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As outbound marketing has begun being pushed out of the marketing world and replaced with new strategies, inbound marketing has become an essential part of most companies.  Inbound marketing is a great way to sell your product and get your company involved in the online community.  It is cheaper than outbound marketing and has proven very successful.  With this being said, inbound marketing can only be as effective as your company makes it and many companies struggle with the same problems.  Here is a list of seven common inbound marketing mistakes that companies make: 

One of the reasons that successful marketing has become more and more difficult to achieve is because people are becoming increasingly annoyed of advertisements.  No one wants to be interrupted in the middle of a suspenseful TV show to find out what the softness new toilet paper is or what the latest sandwich is at a fast food joint.  Outbound marketing, now referred to as “old marketing”, is the traditional style of marketing where companies reach out to their customers through commercials, print ad’s, flyers, and cold calls.  This style of marketing hunts customers down and pushes products on them and these consumers have no say in the matter.   Inbound marketing has begun to take over the advertising world as it has proven itself as the master of efficiency.  Inbound marketing promotes an advertising strategy of “getting found” by customers.  Inbound marketing uses strategies that involve Ebooks, podcasts, blogs, online videos, and white papers.  It focuses on a two-way relationship between the company and the consumer so that people are more in control of what information they receive.  In the last two years the amount spend on company blogs and social media has nearly doubled, making it clear that outbound marketing is on the decline.

Valentine's Day has become a routine holiday that consumers have grown to celebrate every year.  It has become one of the most commercialized holidays in the world and many now refer to this day as a Hallmark Holiday.  When this time of year rolls around, Valentine's Day advertisements are everywhere you turn.  Companies go all out to try and reach out to their customers in order to maximize their sales.  And, so they should, last year it was estimated that consumers in the US reached $18.6 billion in spending for Valentine's Day.  Although many consumers may not agree with how commercialized this holiday has become, cultural norms have shifted and Valentine's Day spending is almost unavoidable.

Yes! I want my marketing tactics to be less effective! said no marketer ever. There are a lot of trends emerging in the digital marketing world for 2014, and if you don't roll with the times, you'll find your company's marketing campaigns less effective. Who wants that!

So you've begun your blogging adventure, that's great! You've probably decided to make the move from traditional advertising to content marketing as you've heard (from countless sources) how beneficial inbound marketing can be when used properly.

Everyone has an email address, and let's face it, sending an e-mailer is a whole lot quicker and easier than sending a snail-mail promotion. And, (if that didn't change your marketing mind), did you know that 91% of consumers check their email every day, and about 60% of marketers believe that email marketing produces positive ROI?

Whether you are just getting started in your inbound marketing campaign, or you've been working in the industry for some time, it's critical to continually grow your understanding and knowledge. Knowing and understanding important key marketing terms can help you communicate with your marketing team, or if you work within the industry, help boost your credibility. In an industry that's constantly changing, it's important to stay in touch with all of the latest trends, including the emergence of new fun terms, like Pin, or hash tag. But, sometimes you come across a term or concept that you aren't entirely sure of. No one ever said you had to be a know-it-all, in fact, you shouldn't have to be.

Every content marketer is under constant pressure to produce some form of content. However, you can't just push out any old half written, half thought out article if you're looking to attract customers. There is a demand for high quality content, but high quality content can take a long time to create and you may not have the time to devote to do it.

You may think that because inbound marketing has been around for a while now that it probably isn't a field of study anymore. Everyone knows everything about inbound marketing right? Actually, there's still a lot that's misunderstood or unknown about inbound marketing, creating some common misconceptions to look out for. If you're researching inbound marketing as a possible solution to your marketing troubles don't fall for everything you read or hear. After all, according to HubSpot, 79% of companies that have a blog report a positive ROI for inbound marketing this year.

By now, I'm sure you know about the immense power of inbound marketing. It has proven itself time and time again when it comes to increasing sales, traffic, and leads. Although inbound was designed to attract more prospects to your online presence, a great inbound marketing strategy can do so much more. With the right methods you can improve your businesses' credibility, brand awareness, engagement, and even your value to your customer.