Outbound and inbound marketing each have their place in a well-developed marketing strategy, but if you aren’t using a differentiated marketing strategy, you aren’t getting the full benefit. The problem is that while outbound and inbound marketing each serve their respective purpose, they aren’t nearly as personal. Smart marketers overcome this with a differentiated marketing strategy.
What is Differentiation?
Differentiation is a modern buzzword, but it is often misapplied. People often assume differentiation refers to product offerings, like Gap offering its Old Navy brand for its more budget-conscious customers – but that is only an example of “product differentiation.” A differentiated marketing strategy implies something completely different. Also called “segmentation,” it means that your marketing message is tailored to a unique niche. For instance, when the Australian Tourist Commission (ATC) wanted to attract new tourists, it didn’t change what it offered (how could it?) but instead changed how it differentiated its marketing efforts.
Differentiation in Practice
The ATC started by identifying its target demographics and then targeting its message to each niche. One of the groups the Commission identified was “young travelers.” This subset tended to be young people taking a “gap year.” They were focused on budget accommodations, how to obtain a visa, and lifestyle experiences. They had very different wants and interests from traditional sight-seeing tourists and, in turn, would be attracted to different marketing efforts. The Australian Tourist Commission took those differences to heart and developed separate marketing strategies for each of its target niches.
Differentiating Outbound Marketing
Outbound marketing is product-based and involves one marketer finding ways to appeal to many customers at once. Magazine advertisements, television commercials, and billboards are examples of outbound marketing. You can differentiate your outbound marketing by launching separate campaigns tailored to your individual target demographics, such as putting up different billboards in different areas, rather than using a generalized marketing approach.
Differentiating Inbound Marketing
Inbound marketing is more personal. It creates a two-way interaction between the marketer and the customer. Examples include blogs, webinars, and search engine optimization (SEO). You can differentiate your inbound marketing efforts by finding ways to make each customer experience unique, like when a search engine tailors results based on a customer’s search history or when a website uses cookies to individualize each customer’s ad experiences.
To learn more about how SMG can help you develop differentiated outbound and inbound marketing services for your company, visit our website!
