How to Attract Clients Differently? A Concrete Example of Educational Communication
An educational communication strategy can bring you visibility — but that is not all. Before you can apply inbound marketing correctly, you need to understand its principle and, above all, put yourself in your customer's shoes.
Why Use an Educational Strategy (Inbound Marketing)?
You know that when someone needs to use a service or purchase a high-value product, they think it over before making a purchase — and above all, they do their research. Most of the time, people do this online.
Let us take a concrete example: a company looking for a quote and invoicing management software. As a CRM provider, you know that your website receives a great deal of traffic when people search for quote and invoicing software. You are therefore looking for a way to sell your software to these people.
You already have your website, your brochures, and the full suite of sales materials, and your objective is to attract customers. You might then ask yourself:
How do I stand out and reach my target audience without resorting to paid search?
This is where inbound comes in. You need to create blog articles and downloadable files that address your clients' challenges and help them grow by teaching them something. Not only will this content allow them to answer their questions, but it will also help them achieve their objectives.
The most important thing in understanding what your future customer wants is to put yourself in their shoes. Imagine you are them:
As a potential customer, you want to buy a quote and invoicing management software package. You do your research online, but there is far too much information and too many conflicting opinions. You feel a little lost.
Then, on your Facebook or LinkedIn news feed, you come across an advert that does not sing the praises of a product ("the best software", "already 10,000 users", etc.) but instead speaks to your own challenges, offering to bring you something, to teach you something and help you to make sense of things. This advert perfectly matches your expectations, concerns, and needs.
Blog post titles might include:
- How to reduce payment delays with an invoice payment button?
- 10 essential features of e-invoicing software for micro-businesses
- How to organise yourself to deliver a quote within 24-48 hours?
- 12 reasons to choose a quote and invoicing software with a CRM option
You therefore click on the link:
Facebook example
LinkedIn example
Twitter example
You arrive on an article with a layout of this type:
This article satisfies you by providing answers to your questions. You have relevant information for your situation.
And in one corner of the article, a box catches your eye — it is a call-to-action button. It offers even more comprehensive and relevant content in the context of your research: free downloadable content, conversion content.
Here are 2 examples of conversion file titles:
- The CRM Guide: 20 questions to help you choose the right commercial management software
- How to develop recurring revenue in your turnover?
Once you have clicked the call-to-action button (or CTA), you land on a new page (landing page): you are offered free access to download the content in exchange for your email address. A small price to pay for receiving professional, relevant content for your business. You agree and fill in the fields.
Let us now return to you, as the business. With this internet user who has followed the journey from their LinkedIn feed to your landing page and downloaded your file, you have just acquired a lead — a voluntary lead who initiated contact themselves with your brand (by sharing their email address with you).
The lead may not be ready to buy immediately, but you can "nurture" them, for example through targeted email communications. And this continues until they reach a certain level of purchase readiness — until they are ready to buy your quote and invoicing software with CRM option.
This article uses a concrete example, but the workings of inbound marketing (or educational communication strategy) apply to all types of businesses and all sectors: website creation, choosing a photocopier, selling products or services. Transpose this example to your own micro-business:
- What problems do your customers face before they even become your customers?
- What content can you create to help them?
Rather than trying to sell yourself at all costs, think about the needs of your prospects. Think about the users rather than your products or services.
An educational strategy means putting yourself in your customers' shoes, responding to their problems and expectations. You have just discovered a perfect way to stand out and reach your target audience. Now that we have seen, through a concrete example, what this entails, come and learn how to implement such an educational communication strategy!
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