Ah, beer. Cold, fizzy goodness that goes great with pizza and salty foods (and more beer). The age-old drink has inspired German festivals that are now celebrated world wide, red solo cup games for college students, and a craft brewing trend that is sweeping the nation.
Through online research and a patient, beer-brewing brother I have recently been learning the ins and outs of beer brewing and oddly enough, they were pretty darn similar to what I do every day in my inbound marketing campaigns.
The right ingredients and a bit of patience are what make up both of these fine practices: beer brewing and inbound marketing. Without further ado, check out how they are more similar than you might have realized.
Don't Expect Results Over Night
Making beer takes time, anywhere from a couple weeks to a several months to be exact (or inexact really). It varies based on the type of beer, but the basic fact is that it takes time of mixing the water and grains, adding yeast and hops, allowing it to ferment, and then bottling for consumption.
The same can be said for creating a good marketing campaign. It takes time to develop your strategy, especially while considering every element - email, website copy, social media, blogs, etc. - so they flow consistently together and are all attached to the same brand message. When you take the time to develop and execute great campaigns, that's when you get a loyal, dedicated following (and a lot more leads).
Have Your Own Flavor
IPAs, double IPAs, ryes, stouts, pilsners, ciders, darks, lights, ambers. Every beer has a unique flavor and style. While there are plenty of IPAs out there, no two are quite the same. Just as it is or beers, every business needs to have its own voice. We are passed the days of faceless companies selling us whatever products they think we want. Social media gives businesses a chance to interact with their audience in a funny, professional, or informative way. Decide what is the right voice for your brand and stick to it in every form of marketing you put out.
Drink It Up
While it is important to have your own unique flavor, it is important when brewing to taste other beers to see what flavors you would like to try to duplicate. I know, I know, we have to drink beer? Shucks.
The same principle applies to marketing. Find campaigns and companies that you admire for the way they do their social media campaigns, or how interesting their blogs is, or how well they use visuals, etc. Don't copy them! Find elements you like and recreate them in a way that promotes your business. Just like tasting other beers out there for interesting, unique flavors, see what others are doing on their marketing campaigns that you can learn from when developing your own.
Too Much Will Make You Sick
Overdoing it on your marketing strategy will make both you, and more importantly your audience, sick of your product and your brand message. Don't get me wrong, marketing needs to be aggressive and consistent, but if you are sending out emails every single day to try and drive sales, your leads are going to unsubscribe rather than buy. Make a schedule in advance and put out content at those times only, no more no less, so as to not alienate your prospects.
And, well, too much beer has a similar nauseating effect. Or so I hear...
In The End, All You Have Is A Case
At the end of the day, you can't guarantee that marketing will work the same way twice. All you have is essentially a real-life case study that indicates the results of your effort. It won't be perfect the first time around. Or the second. Or ever. You can improve every new batch you brew and campaign you start. That applies to not only ingredients and elements, but also the process that goes into the campaign or brew. Learn from mistakes to make you next attempt even better.
Beer Fricking Rocks
Let's be real, beer is just plain awesome. And so is inbound marketing. The opportunities companies have to expand their businesses and dramatically increase there leads are directly linked to the effort put into their marketing campaigns.
So next time you are pouring yourself an ice cold bottle of suds consider your business's inbound marketing tactics, and how they relate. Or don't and just enjoy your beer. I'll understand.
Cheers!