Inbound & Outbound Marketing Mix: Dominate in Economic Downturn

Economic recessions disrupt, reshape industries, and challenge traditional paradigms. There is a 46.11% probability that the US will experience another recession in 2024. 

The impact of such downturns extends far beyond your financial considerations, permeating into your core marketing strategies. Significant changes you may notice include: 

• Contraction in economic activities
• Altered consumer behaviors
• Heightened market uncertainties

Once your business faces recessionary challenges, there is a need to recalibrate both your inbound and outbound marketing approaches. It creates a delicate balance between these strategies based on the demands of a post-recession environment.

But how can you make that happen? 

This is where our guide can be your best mentor. We have tips and insights that will empower your business to thrive in the aftermath. 

So, let us start.

Post-Recession B2B Consumer Behavior and Its Effects on Marketing Approaches

B2B buyers don't make any purchase decisions by impulse. They do thorough research and want to buy only from trustworthy brands. It is a common approach in both pre and post-recession conditions. 

B2B buyers’ way of analyzing a potential partnership changes after the economic downturn. Thus, it results in a shift in consumer behavior. 

Here's how it differs in both conditions:

Considering the above changes in priorities and perspectives of B2B buyers, the marketing approaches need adjustments, too. 

Let us understand the possible recession's effects on B2B inbound and outbound strategies: 

• Post-recession, B2B consumers will expect maximized ROI on their investments. Thus, messaging should focus on value, cost savings, and practical benefits as consumers become more price-sensitive. 

• B2B consumers may be less likely to switch partners. Thus, marketing strategies must focus more on retaining existing customers than acquiring new ones. Hence, your emphasis should be on building relationships with current customers.
• Data-driven decision-making will become more reliant. Thus, choose tactics that allow for better tracking and analysis of marketing performance to gain dominance. 

So, before you make changes in your strategies to fit the 'after recession' conditions, learn what main touch points you must prioritize.

Prime Outbound and Inbound Marketing Touchpoints  

Let us first understand how touchpoints differ for the two marketing approaches. For inbound, you focus on building strong relationships. But, with outbound, your focus is faster and result-driven. Knowing this difference helps you use common channels like emails and social media with the right intent. 

Moreover, B2B buyers often spend their day roaming across various marketing touchpoints which is not linear. They often go to Meta or LinkedIn feeds in the morning. 

Then, they usually check their emails before logging out of their work. Plus, they make time for warm calls if they show interest in a brand's offering. 

You can optimize these common touch points through inbound and outbound marketing.

Consider your target B2B buyer’s daily interaction with various touchpoints and go for a non-linear sales cadence. It means you need to reach out to your prospect through emails, LinkedIn or Meta, and warm calls altogether. It puts your company as a trustworthy partner. 

However, you can not bombard prospects with ads and calls. Instead, you need to be strategic while using these touchpoints for your marketing campaigns. 

So, here is the right way to approach your prospects with a non-linear sales cadence to build trust: 

Outbound Touchpoints

Here is the list of the most influential touchpoints: 

1. Cold Email

It enables you to reach out to potential customers through email without any prior interaction. It's a way to introduce your product or service to your target audience. Moreover, 8 of 10 B2B buyers want brands to connect with them through email. 

Tips for effective cold emailing:

• Tailor your emails to each recipient. Mention their company or role to show that you've done your homework.
• Your subject line should grab attention and convey value. Avoid spammy or deceptive subject lines.
• Keep your email concise and focused. Highlight the benefits of your offering and share your contact details.
• Follow up strategically. Give the recipient time to respond and consider sending a follow-up with additional value.
• Ensure your emails are mobile-friendly for maximum reach and readability.

2. Warm Call

The touchpoint involves calling potential customers to promote your product or service. Our experts suggest scheduling warm calls once the prospect interacts with your cold email. 

Tips for effectual cold calling:

• Understand your prospects before making a call. Keep a summary of their needs and challenges to tailor your pitch.
• Have a script to guide your conversation, but be ready to adapt based on the prospect's responses.
• Establish a connection early in the call. Be friendly, confident, and show genuine interest in solving the prospect's problems.
• Actively listen to them to understand their expectations. 
• Anticipate common objections and have well-thought-out responses. Use objections as opportunities to provide more value.

