In the competitive world of freelancing, creatives need to find effective ways to promote their services to attract potential clients. In this context, the hybrid inbound marketing approach can be a valuable strategy for creative freelancers looking to grow their business. In this article, we’ll explore how this approach works and how it can help creative freelancers achieve their career goals.
What is the hybrid approach to attraction marketing?
The hybrid inbound marketing approach is a strategy that combines elements of content marketing and direct sales. Rather than focus exclusively on brand building or direct sales, creative freelancers who take this approach are looking to find a balance between these two strategies.
The main goal of the hybrid approach is to create content that engages potential customers and leads them to take specific actions, such as visiting a website or sending an email requesting services. At the same time, it is also focused on making direct sales, which means that creative freelancers must be able to close deals and convert leads into actual customers.
How does the hybrid attraction marketing approach work?
To implement the hybrid approach to inbound marketing, creative freelancers need to follow a number of key steps:
1. Identify your target audience
The first thing creative freelancers need to do is identify their target audience. This means understanding who your ideal customers are, what needs they have, and how you can address those needs through your services.
2. Create valuable content
Once the target audience is understood, creative freelancers need to create valuable content that is useful to them. This can include helpful blog posts, videos, or guides that teach potential customers something new or solve a specific problem.
3. Promote the content
After creating valuable content, creative freelancers need to promote it through marketing channels like social media, email, or online advertising. This will help attract potential customers to your website and increase your brand awareness.
4. Offer services and close sales
Finally, when potential clients are interested in their services, creative freelancers must be able to deliver a compelling value proposition and close the sale.
The difficulty of the hybrid strategy
As mentioned above, the hybrid strategy is a sophisticated approach that requires both direct sales and attraction marketing skills. Although it can be very effective when executed correctly, it is difficult to pull off and many creative professionals lean towards one end of the spectrum or the other.
The main reason why the hybrid strategy is difficult to execute is that requires skills and knowledge in two different areas: direct sales and inbound marketing. Many creatives may have skills in one of these areas, but lack experience in the other. For example, a graphic designer may have excellent design skills and be able to create compelling content for their audience, but may lack sales skills and not know how to close a sale. On the other hand, a salesperson may have excellent closing skills, but may not know how to create valuable content that engages their audience.
The execution of the hybrid strategy also requires time and effort. Inbound marketing requires the constant creation of valuable content that engages your audience, which can be a slow and lengthy process. On the other hand, direct sales may require more time to interact and close sales with potential customers. This can mean that the creative professional needs to spend more time and energy on the hybrid strategy than they would if they focused only on one of the two strategies.
The hybrid strategy can also be challenging in terms of balance. If the creative focuses too much on inbound marketing, they may miss direct sales opportunities, and if they focus too much on direct sales, they may miss out on attracting new leads. It is important find a proper balance between the two strategies to ensure that the best results are achieved.
Tips to develop it correctly
The hybrid approach to inbound marketing can be very effective if executed correctly. Here are some tips to succeed with this approach:
- Know your audience: Before creating any type of content, it is important to know who you are targeting. Be sure to research your audience and understand their needs and wants. This will allow you to create engaging and valuable content for them.
- Offer quality content: The content you create must be of high quality and provide real value to your audience. If you are just creating content to sell your products or services, you are likely to lose your audience quickly. Instead, create content that is informative, useful, and entertaining.
- Be authentic: Authenticity is key in attraction marketing. Don’t try to be something you’re not or try to impress your audience with falsehoods. Instead, show your true personality and share your real experiences. This will help build trust and connection with your audience.
- Use multiple marketing channels: The hybrid approach means that you have to use multiple marketing channels to reach your audience. Make sure you have a strong online presence through social media, a well-designed website, and an active blog. You can also consider advertising online, creating videos, or hosting events to reach your audience in different ways.
- Measure and adjust your focus: Finally, it is important to measure your results and adjust your approach as necessary. Use analytics tools to track how your content is performing and see what works best for your audience. Then, adjust your approach accordingly to continually improve and maintain long-term success.
Still, don’t lose sight of the point of sale, so it’s important to cultivate that salesperson gene that we all have inside.
Key points
To be successful with the hybrid approach in inbound marketing, it is important to keep in mind some practical tips that will allow you to achieve your goals effectively. Here are three key points to consider in order to be successful in this type of strategy, along with a video on the subject:
Perseverance and consistency in strategy
One of the biggest mistakes people make when applying inbound marketing is expecting immediate results. This strategy requires time and effort to build an audience engaged with your brand. Therefore, it is essential to be persevering and consistent in your approach in order to obtain the desired results.
This means you need to create quality content on a regular basis and establish a consistent presence on social media. By doing so, you will be building a relationship with your audience and increasing their trust in you. Also, you must be willing to try different approaches and adapt to changes in your audience dynamics, in order to improve and optimize your strategy.
Adaptation to market changes and trends
The market is constantly changing and as such it is important to keep up with the latest trends and adjust your strategy accordingly. You must be aware of new technologies, changes in social media algorithms and the latest trends in the industry in order to adapt and respond quickly.
For example, in recent years, social media has become a key tool for inbound marketing. In this sense, you must know the best practices for each platform and adapt your content to the characteristics of each one. Also, video content has become a major trend in digital marketing, so it’s important to include it in your strategy.
Investment in education and training
Finally, to be successful in inbound marketing, you must be willing to invest in your education and training. You must be aware of the latest digital marketing techniques and tools to be able to apply them in your strategy. Additionally, you must be willing to invest time and resources to learn about your audience’s behavior, as well as best practices for content creation and social media usage.
Education and training will also allow you to maintain a competitive edge in the industry and stay on top of the latest trends in digital marketing. This means that you must be willing to attend conferences, workshops and courses to improve your skills and knowledge in the area.
