Outbound Marketing: Channels, Advantages and Disadvantages

Have you ever been tasked with creating or modifying a marketing plan for your company? It's easy to become overwhelmed by the amount of information and advice available – should you focus on creating eye-catching signs, networking with potential leads at an industry event, or developing a digital-only strategy?

 

Fortunately, inbound and outbound marketing are two universal marketing concepts that can help you narrow your reach. These are two of the most prevalent broad marketing techniques, each with its own set of uses, advantages, and drawbacks. In this post, we'll look at an overview of outbound marketing, as well as examples of how to use it and the benefits and drawbacks of each method.

 

Outbound marketing aims to start a dialogue about a product or service by quickly disseminating information about it through a range of traditional marketing techniques. 

 

This is the definition that most non-marketers think of when they hear the word "marketing." Many industry professionals still hold traditional tactics in high respect, whether a marketer posts commercials on television or in the newspaper.

 

What is Outbound Marketing and How Does It Work?

 

Outbound marketing, often known as "interruption" or "push" marketing, employs strategies to reach a large number of people with a message in order to close a sale. 

 

Cold phoning, direct mail, bulk emailing, and other approaches are used to reach big groups of people (many of whom may not be looking for the marketer's goods). It's usually a one-way conversation about the product and why the audience should buy it.

 

Inbound marketing, on the other hand, occurs when a customer approaches you and establishes a conversation. They might go to your website, read an ebook, or download a white paper, for example.

 

Outbound marketing's purpose is to actively establish genuine relationships with customers through involvement, targeted messaging, and positioning your brand in the right place at the right time.

 

How is Outbound Marketing implemented?

 

Outbound marketing has lost part of its long-standing appeal as the Internet and mobile devices gain in popularity and offer new and inventive ways of advertising. Despite this, some businesses continue to devote up to 90% of their marketing spending to outbound marketing. 

 

Outbound marketing's purpose is lead creation, thus it's crucial for companies trying to grow their customer base. Outbound marketing is the most common technique for new businesses to reach the largest potential audience in the shortest amount of time.

 

Furthermore, because certain outbound marketing tactics are no longer "in vogue"—for example, placing a display ad in the Yellow Pages or cold-calling neighbors—advertising through these channels has become less expensive. As a result, a local restaurant may see a higher return on investment from these methods than from establishing a social media presence.

 

Outbound marketing channels come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

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Outbound Marketing channels

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You've probably heard the words above-the-line (ATL) and below-the-line (BTL) if you're familiar with traditional media or advertising (BTL). What do these terms signify, and what are some outbound marketing options for expanding your reach and increasing sales?

 

To get you started, here are seven outbound marketing channels: 

 

1. Old-fashioned advertising

 

Traditional advertising, often known as above-the-line (ATL) advertising, encompasses television, radio, print (newspapers, magazines, etc.), and billboards. Traditional advertising approaches can help you get your word out to a large audience, but they lack precise targeting capabilities. 

 

For top-of-the-funnel activities like brand awareness campaigns, ATL advertising routes are beneficial. Although traditional advertising is viewed with mistrust, it is nevertheless effective when considering the number of people who watch TV, listen to the radio, or read the newspaper on a daily basis.

 

2. Digital Promotion

 

Although the first digital ad, which appeared in 1994, didn't have a lot of targeting, the digital advertising market is now as sophisticated as it gets after 25 years. To give you an idea of how diverse the advertising landscape is, here are a few examples of digital ads:

 

• Ads that are displayed
• Advertisements on social media
• Over-the-top (OTT) advertisements
• Email advertisements
• The use of native advertising
• Advertisements in video

 

You can target your audience using digital ads based on demographic, geographic, psychographic, behavioral, interests, and habits, among other factors. 

 

And that's only the beginning. Retargeting and bespoke audiences are advanced targeting approaches that can help you connect with a larger audience group. Because of their precision targeting, digital ads are classified as below-the-line (BTL) advertising.

 

3. Through-the-line advertising (TTL)

 

The brand's promotional mix in TTL advertising includes both ATL and BTL ad formats. For example, a company might undertake a public awareness campaign on television, newspapers, and social media. TTL can also incorporate digital-out-of-home (DOOH) advertising, a new ad style that displays dynamic commercials on classic outdoor media.

 

4. Making Cold Calls

 

Cold calling, often known as telemarketing, is the most well-known method of contact. Cold calling is when a salesperson phones a list of potential consumers to measure their interest and convert them into paying customers. 

 

The term "cold calling" refers to a salesperson who has never spoken to a customer before. Warm calling is the next phase in telemarketing after a prospect has demonstrated interest in your products or services. 

 

Due to factors such as do not disturb (DND) service activation or recipients hesitant to participate in the call, cold calling is one of the most difficult marketing/sales strategies to drive sales. 