3. Social Touch

It lets you engage with potential customers on social media platforms like LinkedIn. You can build close relationships and showcase your expertise as 4 of 5 B2B leads come through LinkedIn. 

Tips for effective outreach on platforms like LinkedIn:

• Ensure your LinkedIn profile is complete and reflects your professional brand. A strong profile increases your credibility.
• When sending connection requests, include a personalized message. Explain why you want to connect and how you can provide value.
• Share industry-related content and participate in discussions. Position yourself as an expert in your field.
• Share your content with your network. Also, Like and comment on prospects’ posts. Actively participate in conversations to expand your reach.
• When sending direct messages, communicate the value you can offer concisely. Avoid generic or spammy messages.

4. Video Message

You reach out to your prospect via video content to communicate your message. It's a powerful tool to convey emotions, demonstrate products, or provide a personal touch. 

Tips for effective video messages:

• Keep your video message brief (less than 90 sec for a 50% retention rate) and to the point. People's attention spans are short, so quickly articulate your purpose and the key points you want to convey.
• Ensure you are well-lit and visible in the video. Natural light is often the most flattering.
• Use a good microphone to capture clear and crisp audio.
• Tailor your video to your audience. Address prospects by name and speak directly to their needs or interests.
• Create a sense of connection with your viewers by maintaining eye contact with the camera. 
• Clearly state what you want your viewers to do after watching the video. Provide clear instructions, whether it's visiting a website, responding to an email, or taking a specific action.

5. Trade Shows

You can meet with your potential clients and relevant industry professionals in a face-to-face setting. Plus, trade shows allow you to showcase your products or services.  

Tips for effective networking in trade shows:

• Define your objectives for the tradeshow, whether it's lead generation, brand exposure, or networking. Plan accordingly.
• Your booth is a reflection of your brand. Make it visually appealing and interactive to attract visitors.
• Ensure your team is well-trained on your products or services and can engage with attendees effectively.
• Have a system for collecting and qualifying leads. Don't just gather business cards; ensure they are relevant prospects.
• After the trade show, follow up with leads promptly with an email or phone call. Reference your interaction at the event to reinforce the connection.

Inbound Touchpoints

Here is the list of widely used touchpoints: 

1. SEO

Your first touchpoint is ranking in the organic search by your potential clients. Thus, you need proper search engine optimization (SEO) for your website and content. It improves ranking, making it easier for people to find you through search engines.

Tips for effective SEO:

• Identify keywords relevant to your industry, target audience’s needs and pain points, niche products, etc. Use Google Keyword Planner or other tools to discover popular and applicable search terms.
• Create high-value content that addresses your audience's requirements and questions. Resources that solve problems or provide valuable information tend to rank higher.
• Optimize your title tags, meta descriptions, and headers with relevant keywords. Ensure your content is structured logically for both search engines and human readers.
• Keep your website mobile-optimized as Google ranks mobile-friendly websites more.
• Earn high-quality backlinks from reputable websites. Partner with influencers, write guest posts and engage in online communities to build your site's authority.

2. Content Marketing

Create and distribute valuable, relevant content that can attract your target audience. This touchpoint helps you engage prospects throughout their buyer journey. 

Tips for effective content marketing:

• Understand your target audience's needs, preferences, and pain points and customize content accordingly.
• Diversify your content formats, such as thought leader articles, blogs, videos, infographics, etc. Diversifying your content keeps your audience engaged.
• Maintain a consistent brand voice across all your content. It helps in creating a cohesive and recognizable brand identity.
• Actively promote your marketing content through social media, guest posts, content syndication, and email newsletters. 

3. Social Media Marketing

It involves three main aspects: 

• Sharing your content
• Engaging with your audience
• Building a community on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc

Tips for social media marketing:

• Choose the social platforms that cater to your different target demographics.
• Establish a consistent posting schedule to keep your audience engaged. Use scheduling tools, such as Hootsuite, Monday, etc., to plan and automate posts. 
• Use high-dimensional visual aids (images and videos) to catch viewers attention.
• Actively respond to comments and participate in relevant conversations. 
• Regularly analyze the performance of your social media efforts using analytics tools. Adjust the strategy as to what resonates most with your audience.

