Inbound marketing cost 61% less than traditional marketing techniques. Companies that leverage inbound marketing have a cost per lead of $135 versus $346 for those companies that leverage primarily traditional marketing.
With this data, larger, enterprise-level companies should be jumping on the inbound marketing bandwagon, right? Well, it is not that easy. There are major barriers that every enterprise level business has.
Inbound marketing does not work for larger companies, not because of high cost or lack of perspective, the barriers go much deeper than that.
5 REASONS INBOUND MARKETING DOES NOT WORK
Inbound marketing works. It is that simple. However, let’s take a peek at some of the reasons that your business might struggle getting started with inbound marketing.
INFLUENCING CHANGE
In my last corporate job at a fortune 250 company, influencing change was nearly impossible.
“Hello Mrs. CMO, I have a great idea. It is called inbound marketing and it will help us lower our cost by nearly 61%.”
Mrs. CMO replied, “That sounds great, can you put together a proposal and present it to the board?”
You go off and get straight to work. This is your big chance to make a difference in the business. You still have your normal job tasks, but this is important. So, you work on it after work and on the weekends.
You are finally done with your presentation. Now let the meetings begin. You present it to your boss, there are changes. You present it to your director, there are changes. By the time you are officially ready to present to the right person, your idea looks very similar to the marketing plan in place.
Let’s face it. Enterprise level businesses are hard to influence change. They are even harder to put new ideas in motion.
SALES RULE
Many enterprise-level businesses are driven by sales, not long term marketing. Don’t get me wrong, sales are important.
Again, at my last corporate job marketing’s role was to support sales. “Get that sales brochure done, so sales can get out and win clients.”
If you are experienced with inbound marketing, you know that inbound is about winning customers. Through valuable content, you are able to attract the right customers at the right time.
Many enterprise level businesses still believe that pushing your sales message down the customer’s throat is how things get done.
I will tell you this. I get turned off by sales pitches. In my business, I rarely buy from a salesperson that initiates the contact. Even if I need the product or service.
Inbound marketing should support your sales team by generating marketing qualified leads. People that are ready to buy now. This shift will help businesses increase conversion rates and increase revenue.
SHORT TERM GOALS
Short term goals that make board members happy can kill your business. “We have to make the board members happy.” stock price is important, but so is the long-term health of your company.
Inbound marketing is a time commitment. Inbound marketing can take 6-12 months to really start seeing success. Short term focus is a huge reason why enterprise level businesses never begin the inbound marketing journey.
If your business looks too short term, you might start down the inbound marketing journey. However, when you do not see ROI in the first month or two your company will give up. Chasing the shiny object does not pay off long term.
REVENUE VERSUS AUDIENCE
In your last marketing meeting did you hear the word audience? Maybe, but it was used in a different context. In the past, your audience was described as a target market. That is still true today, but what we are talking about here is a following or tribe. Someone that wants to hear your message.
This is a problem most businesses have. “We need revenue yesterday.” I get it, cash flow is important to run any business. However, if you build an audience, you can then sell to them.
There are tons of businesses that have built an audience and in turn sold products or services to them. Look at HubSpot, the king of inbound marketing. They have built an empire around engaged marketers and business owners that want their products and services.
Build your audience and revenue will follow. Think of your customers first and give them what they want.
TOO MANY TARGET MARKETS
The main reason that small businesses beat larger corporations in inbound marketing is because the small companies can focus on one niche, one target market, one customer segment. Large enterprise businesses have multiple target markets. This makes it hard to generate content for that niche.
Think of it like this. You are an enterprise sized software company, like Microsoft. You have a product for everyone out there.Your target market is students, small business, medium-sized businesses, large businesses, doctors, startups, etc, etc. How do you focus your inbound marketing efforts on the right customer segment?
On the flip side, you have a small startup looking to sell scheduling software to doctors. It is much easier to blog, engage on social media, and generate content for that niche market.
Inbound marketing can work for the masses once you build your audience. Make sure to focus on your target market and generate value based content for your target market.
FINAL THOUGHTS…
Inbound marketing can work for any business and complete your marketing plan. It will save you money on your traditional marketing costs if done correctly. Inbound marketing is a shift in the thinking for your company large or small. If you are not blogging for business, it is time to start.
As you get ready to start down your inbound marketing journey make sure you really understand your customer.
Is your organization struggling with inbound marketing? That’s okay. Get your free marketing assessment to see how inbound marketing can help your business.
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