Inbound Marketing Vs. Outbound Marketing

So, now that you understand inbound marketing, you might be wondering how inbound marketing compares to outbound marketing and what makes the most sense for your business.

Inbound Marketing

• Based on the idea of earning your customers.
• Includes activities such as: blogging, social media, content (white papers, e-books, video, podcasts, etc).
• Low cost. Inbound marketing boasts a 60% lower cost-per-lead than outbound marketing.
• High ROI.
• Performance is easy to track.

Outbound Marketing

• Based on the idea of buying your customers.
• Includes activities such as: cold calling, direct mail, traditional advertising.
• High cost. The average cost-per-lead generated via outbound marketing $332 vs. $134 for inbound marketing.
• Low (or untrackable) ROI.
• Performance is difficult (or impossible) to track.

Here’s what really gets our blood pumping: the opportunity that inbound marketing presents to startups and small businesses. Compared to traditional methods, like direct mail and advertising, a dollar invested in inbound marketing will go much further in generating buzz and leads. Inbound marketing requires less of a dollar investment to get the word out about your business.

We swoon at the amount of data that is available to track inbound marketing performance. With this, you are able to establish a deep understanding of what makes your customer tick. Better analytics means better decisions, which can be acted upon immediately.

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