What is the Inbound Methodology?

It is not enough to understand the concept. Theories are alright, they help expand our minds. But without knowing how to execute them, theories will remain as nothing more than abstract concepts that we don’t really have actual use for other than as topics for conversation.

Inbound is a fantastic concept, and a promising one as well. But concepts are not tangible. A concept has to first solidify in the form of a process or actions, in order to derive results. This leads us to the question: how do you actually implement an Inbound Methodology into your company?

To better understand how Inbound is executed, one must begin by understanding the Inbound Methodology.

And just like that, we are now wondering, what is the Inbound Methodology anyway?

Let’s dive in!

What is the Inbound Methodology?

If Inbound is a concept, the Inbound Methodology is the process by which the concept is applied. It provides a framework for your business that, if observed and followed faithfully by all members of each department, can mean growth for all of your teams, thereby catapulting your business to greater heights as well.

The Inbound Methodology will give a human touch to every aspect of your service/company. This is an important point. Why is that? Because if you haven’t noticed, as consumers, we often trust brands more when they make us feel valued and understood.

It takes a truly empathetic human to see through consumers’ motivations for needing a certain product or service. The Inbound Methodology will teach this to  those who would want to implement this approach with the goal of growing their business. That it is imperative that everyone involved in the business would make necessary efforts to provide value, gain trust, and develop relationships with those who they’re doing business with or are hoping to do business with.

This “human touch” is a variable in the business that can only be met when entire teams rally behind one similar goal: to give the best customer experience at every stage of the buyer’s journey. The Inbound Methodology will align every member of your company to this goal, increasing your chances of achieving it. By the end of this article, we’ll also teach you how to implement the Inbound Methodology.

That being said, let us dare answer– what is the Inbound Methodology?

The most elementary way to describe the Inbound Methodology is as a series of stages that your marketing, sales, and customer services departments will have to go through as they work on establishing, building, and maintaining relationships with prospects, as well as existing customers or clients.

These stages are called “Attract, Engage, and Delight”. All of these stages apply to every member of your company– from your marketing team, sales team, as well as your customer service team.

That would probably come as a surprise to you, because of the old notion that attracting should only be a task for Marketing, engaging should only be done by Sales, and delighting customers should only be the responsibility of Customer Service. But no. The Inbound Methodology seems to overturn this notion because while attempting to implement this process, your Marketing, Sales, and Customer Service teams must make it a point to exert efforts to attract, engage, and delight customers/clients in ways that are applicable to their respective designations.

This means that your marketing, sales, and customer service teams all face situations where they can practice these principles.

Attract. Engage. Delight. Three words that form the Inbound Methodology.

Now that you understand in full what is the Inbound Methodology, let’s discuss the more practical side of things– how to implement the Inbound Methodology.

Implementing the Inbound Methodology

The three stages of the Inbound Methodology which are: Attract, Engage, and Delight will serve as your guide in moving forward with Inbound.

How do you fully implement this? And through what ways? Let us tell you.

Attract, Engage, and Delight are three words that have straightforward meanings. But in the context of growing your business, in the context of implementing an Inbound approach in your business, how exactly do you do this?

Let’s begin with the Attract stage. Normally, this is a job for your Marketing Team. But your Sales and Customer Service Teams can also attract customers/clients.

Your Sales team can help attract customers/clients by incorporating powerful and convincing content from Marketing through their Sales processes. At the same time, your Customer Service Team may exhaust all effort to deliver the best service that please customers– keep in mind that word of mouth is a great amplifier for your brand or your company. A good recommendation from a happy customer could boost your sales.

For the Engage stage, all teams can take part in this also. Marketing could utilize social media to engage the public. For Sales, this of course comes naturally. Customer Service may engage with customers by handing out feedback forms or creating portals for customer feedback on the company website.

Lastly, for the Delight stage, every team in your company could, every now and then, have the opportunity to delight customers simply by doing their jobs and fulfilling every need of the customer at any given time, in relation to their designation in the company.

Pretty straightforward, right?

So there you have it, situational examples of how to implement the Inbound Methodology.

If you wish to know more about how Inbound can help grow your business, download “The Beginner’s Guide to Generating Quality Inbound Leads” and make the first step towards transforming your business!