Inbound marketing can be your secret weapon for gaining new clients. But first, let’s define the term and see how it differs from outbound marketing.
Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing
In the chart below, I highlight the big differences between the two approaches.Outbound marketing is a more traditional marketing technique where you send “out” your message about your business to try to appeal to prospective customers. A few examples of outbound marketing are advertisements on YouTube or TV, brochures, cold calling and conventions.
This marketing approach will feel familiar to you, which means you’re also likely aware of the drawbacks. There are more costs associated with outbound marketing, such as printing and air time expenses. Outbound marketing can be uncomfortable for more introverted people because it can feel “salesy.” It’s also easy for potential customers to tune out your advertisements.
Inbound marketing, on the other hand, tries to bring the customer “in” to you by providing helpful and relevant content. You offer information or resources to potential clients who will then regard you as an expert in the field and turn to you when they need solutions.
You can do this by creating online content that your prospective customers will find informative. Creating and maintaining a website or blog that provides information that your potential clients seek out is a proven inbound marketing technique. Another one is interacting with potential customers through social media like LinkedIn or Twitter. By providing resources and responses to your prospective customers, you build an online relationship that can lead to a business relationship.
Inbound marketing has many advantages over traditional outbound marketing. You set up more of an interactive experience with your customer with inbound marketing, which means the prospective clients are more engaged and less likely to ignore you. Inbound marketing requires less expenditures, because you don’t have to pay for traditional advertising expenses. And since inbound marketing can often be done from your home office, it’s more comfortable for more introverted people to do.
Using Inbound Marketing to Your Advantage
So how can you use inbound marketing to attract new customers? The best strategy is to put yourself in the mindset of your prospective customers.
Ask yourself, “What kinds of information will interest my potential clients? What do they read to keep up on their industry? How can I get my content in front of them without seeming like I’m advertising?”
As translators, we make our living with words. So put them to good use! Create a blog or website where you post content that your ideal customer would want to see.
If you translate textbooks, you could post articles about curriculum changes or trends in teaching various subjects, especially those involving bilingual education.
If your target client is medical device manufacturers, you might want to write about new government regulations or ways to make sure that the assembly instructions are written in such a way that technicians can follow them – in every language that they might be translated into.
Whatever your specialization, it may be necessary to explain to prospective clients how important the right translator is. That’s where a handy downloadable translation checklist can be a great inbound marketing tool. If you create a checklist of qualities that the finished translation should have, you provide a valuable piece of content to the prospective client and establish yourself as an expert in the translation field.
Your piece of inbound marketing material (the translation checklist in this example) may be so useful that the prospective client decides you are the one to hire for the project. If that’s the case, congratulations! You have just used inbound marketing to your advantage.
Ready to find even more prospective clients? Success by Rx members can take advantage of the web video series How to Land Sales, which discusses identifying your ideal customer and using LinkedIn to grow your network and build your reputation in your area of specialization.
Author: Melissa Kamenjarin
Melissa is a Success by Rx copywriter and Spanish/English translator, writer, editor and proofreader specializing in educational materials, health insurance, non-profits, and published fiction and non-fiction books, blogs and websites. Melissa is the Secretary and blog writer for ATISDA (Association of Translators and Interpreters in the San Diego Area). An American Translators Association (ATA) member, she is also the Copy Editor for the ATA Medical Division’s publication, Caduceus.