage and interact with its customers:
1. The Welcome Email
In email marketing, welcome emails are often the initial point of contact. Within a few minutes of signing up for the company’s emails, users will receive a kind welcome message. Conventionally, an email of this type will include the following:
- An expression of gratitude to your subscribers
- Giving a brief introduction to the company
- Listing some of the most prominent USPs for the customer
- Creating a call-to-action
2. Curated Email
Curated emails mix the greatest content from your organization. The information is accumulated over a specified time period or covers a specific topic. These emails may contain articles, photographs, links, or other information relevant to your subscribers. For example, you can send an end-of-year curated email of the most purchased products over the year.
3. Back In Stock Email
Many businesses allow customers to be alerted when an out-of-stock item returns to the store. If and when the item is restocked, the list will be notified by email. This email style concentrates on a single product and should evoke feelings of gratitude or urgency in the consumer.
What Is Outbound Marketing?
Outbound marketing is the polar opposite of inbound marketing, in which clients seek you out when they require your services. In this type of marketing a corporation begins the discussion and distributes its message to a target audience. Some examples of outbound marketing include TV commercials, radio ads, print advertisements (newspaper ads, magazine ads, flyers, brochures, catalogs, and so on), tradeshows, outbound sales calls (AKA “cold calls”), and outreach emails.
Outbound marketing is extremely popular among businesses due to its widespread outreach. For instance, Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising, which includes billboards, is on the increase and is predicted to exceed $42 billion globally by 2024. Display ad spending is expected to skyrocket in the following years, rising from almost $340 billion in 2022 to more than $500 billion by 2026.
What is Outbound Email Marketing?
Outbound email marketing entails contacting prospects who have not expressed an interest in communicating with you. Outbound emails are inherently unsolicited and might be deemed disruptive since they involve reaching out to an audience whether or not the audience sought you out. Nonetheless, it can extremely effective if done right.
Outbound Email Marketing Examples
In outbound marketing, most deals begin with a cold email or outreach email. As the customer is not expecting your email, it could be flagged and sent to the spam box. Hence, drafting the right email is crucial. Here are some examples that can help you stay out of the spam box and attract your target audience’s attention.
1. Emails That Grab Attention
The AIDA formula is an efficient outbound sales email template to use. Attention, interest, desire, and action are all represented by the acronym. Get their attention first. Make a statement or ask a question. Second, pique their curiosity. Tell a narrative to pique their interest. Third, make people want to buy from you. Leave omit a critical piece of information on purpose. Instill in them a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out). It leads to the fourth phase, which is to take action. Make your CTA really obvious. Instead of asking for further information, these emails should encourage the recipient to do a specific action, such as downloading a document or visiting a website.
2. Solve A Problem
It’s your responsibility with this form of an outgoing email to make things worse. In your email, describe an issue. A potential customer, for example, is having difficulty filling an in-person employment opening inside their organization. Make matters worse. Mention facts on the rising popularity of working from home. Now it’s your turn to address their problems. Provide a solution on how you can assist. People respect products or services that make their lives simpler, and finding solutions to their issues is significant and useful.
3. Be The People Pleaser
People enjoy receiving compliments. Begin the outgoing email, called “the people pleaser,” with praise. Don’t go overboard, but make it basic and genuine. Then, give a realistic example of a related situation. There was an issue, and this is what happened when we fixed it – cause and effect. Make a request now. Give them an idea of how your firm may help them, and end with a call to action to receive more information.
Inbound Email Marketing vs. Outbound Email Marketing
Inbound email marketing targets subscribers who are interested in your products and services, whereas outbound email marketing targets an audience regardless of apparent interest.
The first step in developing a successful email strategy is to understand the distinctions between inbound and outbound email marketing.
The following distinctions exist between inbound and outbound email marketing:
- Inbound email marketing targets a small list of interested subscribers, but outbound email marketing targets anybody to whom a message may be sent.
- Inbound email marketing lists are often slower to establish and considerably smaller to begin with. Outbound email marketing lists are significantly larger, and you don’t have to develop them from the ground up, especially if you buy an email list.
- Due to the lower subscriber count and higher ROI, inbound email marketing costs less on average. Outbound email marketing is more expensive since the more emails you send, the more money you spend. It also does not convert a large number of receivers into customers; thus, the ROI is substantially smaller.
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Email Marketing: The Best of Inbound & Outbound
Email marketing is both inbound and outbound; nevertheless, you must choose which email marketing strategy is most efficient and productive for your company. Inbound email marketing helps you to build on a connection that was initiated by your consumer. Outbound email marketing solicits new relationships from potential consumers. They use distinct approaches, yet both have been shown to be effective.
Continue reading iTMunch for the latest news and articles related to email marketing. Learn more about our email marketing services.
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