It sounds obvious that sales and marketing in any business should be working together as they share the same common goal, which is revenue growth. However, there is usually conflict between the two departments instead of unity. Often sales blame marketing for poor lead quality and marketing feels that sales don’t make the most of the leads they’ve supplied.

Marketing strategy usually starts with determining what it is your customers want. But do you really know who your customers are?  

For maximum return on investment, your plans need to be based on what your potential buyers are actively searching for and need help and information on. Otherwise your ideal customers will inevitably end up being attracted to one of your competitors rather than to your business.  

In our recent blog Want to create a frictionless business? we shared with you some of the top insights from Inbound 2018 that we attended in Boston.  

One of the key learnings from the event was that for businesses to flourish and grow, the focus has to be on delighting customers. This will deliver your biggest return on investment and ensuring you incorporate wow moments will be vital for success going forward. 

You are likely to be familiar with the terms inbound and outbound marketing but may be unsure which is the best for your business and how to allocate your budget and resources proportionately. 

Both forms of marketing are used to drive customers to your door, but they do it in very different ways. 

Secret Source Marketing were lucky enough to attend Inbound 2018 in Boston USA, listening and meeting some of the finest brains in business. We picked up some extremely valuable insights that you might like to consider when going for growth.  

Many professionals would recoil in horror at the idea of spelling mistakes being used deliberately as a marketing device but it does happen. Most people would ignore the mistake and quickly move on, but there are enough grammar perfectionists out there who will blog about it and discuss it, for it to be a worthwhile ploy for some. 

It can be easy when planning content to become fixated with getting as many blogs, articles, whitepapers, ebooks etc out to market. Business owners, commercial or sales leaders often have a number in mind which usually includes high volume that warrants the resources and costs. However, this can sometimes come at the cost of quality and by bombarding the marketplace you risk turning off your audience.

So what's the answer? We have listed 4 best practice tips to follow so you can have both the volume you need without compromising quality.

Whatever the size or nature of your business, there are lots of moving parts. You still need to keep engaged with your marketplace; the people who don’t know you, nurturing prospects, retaining clients and incentivising business partners.  

Marketing automation systems, used by millions of companies globally, manage tasks such as e-mails and social media updates, ensuring tailored, relevant messaging and are proven to professionalise the process, save time and provide valuable insights. 

It’s easy to understand why companies in a high growth mode or are large enough to fund and run such a system would consider the investment this involves. However, start-ups and companies who need to re-evaluate their marketplace are also increasingly turning to automation systems to help with their strategy. 

Is your current website looking old and tired?

Is it failing to deliver leads and your potential customers are going to your rivals instead?

It sounds like it may be time for you to get a new website. Before you embark on your project, read our top tips for getting it right: 

In May, organisations across Europe and beyond were frantically trying to get their houses in order before the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force. Whilst an important step-change for data protection, it overshadowed the long-standing Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulation (PECR).