“INTERRUPTION MARKETING” STILL WORKS FOR YOUR BUSINESS?

Outbound marketing is the term for traditional marketing strategies used by businesses to reach out to potential clients. In the past, traditional advertising strategies meant doing everything possible to get your message in front of the consumer, no matter how irritating or repetitious it was. Being seen is more critical to outbound marketers than being heard or believed.

Outbound marketing uses strategies we traditionally associate with pre-internet advertising, including print and radio advertisements, direct mail, telemarketing, and TV and radio ads. All of these aim to disrupt a person's daily activities in order to persuade them to pay attention to a message.

While outbound marketing strategies may not be as effective as they once were, there are still some examples that I believe are likely to work in 2023:

Podcast advertising: Partnering with a popular podcast in your industry can be a way to reach a highly engaged audience and increase brand recognition. Advertising on popular podcasts in your business is a good approach to reaching a specific audience because podcasts have grown in popularity in recent years.

There are four million podcasts on Spotify alone. So, there is probably a podcast for your industry. In Serbia, the most followed podcasts can be grouped into three categories: entrepreneurship, current social topics, and sports. According to data from January 2021, there are 850 thousand of active podcasts in the world, with over 30 million published episodes.

Ivan Minic's "Poja?alo" Pojacalo is my favorite podcast, which I suggest to everyone who wants to learn more or share an educational narrative about their brand or company.

Event marketing: Attending trade shows and events in your industry can be a great way to generate leads and build brand awareness. Hosting or sponsoring events in your industry can be a way to get your brand in front of potential customers and build relationships with them in person. This can be especially effective for B2B businesses or businesses with a strong local presence.?Offering product demos, hosting speaking engagements, and engaging in conversations with attendees, I strongly believe, can help generate interest in your brand.

Example: A B2B company participated in a targeted trade show to promote its products and services to potential customers.

One of the best examples is the BIOFACH/VVIVANESS 2023 exhibition, which SIPPO Swiss Import Promotion Programme (SIPPO) and PKS Privredna komora Srbije | Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia hosted last week at the organic fair in Nuremberg. Twelve regional Serbian organic companies had the chance to showcase their dedication to sustainable trade and global supply chains. I'm also thrilled to have had the chance to contribute to this wonderful project and the fair's plans for digital marketing.

Influencer marketing: The viral nature of TikTok reached far more people than the brand alone could.

Partnering with social media influencers who have a large and engaged following can be an effective way to get your brand in front of potential customers. Influencer marketing can be especially effective for products or services that have a strong visual appeal or that are targeted toward a younger demographic.

Example: Rihanna's cosmetics company, Fenty Beauty, has been using TikTok for influencer marketing. They collaborated on the platform with a number of well-known beauty influencers, who produced makeup video tutorials using Fenty Beauty products. ?These tutorials helped to promote the brand and its products to a younger, Gen Z audience.

Also, Uber Eats has partnered with a number of influencers on TikTok to create sponsored content that promotes the app and its food delivery services. For example, in 2020, Uber Eats launched a campaign called "Tonight I'll Be Eating," which featured a number of high-profile TikTok creators. As part of the campaign, each creator was given a budget to order food from their favorite restaurant using the Uber Eats app. They then filmed themselves enjoying the meal and shared the video on TikTok with the campaign hashtag #TonightIllBeEating . One of the most successful videos from the campaign was created by popular TikTok creator Addison Rae, who has over 80 million followers on the platform. In her video, she orders food from McDonald's using Uber Eats and enjoys it with her friends. The video has been viewed over 21 million times and has helped increase awareness of the app among her followers.

Out-of-home advertising: While TV and radio ads may not be as effective as they once were, out-of-home advertising in the form of billboards, transit ads, or digital displays can still be a way to reach a large audience in a specific location.

Example:?WhatsApp's "End-to-End Encryption" Campaign: In 2019, WhatsApp launched a campaign in the UK called "Message Privately," which used out-of-home advertising to promote the platform's end-to-end encryption feature. The campaign featured billboards and other outdoor advertising that highlighted the privacy and security benefits of the platform. The campaign was designed to appeal to users who were concerned about online privacy and data security and was widely praised for its straightforward messaging.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT0QRd937KM

Email Marketing: Email marketing is a targeted outbound marketing strategy that involves sending promotional messages or newsletters to a list of subscribers. It can be an effective way to promote a brand or company and generate leads.

Example:

Gary Vaynerchuk, a well-known entrepreneur, author, and speaker who has built a successful personal brand through his online presence, including his email marketing campaigns. AskGaryVee Show Emails: Gary Vaynerchuk's "AskGaryVee Show" emails are sent to subscribers to promote his video series where he answers questions from his audience about business and entrepreneurship. The emails are designed to encourage engagement and drive traffic to his YouTube channel, where the video series is hosted. The emails feature a summary of the questions and answers from the latest episode, along with a call to action to watch the full video on YouTube. These emails have been very successful in driving views and engagement on the video series.

I'm a huge fan of Set Godin. "Seth's Blog" is a daily email newsletter that provides subscribers with insights and advice on marketing, entrepreneurship, and leadership. The newsletter features short, pithy blog posts from Seth Godin, each designed to provide valuable insights and inspiration to the reader.

The content of "Seth's Blog" is designed to be thought-provoking and practical, with a focus on helping readers succeed in their business ventures. Seth Godin's writing style is engaging and accessible, and he often uses metaphors and stories to illustrate his points.

The "Seth's Blog" newsletter has a high open rate and has been very successful in driving engagement and loyalty among his audience. Many of Seth Godin's blog posts have become viral sensations, with readers sharing and commenting on the content on social media and other platforms.

Overall, the "Seth's Blog" newsletter is a great resource for anyone interested in marketing, entrepreneurship, and leadership. It provides valuable insights and advice in a concise and accessible format and has been very successful in building a loyal audience for Seth Godin's brand.

INBOUND VS. OUTBOUND

Even if I always cheer for the strategies and tactics of digital marketing, speaking objectively, it's not necessarily accurate to say that there is a clear winner between inbound sales and outbound sales. Also, keep in mind that for outbound marketing in Serbia, larger budgets are still reserved, especially when it comes to big corporations and brands.

Both approaches have their strengths and weaknesses, and the most effective approach will depend on a variety of factors, including the type of product or service being sold, the target audience, and the specific service and sales goals of the company.

Despite the fact that inbound sales can be excellent at creating long-lasting relationships with consumers, they can also be slower to produce results and less likely to result in quick sales, particularly as inbound sales almost always require using sales funnel processes or tactics. On the other side, outbound sales may be more successful in producing quick sales but may also be perceived as intrusive by potential clients.

Ultimately, the most effective approach will depend on the specific goals and needs of the business. A well-rounded sales strategy that incorporates both inbound and outbound tactics, and is tailored to the specific target audience, can be the most effective way to achieve sales success.

It's important to note that while these outbound marketing tactics can be effective in some cases, they should be used in conjunction with inbound marketing and other modern digital marketing strategies. A well-rounded marketing plan that includes a mix of inbound and outbound tactics can be the most effective way to reach potential customers in 2023.

If you want to achieve your marketing objectives more effectively, give us a call or send us an email! We can help you see the value of digital marketing and how it can help your business grow.