No matter their specifics, demand generation programs all aim to do the same thing: get prospects engaged with a brand and interested in the brand’s products and/or services. To create successful demand generation campaigns, brands first have to ensure that they are providing marketing content in the channels where their prospective buyers are looking for solutions to their business challenges.
Demand generation casts a wide net to reach many potential customers, whether they are buyers or influencers.
However, demand generation efforts may include lead generation, especially when your prospects are unaware that they have a need for your solution. Generating demand means raising awareness and cultivating the community of people interested in your brand, sharing information about the problems your solutions address.
Demand generation incorporates tactics from both inbound and outbound marketing. On the outbound side, demand generation includes traditional advertising as well as digital ads. Direct mail marketing would also fall under this heading. While these ads may not reach individuals at a time when they are looking to buy, and may not even reach a highly-targeted audience, they build brand awareness and generate demand.
Those inbound tactics include much of what we discuss on this blog, including compelling educational content and blogging itself. Inbound marketing, especially content marketing, is a key part of the demand generation process because it aims to educate an organization’s audience about the need for its products and solutions.
Join us throughout the month as we take a closer look at the intricacies of lead generation and demand generation. While you’re waiting for our next post, review our white paper on the New Marketing Value Chain to better understand how these strategies fit into marketing today.
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