Search Engine Optimization

Over the years I’ve had plenty of people ask me how to best approach B2B Internet marketing. B2B marketing is a different animal than B2C, and I appreciate its differences and unique challenges. If you are looking for an example of how to do B2B marketing well, I think you don’t have to look much farther than HubSpot.

HubSpot is an “all-in-one marketing software platform … [that] helps you get found online by more qualified visitors, shows you how to convert more visitors into leads, gives you tools to close those leads efficiently [and] provides analytics to help make smart marketing investments.”

In 2007, the company created a content management system that handled everything, including: content management, blogging, social media, SEO, landing page management, lead nurturing and site analytics. Brian Halligan, CEO of HubSpot, coined the term “inbound marketing” to describe what his product did, establishing HubSpot as the indisputable leader of a new category.

By carving out a niche in a very crowded market, HubSpot created demand for their product. It is the ultimate example of demand generation. Exceptionally hard to do, demand generation involves building awareness and interest in your company and product. HubSpot created a problem AND solution in one fell swoop. Their software not only matched the needs of their consumers, it created that need in the first place! Plenty of companies were doing the activities that make up inbound marketing (content marketing, SEO and social media) before HubSpot called it inbound marketing. But they saw a way to position them as the leader in an unclaimed category. In all my years as a marketer, I have never seen a company handle demand generation quite as well as HubSpot.

HubSpot doesn’t just dump money into their marketing efforts. They are very smart, strategic and above all, effective with their budget. They are all about education, which is a great way to conduct B2B marketing. Businesses don’t want to be “sold,” they want to know how your products can help them with their business. It’s not about your product, it’s about their problems.

Check out one of HubSpot’s great educational videos here:

HubSpot also do a great job with content marketing. Content marketing isn’t just about writing and distributing an article, and content doesn’t just refer to the words on a web page.

If you take a look at the marketing resources page of HubSpot’s website, you’ll get a good idea of the content they are producing: webinars, whitepapers, videos, podcasts, studies and reports, blog posts and more. All of these are types of content and the reach out to a different type of audience. HubSpot not only produces great content in all its forms, they also do it again and again and again…that’s the key to success with content marketing. You have to be willing to strap down for the long haul and keep churning out unique, engaging and relevant content. Sometimes that is easier said than done. HubSpot attacks their content marketing from all sides, keeping it fresh and relevant. This gives people a reason to come to the site again and again, increasing their chance of converting.

To be successful in B2B Internet marketing, it takes a lot more time and effort than running a few PPC ads. Competition is tough and the audiences are small. You have to position your company as the leader in your industry to earn the trust and budget of your target audiences. HubSpot isn’t even ten years old and they have established themselves as the driving force behind “inbound marketing.” They have done a kickass job with their B2B marketing.

According to Wikipedia (which we all know is the most trusted source for college students everywhere), inbound marketing is defined as “…a marketing strategy that focuses on getting found by customers.” Instead of outbound marketing that incorporates traditional forms of marketing like newspaper or television advertising where a company is reaching out to the consumer, inbound marketing is all about getting the customer to come to you. The term “inbound marketing” is relatively new jargon and was coined by the company HubSpot.

Inbound marketing centers on three main marketing tactics: content marketing, SEO and social media marketing. In a sense, inbound marketing is really integrated marketing; connecting various marketing methods and channels together to develop a stronger online presence and more powerful brand.

The idea of inbound marketing was developed as a response to the recent changes in consumer behavior. Consumers are no longer passive recipients, willingly ingesting countless marketing messages a day. In fact, many consumers (especially the younger generations) have learned to tune out traditional marketing efforts. The Internet is the great equalizer, where everyone can become a publisher of information. Social networking allows people unprecedented opportunities for expressing their opinions on everything—from who their NFL team should draft, the best places to stay in Las Vegas, and whether or not your products are any good. Blogging allows anyone to become an expert in what they are passionate about. Vegan moms who love to cook; there is a blogging community for them. Vintage car owners in Chicago; there are leading bloggers for them too. Each societal niche has an outlet online.

Outbound marketing was more about interrupting people in their daily lives, trying to capture their attention. A commercial between TV shows, ads in the newspaper, billboards on the highway—these are all example of outbound marketing. Inbound marketing focuses on incorporating your brand into the daily lives of your target audience, not interrupting it.

One of the great benefits of inbound marketing is that it works to reach a highly targeted audience. It goes after someone who is already interested in your product/services. Outbound marketing involves sending out mass messages to a broad audience. Inbound marketing hones in on your best opportunities.

Brian Halligan, HubSpot CEO and Founder, had this to say in one of the company’s blog posts,

I advocate doing “inbound marketing” where you help yourself “get found” by people already learning about and shopping in your industry. In order to do this, you need to set your website up like a “hub” for your industry that attracts visitors naturally through the search engines, through the blogosphere, and through the social media sites.