The world of Content and Inbound Marketing still carries some mystery. Other than the obvious “What is it?” or “How does it work?”, the most mysterious point might be its costs. Yet, this isn’t completely uncharted territory. Plenty of people are using Inbound, and they’re all paying something to get it. By no means is this an exact science, but we can give you a general idea of what should CleanTech Marketing cost.
First and foremost, the power of content lies in its ability to educate. Relevant, informative material instantly rewards the reader and builds a positive brand association. Knowledge is invaluable. By positioning themselves as a go-to resource, even small companies can contend with larger organizations. Not only that, but a marketing campaign tends to be more cost-effective when the focus is on educating customers. According to HubSpot, the average cost per lead in Inbound Marketing is 60% lower than in traditional outbound marketing. To put this in more concrete terms, businesses that rely heavily on outbound spend about $346 per lead. Comparatively, the average cost per lead for an Inbound-centered business costs around $135. No two businesses are identical, so these numbers will vary. Also, your marketing success will stem from a combination of factors. But Content and Inbound Marketing can be the catalysts that carry you over the hump.
Time to get down to the nitty gritty. Up to this point, you’ve been dying to know if Inbound fits into your budget. However, you can’t determine that until you’ve actually set your budget. So, how much should you set aside for your Content Marketing campaign? The SBA suggests that if your revenue is below $5 million a year, allotting 7 to 8 percent of your revenue to marketing is conducive to growth. As for digital marketing specifically, you can expect to spend about 2-5 percent of your gross revenue. All things considering, implementing a Content and Inbound strategy is budget friendly. Actually, the larger issue may be the time and effort involved in producing quality content. If you’re unable to manage an internal content creation team, enlisting the help of an outside agency could be a viable alternative. Here’s a quick breakdown of the rates:
An important note to keep in mind is that many agencies will require you to sign a one-year contract. This type of package includes content strategy development, as well as the production of the content itself (writing, design, development, SEO, etc). If you already have a team in place but are unsure of how to develop a strategy, there are agencies that can help you work out the kinks. At the core, Inbound Marketing is consultative. Cooperating to provide thoughtful solutions to specific problems is as consultative as it gets.
There’s nothing cookie-cutter about formulating a winning Content and Inbound Marketing strategy. Every Renewable Energy company has its own unique set of needs. So, it should come as no surprise that there isn’t a single, uniformed set of prices. The one thing that can be said is that Inbound is a customer-centric methodology that has the flexibility to fit into a variety of budgets.