Inbound and Outbound Leads: what are the main differences?
Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2024 6:25 am
Have you ever heard of inbound and outbound leads or how they influence sales? If the answer is no, you may be missing out on great business opportunities by not using all the ways to capture customers currently available.
Key takeaways from this article:
Inbound prospecting is when the company uses tools such as blogs and landing pages to attract customers, while outbound prospecting is when the company actively searches for potential customers, via phone calls, for example.
The main difference between Inbound and Outbound leads is that the former tend to be more qualified, as they already know the brand, while the latter need to be introduced to the solutions offered.
To capture inbound leads, it is essential to invest in content marketing , social media and marketing automation. For outbound leads, it is interesting to invest in telemarketing and advertising.
To use inbound and outbound leads to boost your business, you need to understand how they fit into your sales process. So, download our free guide that teaches you how to create one from scratch!
A good sales CRM also plays a key role in the correct use of leads. And you can try Agendor for free to see this for yourself!
To understand the relevance of these terms, it is important to keep in mind that customers are the protagonists of any business. Without them, there are no sales, no revenue generation and, consequently, there is no reason for the company to exist.
Therefore, prospecting customers is vital for a business to remain competitive and survive in the market. It is the first contact between your prospect and the products and services that your company offers.
However, there are differences between Inbound and Outbound leads. This includes the customer acquisition channels used for each of them. If you don't know what they are, don't worry, because we'll explain them to you in this article!
Ways to capture customers: Inbound and Outbound prospecting
First of all, for a business to be successful, it needs to have a very well-structured and organized prospecting plan. In this sense, Inbound and Outbound prospecting techniques are very useful for generating qualified leads.
In short, inbound marketing is all about attraction. The idea is not to chase potential customers, but to get them to come to you and become interested in what your business has to offer.
Here, content is generally produced so that the prospect moves through the sales funnel so that they develop an interest in the solution offered and, ultimately, become a customer.
Outbound marketing, on the other hand, uses more traditional marketing strategies. Here, the company actively reaches out to the public to offer its products and services.
Communication occurs in a more dispersed manner. This is called “interruption marketing,” when you are watching a movie and a commercial appears, for example, or when you receive a phone call at work from someone trying to find out if your company might be interested in your product.
Now that you know what Inbound and Outbound marketing are, let's better understand the differences between the leads generated by each of them!
Prospecting is just one step in the sales process, see the other 6 in the infographic below:
inbound and outbound leads
What are the main differences between Inbound and Outbound leads?
The main difference between leads generated by Inbound and Outbound prospecting lies telemarketing leads, egypt telephone number data precisely in the method by which they are obtained.
In the first technique, as we explained, the company goes to potential customers, who are found and attracted through rich materials, Landing Pages, etc.
Here, it is common for customers to already know their problem and the company and are simply looking for the best solution. For this reason, they usually enter the sales funnel already qualified .
Outbound leads are sought after and, therefore, are not always qualified to complete a purchase. Here, companies need to “chase” people — or companies — that fit their ideal customer profile, through phone calls or advertisements.
When done well, this technique has great impact due to its great reach and, especially, when salespeople are well trained in telephone sales techniques.
Before you continue reading, check out some killer strategies for attracting customers:
inbound and outbound leads
Inbound Marketing Techniques: 4 You Need to Know
As we said, creating relevant content for potential customers interested in your business is one of the best techniques for capturing customers with Inbound. But this involves this series of steps:
content marketing;
social media;
Landing Pages;
marketing automation.
And below we explain step by step how to put each of them into practice!
1. Content Marketing
In general terms, content marketing means creating relevant content for the audience your company wants to reach and generate engagement. And a blog is the main tool for this.
When your buyer persona is in the early stages of their purchasing journey, your blog will be crucial to attracting them and turning them into a customer.
This is because it is not an invasive method, as the interested public usually reaches the blog through searches on Google, for example, which can still be reinforced with paid ads on AdWords and Banners on the Google Display Network .
