Many businesses established before the advent of the internet may not understand the full marketing potential of their websites.
These are often the same organizations that understand the basic need for marketing but still rely on old-fashioned, outbound methodologies, such as TV spots, direct-mail marketing, online pop-up ads, and the like. Understandably, these tactics have grown stale in 2017. Direct mail is dead and consumers don’t have much patience for intrusive advertising. And while businesses didn’t have many alternatives in the pre-internet days, the birth of the website has changed the rules of the game.
Master Your Marketing Campaign
Through a well-structured website, business owners can market to prospects in ways never before possible.
We’re speaking, of course, about the rise of inbound marketing. Inbound marketing refers to marketing strategies that encourage users to connect with a brand at their own pace. Instead of assaulting users with intrusive ads, inbound marketing uses a combination of optimized web design and online resources to guide users through online sales channels.
And really, this distinction underscores the true value of inbound marketing: Brands market to consumers on their own terms and in ways that encourage them to proceed. And like all digital enterprise, a business’s website is the cornerstone of this value.
Inbound Marketing and Web Design
As we know, an optimized website is the key to unlocking the real value of a brand’s digital presence, and this is especially true when inbound marketing is considered. Websites constructed with the help of quality web design agencies allow brands to optimize each stage of the inbound marketing funnel and get a better return on each marketing element used:
- Lead generation: Traditional Pay-Per-Click ad campaigns and online advertisements are features of every digital marketing strategy, but rely on a structured site to back them. Getting ad clicks isn’t enough to drive actual revenue—when it comes to turning leads into customers, web design pulls the weight.
- Customer research: In the information age, most consumers do some type of research before they buy. This is where the content marketing side of inbound comes into play. In fact, 60 percent of marketers say that blog creation is one of their top marketing priorities. Hosting content on-site demonstrates authority to prospective customers, shows thought leadership in an industry, and provides good SEO value as well. A brand’s web design will determine how easy it is for customers to perform this research and contributes to whether or not they’ll trust you enough to buy.
- Purchase: Consumers will only purchase from brands that offer them a pleasant user experience. When consumers are ready to purchase, they don’t want to have to dig through page after page of irrelevant nonsense. Web design is all about crafting each page to provide users with essential information while still maintaining a unique brand style; dropping the ball during the late stages of marketing will crush a brand’s conversion rates.
Leveraging the New Era of Marketing
While inbound marketing might be the best way to get the most bang for your buck, its use relies on a quality website to back it up. Consider this a warning for brands that reach for marketing mastery without effective web design: A shoddy website will tank inbound marketing efforts. Brands must ensure that their web design is unique, intuitive, and effective at its purpose to succeed at this new style of digital marketing.