When talking about companies that have been successful and have managed to grow their businesses, we can see that they all have something in common: none of them would have been able to sustain themselves over time without a market that demands their products or services, and even less so without an adequate marketing strategy.
So, if you have a business, are working on one or are thinking of starting out on the path of entrepreneurship, we invite you to learn more about marketing, and the keys to how it can help you grow your business.
what is marketing?
Marketing is the system of researching a market, offering value and satisfying the customer with a profit objective. This discipline, also called marketing, is responsible for studying the behaviour of markets and the needs of consumers. It analyses the commercial management of companies with the aim of attracting, capturing, retaining and building loyalty among end customers by satisfying their desires and solving their problems.
Nowadays marketing is a strategy that every company must implement in its overall plan in order to grow. Many companies use marketing techniques to achieve their objectives, even without realising it. Marketing is nothing more than the exchange between various parties, in a way that produces mutual benefit.
The marketing umbrella is very broad and encompasses all those strategies that help a company, brand or person to achieve their objectives through a marketing plan.
Marketing transformation to Inbound Marketing
what do we want to buy? A product or a service, right? Then let's direct our marketing strategies towards them. This was the traditional thinking that companies have been bringing until relatively recently. Their focus was, and in some still is, on satisfying physical and functional needs with an eye on the company's products and services. The only goal was to increase sales.
Some time ago, companies began to notice a marked change in the behaviour of their customers. The ways of buying were changing, as the internet provided them with an unparalleled opportunity to consult products and services, make comparisons, etc. As a result, companies were left with only two options: join the change, or disappear. What matters now is no longer so much the product or service, but the customer. Their values, their way of interacting, their problems, their needs, and their way of thinking have become the target at which companies aim. Therefore, we are facing an attraction marketing, what we prefer to call Inbound Marketing.
The Inbound methodology is a strategy based on attracting potential customers through the generation of useful, relevant content capable of adding value in the stages of the buyer's journey.
It is no longer you who knocks on the customer's door, but it is the customer who finds you through different channels, such as blogs, search engines and social networks.
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How to grow your business
The first thing you need to know to start any marketing strategy are three fundamental elements:
- Establish the buyer persona: personas are fundamental in a marketing strategy, as this is a persona created to help your company better understand who the customer is and what they need.
- Find the best channels: whether it's a blog, social media or a podcast, it's important to know which channel to use to best reach your potential customer and gain more visibility.
- Analyse the results: it is vital to know how our strategy is having an impact and thus take stock of the details that need to be improved.
Once we have defined these three elements, we can begin to optimise the key elements of our marketing strategy in order to grow our business.
Marketing is a world that moves according to the social needs of consumers and users, which is why they are constantly changing and transforming. Here are some of the most recent trends:
- Chatbots: Have you heard of them? They are a kind of computer programme with which you can hold a conversation to ask for information, make a query or carry out a task. Unlike applications, this tool does not take up space on the device.
- Importance of big data: Obtaining and analysing the data obtained from interaction with users is becoming a priority tool for brands, as it allows them to understand consumer preferences and make intelligent decisions.
- Quality over quantity: There is no point in creating a text that is too long if quality is not a priority, if what you say does not provide any value to the user. Inbound Marketing pays special attention to this factor, as content is the cornerstone for attracting potential customers.
- Automatic marketing: Companies are increasingly looking for effectiveness and efficiency in their processes, and in marketing it could not be less. Marketing departments and agencies are increasingly forced to automate their processes due to the number of advantages they obtain.
- Video marketing: This tool is being further intensified and developed in marketing campaigns, not only for the presentation of a specific product or service, but also to include them as part of content strategies, to present the company's presence at an event, to showcase the team, etc.
- Instagram and other social networks: Considering that around 4 million interactions take place on this social network every day, something has to be done. It seems that companies are including this network as one of their marketing channels.
Nowadays, when it comes to bringing a product or service to market, marketing is a very useful tool that can vary in many ways, depending on the needs of a company or a customer.
Marketing has evolved into a dialogue established between the company and the customer, which consists of sharing experiences, emotions and experiences. When marketing is used in the right way, it can produce great results, growing your customer base and generating more and more leads, thus growing your business.
