In the past, marketing strategies revolved around interrupting customers throughout their lives. These interruptions included cold calls, direct mail campaigns, print ads, TV commercials, billboards, etc. The hope was that through these intrusive techniques, potential customers would be interested enough to further explore the product and service messages targeted at them.

By its very design, this sparse marketing approach often targeted the wrong people and frequently annoyed prospects who were likely to want to know more.

Inbound marketing, which has grown steadily in popularity and effectiveness over the past ten years, focuses instead on attracting leads, rather than interrupting them. People are attracted to products or services through the use of entertaining and value-added content that is made available to them online.

This method instantly prequalifies potential customers who are most responsive to a specific marketing message and most willing to take the next step in the buying process. As a result, inbound marketing is almost always less expensive than traditional methods (no need to buy ads, rent trade show booths, etc.). It does a better job of targeting a desired audience, since potential customers have already shown interest in the content that is provided to them. It also drives more inbound traffic to a business website, which means visitors that can be captured, converted, and sold in a shorter period of time.

At its core, inbound marketing (also called “content marketing”) consists of three key elements:

Delighted – Information rich in keywords or resources that serve as a “front door” to attract potential customers to the landing page of a website.

search engine optimization – The process of building a website and using inbound links to improve a business’s search engine rankings, where the buying process usually begins for most people.

social media – The ever-growing platform with which a company distributes content and offers it for networks to share.

So what types of content are most effective in driving potential customers to your site?

Perhaps the easiest and least expensive option is to create a blog aimed at your customers, and then fill that blog with useful content. A business blog that offers valuable ideas and solutions will gradually emerge as a thought leader, attracting a growing audience.

Blog posts should include a call to action that takes visitors down the sales funnel, for example, asking them to exchange their contact information for more great content (a free white paper, case study, etc.). And blog posts are also easily shared between social media platforms.

Other effective types of content include:

• e-books
• Q&A with industry leaders and influencers
• Videos
• webinars
• podcast
• infographics

Regardless of the type of content you choose to provide, the underlying strategy should be a relentless focus on both the pain your target audience is experiencing and the solutions your product or service provides to address that pain. Create a list of keywords that fall into the categories of “pain” and “solution” and then organically incorporate them into your content.

Just make sure these are keywords your target audience might use in an online search, not words or phrases you think they should use.

Using these “long-tail keywords” addresses the need for effective SEO (the second core element of inbound marketing). The more times people click on the page, the greater the impact it will have on various search engines. As a particular link rises in the rankings, it becomes one of the first things potential customers see when they begin their initial search.

Your company’s search engine ranking also benefits from the interest shown on social media. That’s why it’s a good idea to dedicate resources to promoting blog posts, new articles, and other content marketing offers across all channels. This generates increased interest and a potentially large and loyal following.

Inbound marketing represents a dramatic advance over traditional marketing techniques and should be an integral tool in every company’s sales and marketing strategy.