 

5. Email Marketing

 

Although it is arguable whether email marketing is an inbound or outbound marketing approach, any push tactic, whether or not the client has agreed to receive it, can be classified as outbound marketing because the sender begins the communication. Organizations can use email marketing to engage with a large subscriber base and uncover various opportunities.

 

6. Syndication of Content

 

You post your material on a third-party website through content syndication. It may be a guest post, a thought leadership piece, an interview, or a rehash of one of your previous articles. Company collaborations, in which you collaborate with another brand to develop a compelling piece of content, such as a downloadable guide, can also lead to content syndication. 

 

Content discovery platforms and content syndication are cousins. Content discovery platforms are native advertising platforms that allow advertisers to distribute their content on third-party websites. 

 

Advertisers prefer native ads since content discovery systems need publishers to drive a minimum fixed monthly traffic (roughly 10 million page views per month) to be eligible for native ad spaces.

 

7. Tradeshows and Events

 

Organizations can meet their prospects and customers face to face at events and tradeshows to create leads, convert prospects, and retain existing customers. 

 

Corporations can host their own events, such as Salesforce's Dreamforce, or sponsor or attend conferences or events hosted by third parties. Pre-buzz activities, which include the activities listed above, are critical to conference participation success.

 

Also Read | What is a Vertical Marketing System?

 

Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing: What's the Difference?

 

The polar opposite of outbound marketing is inbound marketing. In inbound marketing, the client contacts your company when they want or need something. SEO, content marketing, email marketing, and other forms of inbound marketing are examples.

 

This type of marketing is less intrusive, and the messaging is positioned to address the customers' pain areas. As a result, buyers are more likely to accept your goods or service because they are in desperate need of it.

 

Outbound marketing strategies have taken a lot of flak over the years. These marketing strategies, on the other hand, have evolved and altered dramatically through time. 

 

Outbound marketing approaches are best approached nowadays via the perspective of inbound marketing tactics. You can create stronger and more tailored email campaigns, remarketing and retargeting campaigns, paid search advertising, and much more by combining the two methodologies.

 

Also Read | Inbound vs Outbound Marketing

 

Advantages and Disadvantages of Outbound Marketing

 

Targeting skills are one of the most coveted components of outbound marketing, especially when it comes to online outbound marketing.

 

Do you just want your ad to be seen by single moms who like Rob Lowe and reside within a 25-mile radius of your brick-and-mortar store? Who knows why you'd want to do that, but you can absolutely target that demographic with ease.

 

Outbound marketing allows you to define targeted constraints based on demographics, geography, interests, and habits, among other things. This allows advertisers to target only the people they want, which is one of the reasons why online advertising is so popular for generating leads.

 

Advertising efforts attribute cash amounts to sales to simplify ad tracking, making outbound marketing relatively easy to measure success.

 

These are some of the advantages of Outbound Marketing:

 

1. Easier to implement

 

Content marketing is a strong medium, as we've previously stated. It is, nevertheless, labor-intensive. Smaller businesses don't always have the means or capacity to devote time to developing a strong content presence that will generate sufficient revenue. 

 

Outbound efforts such as depositing letters in mailboxes, running social ads, and advertising in public places, on the other hand, are frequently more viable.

 

2. Instantaneous Outcomes

 

To stay viable, small businesses must earn revenue on a consistent basis. While a major corporation may not be as affected by a poor month or two, a small business could be bankrupted in the same situation. Outbound advertising, as opposed to extensive and time-consuming inbound operations, yields faster results and improves brand awareness.

 

3. Targeting is Easier

 

Many small firms focus their promotional efforts on their immediate surroundings, which makes outbound activities much easier. You can buy a place on local radio channels or a billboard, and you'll likely reach more individuals of your target group than a national brand with a nationwide audience.

 

There are a few drawbacks to the outbound marketing strategy, three of which have been listed below :

 

1. Difficult Targeting

 

Because outbound marketing approaches are so broad, tailoring campaigns to more particular demographics might be difficult. This also makes establishing marketing KPIs to track success more difficult. 

 

2. Invasiveness

 

Outbound approaches are more invasive at each level of the buyer's journey. Potential clients may not appreciate your direct marketing to them, which might result in a loss of money and interest.

 

3. Lack of organic connection

 

In outbound marketing campaigns, cultivating true client relationships takes a backseat to leading customers via a planned sales funnel. When it comes to shopping for things, some customers are turned off by the lack of organic involvement.

 

Also Read | Types of Cold Email Marketing

 

Conclusion

 

Finally, the most effective marketing approach for your company is the one that works. Always attempt new things while sticking to your tried-and-true methods. Analyze your data on a regular basis and keep track of any changes you notice. 

 

Keep in mind that audiences shift as well. It's possible that what worked last year won't work this year. People get tired of seeing the same thing over and over again, and marketers can run some strategies into the ground, rendering them useless. 

 

With time and as technology provides new features and ways to communicate with consumers, your balance of inbound and outbound marketing will almost definitely shift. Experiment, measure, and repeat will always be the most critical strategy