Is Outbound Marketing Dead? The answer is obvious: no!
Despite the rise of inbound marketing, this strategy still has a bright future ahead. The secret is to know which techniques to employ according to your field of activity, your objectives and your budget.
After a brief reminder of what outbound marketing is, let’s look at 10 strategies that always work!
What is outbound marketing?
Outbound marketing involves actively contacting your potential customers to let them know about your products or services.
You can use it to increase brand awareness, increase sales, promote your offers, and more.
This strategy has made a comeback in recent years, as not all companies take advantage of “new” marketing methods. Or to a lesser proportion, which encourages them to return to fundamental techniques.
While outbound marketing is generally more expensive than inbound marketing, it sometimes provides a better return on investment. It all depends on the target audience, the technologies used and your objectives.
Finally, if outbound marketing was long considered intrusive and not very customizable, it now has great targeting and personalization capabilities.
outbound marketing vs inbound marketing
“Outgoing” marketing versus “incoming” marketing: They agree on the prospect’s desire to bring value to prospects and customers if their terms are, in fact, the antonyms.
However, where outbound marketing seeks direct contacts, inbound marketing aims to attract them to your products and services. This strategy essentially revolves around content aimed at attracting Internet users who are looking for offers similar to yours, or who need advice to solve a problem.
Outbound marketing targets short-term conversions, whereas inbound marketing is long-term.
These two methods are different, but complementary…
10 Outbound Marketing Techniques That Work!
Do you want to complement your current strategy with one or more outbound marketing campaigns? Here are 10 techniques you can try!
1. A TV commercial
For 55% of French people, it is the advertisements on television that attract the most attention. Furthermore, 56% of them believe they remember this type of ad better. and that’s not all ! The effectiveness of TV commercials is proven: 62% of ads increase purchase volume instantly and generate 23% of additional sales in the short term.
If you think TV has become a medium now, it’s time to change your strategy! Especially since smart TVs pave the way for new, more personalized forms of advertising. In fact, programmatic makes it possible to broadcast targeted ads not according to the geographic location of the audience, but also according to their behavior.
In addition, Smart TVs offer the possibility of broadcasting interactive advertisements. You ask viewers to click a button on their remote to get more information about the product being marketed. This increases instant conversions.
2. Print Advertisement
According to a survey by the CMO Council, 79% of consumers take action after reading a print ad, compared to 45% for online ads.
There are several reasons for this performance. First, newspapers, posters and magazines inspire more confidence than a publication on the Internet. When a consumer sees a billboard in a subway station or on the street, he or she considers the company established and reputable.
In addition, newspaper readers are more attentive than Internet users. Result: They are more likely to remember a print ad. Remember that over 97% of French people read the press every month.
Good to know: You can combine your ads on physical media with the online experience. Thanks to a QR code printed on your ads, you can direct consumers to dedicated landing pages.
3. Trade Fairs and Professional Events
Trade fairs and professional events help bolster your company’s notoriety and the trust of your customers. They also provide an opportunity to generate leads for your business. Displays on your stands, as well as exchanges with your teams, boost your brand image.
In addition to collecting the contact details of people visiting your stand, you have a list of speakers or exhibitors provided by the organisers. This is an opportunity to find new customers or partners.
Lastly, most trade shows and events have their own social media hashtags that you can use to recruit new followers to your page. This is also an opportunity to find potential customers and follow them on LinkedIn, Twitter or even Instagram.
4. Cold Calling
Cold calling is one of the main outbound marketing techniques. This includes calling a potential person, with whom you have not yet made contact, to offer them your services.
Even though cold calling is sometimes considered an intrusive sales technique, it remains dominant in the B2B sector. Especially when you know that 57% of business leaders prefer to have a phone chat with a sales rep.
For this strategy to be effective, before contacting the decision maker, do your research on the business requirements and create a custom script. With social networks like LinkedIn or Twitter, it’s easy to get to know your interlocutor better.
Also, instead of selling your product/service outright, you can offer free advice to solve a problem.
5. Cold Emailing
Like cold calling, the goal of cold emailing is to introduce your business to potential prospects, generate interest in your offers, and generate interactions. This outbound marketing method allows you to expand the reach of your brand and win back customers from the competition.
Like cold calling, you need to personalize your approach! Introduce the potential name in the subject line and write a personal message that shows you know the recipient’s needs. Finally, end with a clear call to action.
6. Press Relations
Press relations include building and managing one’s reputation and maintaining relationships with journalists and the media. target? Make them the promoter of your business.
In theory, this relationship is beneficial for both parties. Journalists have privileged access to information, expert comments and other documents to animate their media. The company benefits from advertising in newspapers, TV shows or specialty magazines as well as niche blogs or YouTube videos.
In outbound marketing, press relations help you generate leads and build notoriety.
7. Sponsorship or patronage
Sponsorship includes activities supporting financially or in kind. It can be cultural events, trade fairs, associations, charitable causes etc.
What do you earn?
- Generate positive emotions towards your brand
- promote your products
- to increase sales
- Increase your reach through word of mouth
- Benefit from Media Exposure
- get ahead of the competition
- set up partnership
In addition to visibility and notoriety, sponsoring or sponsoring an event provides an opportunity to interact directly with prospects or your current customers. You can also get valuable affiliate data to use in your outbound marketing strategy.
Whatever type of activity you sponsor, make sure it is in line with your company’s values.
8. Direct Mail
Direct mail is another effective outbound marketing technique. Mail was a popular marketing channel long before the advent of the Internet.
However, it has not lost its luster! The reason is simple: Fewer and fewer brands are using direct mail, giving you a chance to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Especially since this technology is still in effect: Brand recall is 70% higher with direct mail than with online advertising. The paper is also easier to read, as it requires less than 20% cognitive effort compared to digital media.
The key is to demonstrate how your product or service can solve a problem. To encourage purchases, but also remember to include a promo code in your mail, to evaluate the performance of your direct mail.
9. Social Media Ads
In both inbound and outbound marketing, you need social media ads. The difference is that with an outbound strategy, you want to introduce your business or products to a new audience.
That’s why you’ll be targeting an audience similar to your existing customers, but who don’t know you yet! This is an opportunity to increase your notoriety, recruit qualified customers, generate traffic to your site, but also increase your sales. To that end, don’t forget to add a call-to-action tailored to your objective in the ad.
10. Search Ads
The benefit of outbound marketing is being able to generate instant conversions. Search ads are no exception, as 50% of traffic from PPC ads leads to conversions. These types of ads can generate an ROI of 200%.
However, to get such positive results, you need to optimize your ads:
- Target the less competitive keywords your potential customers use at the end of the buying process.
- Optimize landing pages to drive maximum conversions on desktop and mobile.
- Limit the number of fields in the form so as not to discourage prospects.
- Include social proof: testimonials, social media posts, case studies…
our tip
Outbound marketing strategies have evolved with the digital age. They remain efficient to develop your company’s notoriety and increase your sales. To maximize results, consider combining your outbound techniques with your inbound strategy. The more consistent your marketing is across your various channels, the higher the return on investment.
Whether you’re looking for a graphic designer for your print ads, a community manager for your social media ads, or any other skill to help you with your outbound marketing strategy, you can post an ad on Kodur!