Contrary to popular belief Marketing and Advertising are not the same thing. Simply put, marketing is the overarching concept that includes all the things to get people to purchase your product or service. Where advertising is just one of the ways a business markets itself. That is why the term ‘marketing campaign’ is so common. It outlines the methods a business will increase their sales, users, or whatever.

Marketing is further divided into two core strategies Inbound and Outbound (or push and pull marketing)

Inbound Marketing

Inbound Marketing focuses on curating helpful, engaging, and educational content that will organically draw your audience in. Much like what you’re watching right now! The idea is, if you are truly devoted to providing quality content, customers will naturally gravitate towards you, all because you’ve built a relationship of trust and mutual benefit with them.

Some inbound marketing ideas to try out are: writing blogs that answer common questions, creating how-to or explainer videos – like this one, or even hosting live Q&A sessions with your audience. Remember, you want to educate your audience and show them you’re the expert at solving their problem without focusing on closing the sale.

Outbound Marketing

Outbound Marketing focuses on projecting your message out to a targeted audience. The logic behind this strategy is sometimes your audience may not be aware of you or your service so you tell them about it. Outbound marketing is meant to be disruptive so it grabs the attention of your audience to do what you want them to do.

Where Advertising Comes in

Which is where advertising comes in because regardless of what type of advertisement you’re doing, its goal is to make your audience do something like buy this, subscribe to that, or maybe even like this video?

Some outbound marketing ideas to try out are: search engine ads, email campaigns that promote upcoming sales, or even physical mailer campaigns to tell people you provide service in their local area. Remember, these don’t have to feel overly salesy but they need to be created in a way that drives action.

Which Method is Superior?

So which method is superior? Well… neither. Sorry to be the wet blanket here but it depends on what you want to achieve. But successful marketing campaigns contain both inbound and outbound strategies. And, honestly, if you’re only using one of these methods now, you’re missing out.

A great example of using both inbound and outbound is by writing a great explanation blog, sharing it on social media, and then boosting that post so it reaches more than just your organic audience. It’s that simple.

Key Takeaway

No matter what type of marketing method or strategy you use, the biggest thing you want to assure is that your target audience is responsive to whatever you’re doing. If your outbound strategies come across as too ‘salesy’ and your inbound strategies are too surface level, your audience will see right through it.

If you still have questions, drop them in the comments! Oh, and if you still haven’t liked this video… How about doing that now? It really helps us out. I’m Sarah from Third Angle, thanks for watching.

[ENDSCREEN] Want to dive deeper? Awesome! Check out my video “How Much Should You Spend on Marketing?” to figure out how much your business should budget for marketing. Oh and if that subscribe button is still red… you should click it, and that bell icon, so you never miss an upload. Just sayin’. Ok. Bye!