4. Webinar Marketing 

Around 61% of B2B businesses use webinar marketing. It lets you invite prospects to join your live or recorded webinar. Use the platform for online seminars or workshops to educate, engage, and convert your audience. 

Tips for effective webinar marketing:

• Clearly define the topic of your webinar and the value participants will gain. A compelling value proposition increases registrations.
• Create visually appealing and interactive presentations. Use multimedia elements to keep participants engaged throughout the session.
• Develop a comprehensive promotion plan to drive registrations. Use social media, email marketing, and your landing pages to create awareness.
• Incorporate interactive elements like Q&A sessions or polls to involve participants. It not only keeps them engaged but also provides valuable insights.
• Follow up with attendees and non-attendees with additional resources, surveys, or exclusive offers. It helps in nurturing leads generated from the webinar.

5. Newsletter Series

You can continuously nurture prospects via newsletters. Send targeted and valuable emails to your subscribers to build relationships and guide them through the customer journey.

Tips for compelling newsletter series:

• Categorize your email list based on demographics, preferences, or behaviors. Personalize your newsletters to make them more relevant to each segment.
• Offer valuable content in each newsletter, such as exclusive insights, tips, or promotions. Show subscribers that being on your list brings benefits.
• Each newsletter should have a clear CTA. Whether it's to visit your website, download a resource, or make a purchase, guide subscribers on the next step.
• Establish a consistent schedule for your newsletters. Whether weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, consistency helps build anticipation.
• Monitor the performance of your newsletters. Analyze open rates, click-through rates, and conversions. Use this data to optimize future campaigns and content.

After the recession, how you run, whether your outbound or inbound campaign around these touchpoints, shifts dramatically. However, the right tactics will help you get the most out of the strategies. 

6 Tips to Perform Outbound Marketing After an Economic Downturn 

Outbound marketing becomes challenging when B2B consumers become more cautious and economical in spending habits. Therefore, adapting your strategies is essential for surviving and thriving after a recession. 

Here's how you can make the necessary adjustments:

1. Don't Slash Your Marketing Budget Dramatically

Cutting your marketing budget significantly during a recession might seem like a quick cost-saving measure. But, it can have long-term repercussions like:

• Reduced brand visibility and awareness
• Loss of market share
• Negative impact on sales
• Impaired customer relationships
• Slower recovery post-downturn
• Missed innovation opportunities

Instead, strategically assess and prioritize marketing initiatives. Optimize your spending by focusing on channels and strategies that deliver the most value and maintain a visible presence in the market.

2. Conduct Fresh Market Research

Economic downturns reshape consumer needs, preferences, and behaviors. Staying relevant means understanding these shifts.

Update your market research to gain insights into the altered landscape. For this, you must:

• Identify emerging trends
• Understand changing customer priorities
• Tailor your outbound marketing strategies accordingly

3. Leverage Existing Customer Referrals

Your happy and satisfied customers can be your brand’s best advocates. In challenging times, building on existing relationships is crucial.

Engage with your current customers through personalized communication. Offer loyalty rewards, request feedback, and provide valuable content. Once your customers become more responsive to your outreach, request them to refer your offerings to others. It can expand your reach through trusted recommendations.

4. Analyze Past and Current Performance Metrics

Data is your ally. Analyzing performance metrics helps you understand what's still effective and what needs adjustment.

Evaluate the outcomes of your pre and post-recession marketing efforts. Identify successful strategies and areas for improvement. Use this data to refine and optimize your outbound marketing approach.

5. Maintain Consistency in Brand Presence

Consistency builds trust. In uncertain times, a steady and recognizable brand presence is reassuring to customers.

Ensure your messaging remains consistent across all your outbound marketing channels. From social media to email campaigns, maintain a cohesive brand voice. Reinforce your brand identity to build trust and loyalty.

6. Adapt and Innovate

Markets evolve, and so should your strategies. Adaptability is critical to staying ahead. Be open to innovation and change. If a particular outbound marketing channel or strategy is underperforming, be willing to pivot. Keep up with the industry trends and be proactive in incorporating new, practical approaches into your marketing mix.

