Comparing old-school marketing to inbound marketing is like comparing apples to oranges. The days of “Look at me now!” marketing are long gone, replaced by modern marketing concepts that provide real value to those on the receiving end. Inbound marketing allows companies to really make a difference with their content, all while benefiting from the exposure they receive and the leads they capture.

The power of inbound marketing can truly transform a business, especially in the B2B sector where companies are constantly searching online for solutions to business problems. Here are some ways in which inbound marketing can help a B2B company grow.

1. Steady Stream of Leads

Inbound marketing is a natural lead generator. Every marketing action funnels traffic back to your website where your landing pages prompt visitors to enter their contact information in exchange for content. It’s the gift that keeps on giving because as soon as leads provide their email address, you can start to nurture them. Best of all, since any lead that fills out a website form clearly has interest in working with you — or at least learning about how you can solve their problems — you’ll spend much less time warming up leads that won’t convert.

2. Boost Your Image

When you adopt modern marketing concepts like inbound marketing, you’re not just basing your content around how great your company is. Instead, you’re educating people about the industry in which you work and how you can solve their company’s pain points. It’s a great way to position your brand as a thought leader and as a valuable resource for information, one that can be used whether or not an individual is actively shopping for a product to use at their organization. When that person is ready to buy, you can bet they’ll come back to you.

3. Enhance Your Customer Knowledge

A core component of inbound marketing is the creation of buyer personas that represent your ideal customers. These personas aren’t just imaginary figures; they’re archetypes of the customers you want to target (think VP of marketing if you’re trying to sell software to companies that need to optimize their marketing budgets). The more you know your personas, the better you’ll market to the businesses you’re trying to attract. And as you attract more leads, you’ll be able to further refine your personas to boost your marketing efforts.

4. Increased Conversion Rates

Inbound marketing’s calling card is providing you with motivated leads that want what you have to offer. Therefore, it stands to reason that you’ll convert way more leads than you previously did if you target those who are actively searching for the business solution you can provide.

5. Top-Notch Customer Service

People enter relationships with inbound-focused companies because they want to stay in the loop and appreciate that you work to solve their pain points. When you employ inbound marketing, you’re committing to keeping in touch with your current and prospective customers, no matter where they may be on the buyer’s journey. Keeping those connections alive will help you not only to make more sales, but to establish vital partnerships with other businesses. Customer relationship management software makes this a breeze, allowing you to stay in touch without cutting into your down time.

6. Better Understanding of Your Company

The way you see yourself in a mirror isn’t the same way you look in pictures. The same principle applies to marketing. Your vision of your company might not align well with perceptions that are held by others. Inbound marketing forces you to put the customer first and understand what they truly want. As you get to know the businesses that want to partner with you, you’ll understand more about your own company and what makes it unique. This knowledge will ultimately make you a better marketer and improve your brand presence.

7. Calculate a True Marketing ROI

By far the biggest benefits of inbound marketing are its tracking and analytics capabilities. You’ll know how much each campaign costs to execute, and you’ll know how much ROI that campaign brought in. Instead of guessing as to how effective your marketing might be, you’ll finally know just how awesome you are. You can also track your marketing ROI over time so that you can be sure you’re headed in the right direction and growing your business.

Up Your Marketing Game

Your competition may already be looking to replace its outdated marketing ideas with modern concepts like inbound. Embracing inbound marketing is a great way to beat your competitors to the punch. Inbound marketing has it all — trackability, improved lead quality and enhanced conversion rates. Plus, you’ll understand your customers and your own company better, and that knowledge will help you to take your marketing to a whole new level.