Inbound Marketing and Meeting a Client’s Needs

A great deal has been studied, written about and taught on the subject of selling. All of us in our daily lives are salesmen of some sort and all of us in our daily lives are consumer and buyers as well. If we think about our own buying experiences, we can begin to understand what it takes to be a better than average salesperson.

Look at simple example or two to demonstrate my point. Last week I got a flat tire on my way to work. I wanted to purchase a repair for my tire, or if it couldn’t be repaired, I wanted a new tire. When I drove into my favorite repair shop not a lot of selling needed to be done. All he had to tell me that he would get it repaired and have my car back to me by end of the day. The same principal applies when we have a plugged toilet, broken appliance, a medical condition or other urgent need and how we find a vendor to approach for those needs. We may have a preferred supplier from prior experience if this isn’t the first time we have that particular problem.

If not, it used to be the yellow pages, but today might be Google, Craig’s List or Angie’s List we turn to for suggested suppliers. All of these actions to find a supplier are part of what is often termed Inbound Marketing. And if the buyer calls more than one potential supplier it may the one who is most responsive who gets the purchase.

I can remember years ago when I wanted to buy a car. I sent an email to three dealers. From the first I got a phone call within the hour, from the second a generic automated email a day later, and from the third nothing. You know where I bought the car. I was so happy with the initial response and the follow up that I referred all my friends and make my subsequent purchases there. Inbound marketing only works if you are alert and responsive and meet the needs.

Optimation’s area of expertise is industrial manufacturing. We engineer, design, automate, fabricate, install and maintain manufacturing facilities. Our goal is always to meet client’s needs as effectively as possible. Of course, before we can do this we need to know what their needs are. And for the most part that will only be possible if they tell us. But they won’t be able to tell us unless they know who we are and believe we can solve the problem or meet the need.

And this is where inbound marketing comes in. Inbound marketing is the promotion of a company through blogs, whitepapers, or social media. The content in these initiatives and other forms of content marketing can make potential customers aware of services offered and attract a response from them when they have a searchable need. By aligning the content that we publish with a potential customer’s need, we attract inbound traffic. And when they contact us, our goal is to be very responsive and work with them to find a valid solution. If we do we can convert, close, and delight. Delighted customers become repeat customers. It’s seven times easier to sell a second time. Not all marketing needs to be inbound. Much of it is about relationships. Without a quick response and dedication to customer service, your inbound marketing efforts will be wasted.