6 Tips For Performing Inbound Marketing After the Recession

Here are some inbound marketing strategies that you can use after the recession:

1. Invest in Quality Content

Instead of pulling back, invest in creating high-quality content. It boosts your search engine rankings, establishes trust, and sets you apart from competitors.

Develop informative blog posts, engaging videos, and valuable resources. Share content that addresses your audience's needs and positions your brand as an authority in your industry.

2. Directly Ask Your Audience What Changed

Post-recession, you need to have a first-hand understanding of changes in the industry's consumer base. It's crucial for tailoring your marketing strategies.

Conduct surveys, interviews, and thorough market analysis. Engage with your audience through social media and seek direct feedback. Use the obtained insights to adjust your content and meet prospects' current needs.

3. Nurture Relationships With Pipeline Leads

The leads in your pipeline are valuable assets. Nurturing them can lead to conversions and sustained customer loyalty.

Implement automated nurturing campaigns to keep your top leads engaged. Provide them with:

• Relevant content
• Exclusive offers
• Personalized communication

It helps move them through the marketing and sales funnels effectively.

4. Optimize Your Marketing Campaign Progress

Set and track your campaigns' SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) goals. It'll measure the effectiveness of your inbound marketing efforts.

Regularly assess your progress and adjust strategies if needed. It aligns your marketing efforts with your overall business objectives.

5. Be Responsive

Your accessibility and responsiveness towards the target audience build a positive customer experience. It reignites trust and loyalty among your target consumer base.

Thus, you must:

• Stay active across all marketing channels. 
• Perform an A/B test for the right posting frequency and publish relevant content to keep your audience engaged and informed. 
• Respond promptly to customer questions and feedback, showing that you value their input. 

Being attentive and helpful reinforces a positive brand image.

6. Publish Content Frequently

Consistent and frequent content publishing keeps your audience engaged and informed.

Develop a content delivery calendar and follow a regular posting schedule. Share a mix of informative articles, engaging visuals, and interactive content. 

It maintains your brand presence and provides ongoing value to your audience. Regularly assess the performance of your content to refine your approach over time.

Find the Right Balance Between Both Marketing Approaches 

Here’s how you can leverage and maintain both inbound and outbound marketing approaches: 

1. Develop a Holistic Marketing Strategy

Maintain synergy and cohesion among various channels from your inbound and outbound campaigns. Build a detailed marketing plan that goes perfectly with your overall business goals. Integrate tactics, ensuring consistency in messaging, branding, and customer experience across all channels.

2. Build collaborative Inbound and Outbound Marketing Teams

Establish collaboration between inbound and outbound teams to:

• Foster creativity
• Enhance communication
• Lead to a more holistic approach

Encourage cross-functional collaboration by organizing regular team meetings and joint brainstorming sessions. Ensure you build an environment where both teams can freely share their ideas and insights.

3. Use Technology and Tools for Integrated Marketing

Use technology to integrate your marketing efforts, automate processes, and provide valuable data for decision-making.

Invest in the following: 

• Customer relationship management (CRM) and marketing automation tools like MailChimp, HubSpot, etc. 
• Data analytics platforms like Tableau, Sisense, etc. 

Ensure these technologies are seamlessly integrated to facilitate a unified view of your marketing efforts and customer interactions.

4. Run Training and Development Programs for Integrated Marketing

Ensure you have a skilled and knowledgeable workforce capable of adapting to the evolving marketing landscape.

Implement regular training programs to enhance the skill set of your marketing teams. Focus on educating them about the following:

• Latest trends and industrial changes 
• Technologies
• Best practices 

-in both inbound and outbound marketing. 

Conclusion

Adaptability is paramount in the post-recession marketing landscape. Use the tips mentioned above and insights to build a dynamic approach where your business actively 

evolves. Plus, your marketing approaches engage with ever-shifting consumer expectations.

Having professionals work for you assures your business maintains its glory post-recession. At Revnew, our lead generation agency, we put our best foot forward to bring in potential deals for our clients. 

Our expert teams are well-equipped with varying marketing conditions. Want to learn more about what we can do for your business? Contact us here.