In any case, to keep the persona interested, it is necessary to nourish them with meaningful content that helps them solve certain needs.
Therefore, keep your blog updated frequently. Considering that people access the internet through different devices, it is also important that your blog is adapted to a variety of screen formats: desktop, smartphone, tablet, etc.
2. Social Networks
Investing in social media is another way to attract customers. This is because people are increasingly using Facebook and Instagram, for example, to research specific brands.
In this sense, social networks also help to increase the reach of your blog content. In addition, they allow for greater interaction and engagement with the public through likes, comments and shares.
Just like on the blog, posts should be periodic and contain topics and approaches of interest to the buyer persona.
3. Landing Pages
In free translation, Landing Page means “landing page”. Its objective is to convert the visitor, offering them free and relevant material (e-books, exclusive videos, infographics, etc.) in exchange for personal information.
That said, it is normal for a perfect Landing Page to contain:
title and subtitle;
image of what is being offered;
description;
form for filling in data;
social proof (number of downloads, likes and shares, comments, etc.).
Landing Pages can be published on the website, blog, social media and via email marketing, for example.
4. Marketing automation
Email marketing allows for more direct and personal communication with your potential customers. Through it, you can spark the interest of leads in a personalized way and strengthen the relationship between them and your brand.
After capturing information about leads using the Landing Page described above, marketing automation allows emails with the most appropriate content to be directed to certain customer segments.
By sending a newsletter, for example, you contribute to increasing the number of visits to your blog and keep your leads nurtured with content that interests them.
Therefore, email marketing is a very assertive approach, as it delivers the right message to the right person at the right time.
This way, Leads understand better and better how your company's solutions can solve their problems, getting closer and closer to the bottom of the sales conversion funnel.
Do you have any questions about how to put this step-by-step guide into practice? Then take the opportunity to reserve your spot on Agendor's B2B prospecting course and become a master on the subject. In it, you will be able to check out:
live and recorded classes;
practical content;
free prospecting spreadsheets.
And all this with concise and easy-to-understand content. So, are you going to miss out on this opportunity? Sign up and secure your spot!
Key takeaways from this article:
Inbound prospecting is when the company uses tools such as blogs and landing pages to attract customers, while outbound prospecting is when the company actively searches for potential customers, via phone calls, for example.
The main difference between Inbound and Outbound leads is that the former tend to be more qualified, as they already know the brand, while the latter need to be introduced to the solutions offered.
To capture inbound leads, it is essential to invest in content marketing , social media and marketing automation. For outbound leads, it is interesting to invest in telemarketing and advertising.
To use inbound and outbound leads to boost your business, you need to understand how they fit into your sales process. So, download our free guide that teaches you how to create one from scratch!
A good sales CRM also plays a key role in the correct use of leads. And you can try Agendor for free to see this for yourself!
To understand the relevance of these terms, it is important to keep in mind that customers are the protagonists of any business. Without them, there are no sales, no revenue generation and, consequently, there is no reason for the company to exist.
Therefore, prospecting customers is vital for a business to remain competitive and survive in the market. It is the first contact between your prospect and the products and services that your company offers.
However, there are differences between Inbound and Outbound leads. This includes the customer acquisition channels used for each of them. If you don't know what they are, don't worry, because we'll explain them to you in this article!
Ways to capture customers: Inbound and Outbound prospecting
First of all, for a business to be successful, it needs to have a very well-structured and organized prospecting plan. In this sense, Inbound and Outbound prospecting techniques are very useful for generating qualified leads.
In short, inbound marketing is all about attraction. The idea is not to chase potential customers, but to get them to come to you and become interested in what your business has to offer.
Here, content is generally produced so that the prospect moves through the sales funnel so that they develop an interest in the solution offered and, ultimately, become a customer.
Outbound marketing, on the other hand, uses more traditional marketing strategies. Here, the company actively reaches out to the public to offer its products and services.
