Age happens, though. Many of our youthful dreams evolved into practical careers, but that competitive spirit never left. We still see ourselves at the foul stripe with the game on the line, only now our game is the foodservice industry and the basket might be for prep or holding.
Here's why marketing in our industry is like a sport:
How many football teams run the wishbone? How many tennis players still use wooden rackets? How many times have you seen someone launch a set shot in this year's NCAA Tournament? The answer for all three is "none" because the games have changed. Marketing is no different.
Over time, there are new tools at our disposal. The rules change. There are more teams in the league. We now have comprehensive software platforms that allow for smarter and more cost effective ways to generate leads. We have new methods like social media to engage our customers. People value information over interruption.
The marketing playbook is changing because our customers are changing. More and more people are conducting online research before making purchases (close to 80% according to Pew), and though the foodservice equipment industry has been slow to recognize and take advantage of this fact, its evolution is inevitable.
Innovative coaches have ways of seeing where their games are going, and the successful ones are often the early adopters of new strategies. When the rules changed in NCAA basketball, for example, and the three-point line was added, the teams that developed outside shooters and designed plays to get them open were the first to take advantage.
In marketing, this also holds true. If there is decline in the effectiveness of relationship sales in the foodservice industry, then what is taking its place? How are leads generated and nurtured in a new era of content and inbound marketing? Which companies will be best positioned to capitalize on these changes?
The answer is simple. The organizations that have the foresight to see the foodservice equipment industry's evolution will stand to gain the most. If companies that blog receive 55% more website visitors (Source: HubSpot), then the companies that adopt these tactics with have a strategic advantage.
Yes, sometimes sports are just played for fun, but even then, we keep score. We compare one team's performance over another's. We play to win because sports are measurable.
Marketing should also be measurable. Successful marketers keep track of which investments are providing the most return, and then they double down on those efforts. And because more and more companies are requiring a proverbial scoreboard, more and more companies are turning to marketing methodology that provides measurability.
What are these methods? What is the future of marketing? It's called inbound or digital marketing – the process of being what people are interested in instead of interrupting what people are interested in. It's a commitment to providing useful information to generate and nurture leads through the buyer's journey. And this method is certainly measurable. According to HubSpot, the cost of generating and nurturing a lead is 62% less using inbound marketing versus traditional, outbound marketing. And if you're keeping score, that kind of return usually equates to a winning record.