We recently had a meeting with a friend who is opening a new restaurant. He and his partners need help with marketing. They’ve focused on the facility, now what’s next?
The way we suggest looking at marketing dollars is to consider it not a "spend”, but look at it as an investment that you should get something out of.
An appropriate Inbound Marketing strategy will deliver results, that you'll be able to see. For us to deliver, it requires our inbound marketing team to be certified, and for good reason.
Inbound marketing is an ongoing, ever-changing world of tools, skills, improvement of outcomes, and quantifiable accountability.
Yes, the software integration requires a 12-month commitment. The reason for that commitment? In order to grow your business, it takes time. Just as you’re committed to your business longer than 3 months, your marketing needs a long-term commitment, as well.
If you choose not to utilize software, it will actually take more time and energy to work a program without the tools, in order to demonstrate and generate the results as quickly.
To do an outbound traditional strategy, alone, you can certainly spend less on advertising in a local newspaper, not have as much of a time commitment, and basically, throw your money away. An outbound strategy, alone, will not generate the results you're looking for. Combine outbound with inbound, and you're on the right track.
We're talking about a digital footprint that will reach far beyond your immediate area and will give you results.
With Inbound, it requires:
- Blogging
- Social media updates
- Video
- Email Marketing
- SEO
- A team to be on top of events that generate the most interest and build on it
- And more
This will, among other things, build your email database-- a big piece that will help market to, and gain loyal, repeat customers. And, most importantly, help you get found online.
If you were to try and cut and paste it together, you could do it, but I wouldn't recommend it. You're going to end up frustrated, and it’ll lack the results you're looking for.
Is your business worth the risk of piecing together a marketing plan?