Communication occurs in a more dispersed manner. This is called “interruption marketing,” when you are watching a movie and a commercial appears, for example, or when you receive a phone call at work from someone trying to find out if your company might be interested in your product.
Now that you know what Inbound and Outbound marketing are, let's better understand the differences between the leads generated by each of them!
Prospecting is just one step in the sales process, see the other 6 in the infographic below:
inbound and outbound leads
What are the main differences between Inbound and Outbound leads?
The main difference between leads generated by Inbound and Outbound prospecting lies telemarketing leads, egypt telephone number data precisely in the method by which they are obtained.
In the first technique, as we explained, the company goes to potential customers, who are found and attracted through rich materials, Landing Pages, etc.
Here, it is common for customers to already know their problem and the company and are simply looking for the best solution. For this reason, they usually enter the sales funnel already qualified .
Outbound leads are sought after and, therefore, are not always qualified to complete a purchase. Here, companies need to “chase” people — or companies — that fit their ideal customer profile, through phone calls or advertisements.
When done well, this technique has great impact due to its great reach and, especially, when salespeople are well trained in telephone sales techniques.
Before you continue reading, check out some killer strategies for attracting customers:
inbound and outbound leads
Inbound Marketing Techniques: 4 You Need to Know
As we said, creating relevant content for potential customers interested in your business is one of the best techniques for capturing customers with Inbound. But this involves this series of steps:
content marketing;
social media;
Landing Pages;
marketing automation.
And below we explain step by step how to put each of them into practice!
1. Content Marketing
In general terms, content marketing means creating relevant content for the audience your company wants to reach and generate engagement. And a blog is the main tool for this.
When your buyer persona is in the early stages of their purchasing journey, your blog will be crucial to attracting them and turning them into a customer.
This is because it is not an invasive method, as the interested public usually reaches the blog through searches on Google, for example, which can still be reinforced with paid ads on AdWords and Banners on the Google Display Network .
In any case, to keep the persona interested, it is necessary to nourish them with meaningful content that helps them solve certain needs.
Therefore, keep your blog updated frequently. Considering that people access the internet through different devices, it is also important that your blog is adapted to a variety of screen formats: desktop, smartphone, tablet, etc.
2. Social Networks
Investing in social media is another way to attract customers. This is because people are increasingly using Facebook and Instagram, for example, to research specific brands.
In this sense, social networks also help to increase the reach of your blog content. In addition, they allow for greater interaction and engagement with the public through likes, comments and shares.
Just like on the blog, posts should be periodic and contain topics and approaches of interest to the buyer persona.
3. Landing Pages
In free translation, Landing Page means “landing page”. Its objective is to convert the visitor, offering them free and relevant material (e-books, exclusive videos, infographics, etc.) in exchange for personal information.
That said, it is normal for a perfect Landing Page to contain:
title and subtitle;
image of what is being offered;
description;
form for filling in data;
social proof (number of downloads, likes and shares, comments, etc.).
Landing Pages can be published on the website, blog, social media and via email marketing, for example.
4. Marketing automation
Email marketing allows for more direct and personal communication with your potential customers. Through it, you can spark the interest of leads in a personalized way and strengthen the relationship between them and your brand.
After capturing information about leads using the Landing Page described above, marketing automation allows emails with the most appropriate content to be directed to certain customer segments.
By sending a newsletter, for example, you contribute to increasing the number of visits to your blog and keep your leads nurtured with content that interests them.
Therefore, email marketing is a very assertive approach, as it delivers the right message to the right person at the right time.
This way, Leads understand better and better how your company's solutions can solve their problems, getting closer and closer to the bottom of the sales conversion funnel.
Do you have any questions about how to put this step-by-step guide into practice? Then take the opportunity to reserve your spot on Agendor's B2B prospecting course and become a master on the subject. In it, you will be able to check out:
live and recorded classes;
practical content;
free prospecting spreadsheets.
And all this with concise and easy-to-understand content. So, are you going to miss out on this opportunity? Sign up and secure your spot!