There are a number of different opinions surrounding outbound and inbound marketing and the roles these play in developing a marketing plan.

There are those who believe outbound marketing is passé and suggest focusing only on inbound tactics. Others have done a great job of building up their outbound channels, but have neglected to develop any inbound marketing strategies.

Can you have one without the other?

Sure.  But you’ll get a heck of a lot better results if you incorporate the two.  Together they deliver a one-two punch, pushing out your marketing message, sparking consumer interest, and then drawing them in to learn more as they go online to research more about your product or service.

Outbound marketing consists of the more traditional tactics we as marketers have implemented for years.  And although the internet is now a part of our everyday lives, these off-line avenues are still very important.  Print, radio and television ads, direct mail, email and tradeshows capture attention and spark interest.  These tactics provide a broad reach and offer far more brand impressions than inbound marketing alone.  Outbound campaigns help drive potential customers online to find out more and engage in your inbound avenues.

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As marketers, we spend a lot of time and energy in creating well thought out marketing messages for our email campaigns.  But a well crafted email message is only good if somebody reads it, right?

So of course, the most asked question when it comes to email marketing… when is the best day and time to send email?

With just a quick search on-line you’ll find there are hundreds of articles and blog posts with varying thoughts and opinions on the best time and day to send emails.

But the real answer is, there is no universal best day or time.  When it comes to sending marketing emails, one specific day/time definitely does not fit all.  What works great for one company or type of industry may not work at all for another.

The answer lies in answering the question, “what works best for your specific audience?”.

Test your email campaigns, analyze the data and determine what time frames are working better than others.  Reviewing email reports with results of previous campaigns will help you determine if your readers have any specific patterns when it comes to the day and time they open your email.  Do you notice any trends?  Is there a day or time that seems to get better results than the others?

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Is email marketing on its way out?  This is a question I hear posed often. With the rise in social media and marketers beginning to dedicate more of their budget to social media programs and with the onslaught of unsolicited email, is email becoming a less effective way of reaching customers?  Absolutely not. In fact, it’s more important than ever.

Consumers are pickier now about which email lists they subscribe to and what they spend time reading, but when a customer opens your email, for that moment, you have their personal attention.  And in a world where marketing messages are thrown in front of your customer from every direction, that moment of undivided attention is priceless.

Social media doesn’t eliminate the use of email for marketing, but what it does give you is a powerful opportunity to integrate the two and cross promote while interacting with your customer on multiple levels. With the use of your email list you can jump-start your following on your social media sites, then use these sites to invite more people to sign up for your email list.

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Ssshhh… Listen…  Your customers are talking.

Do you hear them?

Your customers are constantly providing feedback (good and bad), making comments, telling others about your company’s products and services.  But are they talking with you or just about you? And are you listening?

The feedback provided by your customers is one of the most valuable pieces of information your company can obtain.  Through it, you will gain tremendous insight into their attitudes, expectations and buying behavior.  It will let you act quickly to make changes if needed, resolving issues successfully while improving customer retention and loyalty.   And you might discover themes and ideas which provide inspiration for new products and services or for making improvements to existing ones.

You can use this feedback to tailor your marketing outreach efforts and really hone in on your message, providing timely and relevant campaigns that are truly beneficial to your customer. Maybe there are more effective methods for positioning your current products and services.

To grow, your company must take every opportunity to actively solicit customer feedback, both good and bad.  And make it easy by incorporating multiple ways for customers to share their thoughts.  Here are just a few ways to do this:

1. Send out questionnaires and surveys by email, mail or incorporate a feedback form into your website.  Programs like SurveyMonkey and Constant Contact are great for developing and sending surveys.

2. Use pertinent social media sites, blogs and forums to research and listen to the conversations your customers are having about your products. Allow your customers to communicate with you directly through the use of social media by developing your own Facebook page, forum, support group, etc.

3. Hold focus groups and pick the brains of some of your best customers. A focus group will allow you to ask more specific and targeted questions and obtain the detail of feedback you won’t receive elsewhere.

Allowing customers to provide feedback opens the door to a two way conversation, strengthening the relationship.  And understanding what your customers are really thinking will provide the insight needed to make better business decisions.  When it comes to customer feedback, it pays to be all ears!

This weekend was all about gardening.  Pulling out the overgrown weeds and preparing the soil for planting.  I have been eagerly awaiting this time of year, so I can try my hand at planting some fruit trees.  We only have room in our yard for two trees, so I planned on planting two orange trees, assuring our house is stocked with plenty of oranges.

But when I got to the local nursery to pick out the trees, they said I’d have much better luck if I planted just one orange tree along with a lemon tree.  The pollen from one tree is delivered to the flower of the other type of tree, yielding much better results and yes, more fruit.  It’s called cross-pollination!

As I planted my fruit trees, I began to consider the concept of cross-pollination and how that idea can be applied to a company’s on-line marketing outreach as well. Particularly in maximizing brand exposure and increasing reach across each segment of the marketing mix.

Consumers engage in a number of online activities, and they have different preferences and tastes. It’s wise to provide several options for customers to be in communication with your company, but use each of these touch points as an opportunity to cross-pollinate and reinforce another aspect of your outreach. Get as much mileage as you can from every contact with a customer.

Marketing Profs provides a helpful list of  popular strategies that companies can use to maximize their digital-marketing mix.  As you read through the following list, consider how you might begin to incorporate a few of these:

- Use e-newsletters to announce new LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter feeds, directing readers to social-networking websites for   signup.

- Use Twitter to link followers to your latest blog post to fuel interest and re-tweets.

- Include an option to join the company’s social networks in the e-newsletter registration section.

- Use the sidebar on your e-newsletter to list all company social-networking profiles, and use those profiles to gather e-newsletter signups.

- Invite customers to participate in YouTube viral-marketing video contests that show real consumers using and enjoying your products or solutions.

- Read and respond to comments within social networks, developing newsletter or blog articles around topics readers discuss the most.

- Launch a regular Q&A section in your company’s e-newsletter that specifically addresses reader questions across all social-networking platforms.

- Include a link to your Help forum or YouTube video tutorial within purchase-confirmation emails.

- Include a social-bookmark console on product pages in case readers want to share your website or products with others.

- Join relevant LinkedIn and Facebook groups, assigning knowledgeable representatives within your company to answer questions, thus positioning your company as a valuable industry resource.

Think of all the different places you interact with customers and prospects and take every opportunity to cross-pollinate your marketing efforts.  Each of these actions builds your contact database, deepens the relationship with your prospects and brings them one step closer to the buying decision.  Your tree will be full of fruit, ripe for the picking!

We all know last year was a tough one for marketers everywhere, but things are looking up and forecasts are good!  The 4th Annual Marketing & Media survey just out from Datran Media provides insight from over 5,000 marketing executives from Fortune 500 brands.

The majority of marketers are optimistic that 2010 will bring an upward swing in revenues for their company and an increase in marketing & advertising spending. And over half of that spend is expected to be applied to digital marketing channels.

Although marketers plan to increase their involvement in social media, email marketing was rated the top performing advertising channel over all others.

This year will also see a majority of companies developing their messages and websites specifically for smart phones like the iPhone or Blackberry.

Do you have a plan for optimizing your companies marketing mix in 2010?