---
title: Want A Stellar Inbound Strategy? It All Starts with A Little Understanding
description: "Part 1 of 4: The biggest marketing mistakes you’re making. Not understanding your customer is a sure-fire way to have your marketing efforts fall short."
image: https://mktgessentials.com/hubfs/Changed%20Blog%20Images/inbound-strategy.jpg
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[Blog](https://mktgessentials.com/blog) > [Strategy](https://mktgessentials.com/blog/topic/strategy) > Want A Stellar Inbound Strategy? It All Starts with A Little Understanding

# Want A Stellar Inbound Strategy? It All Starts with A Little Understanding

Posted by [Patty Cisco](https://mktgessentials.com/blog/author/patty-cisco)  on December 16, 2015

![inbound-strategy.jpg](https://mktgessentials.com/hubfs/Changed%20Blog%20Images/inbound-strategy.jpg)

Productive marketing professionals consistently move forward with new ways of branding their messages and reaching their audience. Creating [attractive content](https://mktgessentials.com/5-reasons-why-you-need-to-create-infographics/), building SEO, and developing key [marketing campaigns](https://mktgessentials.com/stretch-your-marketing-dollar-further-with-inbound/) all play a part in the success or failure of marketing's ability to show return on investment.

***All those efforts are a flimsy house of cards if marketers don't understand how their customers buy.***

Even if the team has worked their fingers to the bone on a powerful content strategy, there are marketing mistakes that can derail the plan. One of those is failing to recognize the prospects' buying behavior, which sets all other actions up to perform weakly. To create a powerhouse inbound marketing strategy, it all starts with a little understanding.

## **First, get to know your buyer.**

 You may rock at selling bricks, which is great, unless your target audience is looking to purchase wagons. Inbound marketing functions under the same premise. Delving into your target buyer and what they really need is key to develop high-performing marketing initiatives. Understand the pain point they are trying to address, how it affects their daily journey, and what they want to hear. Further, find out where they look for information, what type of content they trust, and which social media channels they participate. By being familiar with your target customer, marketing places themselves in a position to offer exactly what the prospect needs.

Once you know the buyer, you can...

**.....create a message that evokes emotion.** Write compelling content targeting your audience's needs. It's more than just the product; it's what the product does for the customer. Trust, simplicity, status, and security are all common points that drive purchases. Finding your customer's emotional pull to your product allows for content creation that builds a connection between your brand and the prospect.

**Sharing that message is vital to success.** Distributing your message for maximum impact is where understanding your customers' buying patterns pays off. Don't waste time on social media platforms if your prospects aren't present. By focusing in on the channels your targets employ in their decision making, your message reaches them at the right time, leading them in your direction.

**Finally, give them an inviting place to land.** Once buyers have sampled your delicious content and decided they want a closer look, your [company website](https://mktgessentials.com/turning-your-new-website-from-an-expense-to-a-revenue-generator/) needs to be a welcoming place for them to easily gain more information. An accessible, concise, easy-to-navigate site is key in nudging a prospect down the path to become a customer. Make the path clear and unblocked, with simple language, and relevant calls-to-action. A streamlined, thoughtfully designed website is the magic wand that changes a prospect to a customer.

Failing to understand how customers buy online is a common marketing mistake that yields disastrous results. By taking the time to understand your buyer, you can build more engaging content, know where to share it, and create a website that facilitates the buyer's journey.

#### Do you need guidance in understanding your customers' online buying habits? Call us today at 419.629.0080 and work with one of our digital inbound marketing experts to formulate your marketing initiatives.

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