6 Simple Ways to Discover Inbound Marketing

Marketing is essential for any business, whether you are selling products or services. Inbound marketing does not require one to go to school to learn the technique. With the right tools and knowledge or the help of a qualified inbound marketing firm you can quickly help build a strong and growing online presence for your business.

What is Inbound Marketing?

Inbound marketing is an online marketing strategy of using social media, email, content and search engine optimization to market your business, attract and retain customers. Inbound marketing is educative, user friendly and less aggressive than traditional marketing. Inbound marketing is important for businesses today.

Here are several resources for the business professional who wants to learn more about inbound marketing:

Training Programs

Hubspot has an inbound marketing program which you can complete while waiting for certificate exam. You can watch videos and do assignments at your own convenience. You can also choose the topics to learn about. Study kits are available and the materials are constantly being updated.
Seminars

Top industry marketers usually organize low cost courses related to technology and business. There are also websites which provide materials to teach you about marketing, design and programming. Seth Godin, an online marketing expert, offers mini courses to online marketers on his blog.
eBooks and Whitepapers

Online marketing experts have come up with a number of eBooks and white papers on different topics in inbound marketing. Hubspot has a good collection of downloadable eBooks about SEO, social media marketing, content marketing, etc. The site is a good place to start if you don’t have time to go to the library.
Inbound Marketing Blogs

The internet has presented thought leaders in the marketing industry with a good platform to spread inbound marketing knowledge. There are a number of inbound marketing blogs that are a good resource for anyone who wants to learn about online marketing. Some of the most popular Internet marketing blogs include Mashable, Hubspot, Content Marketing Institute, etc. These blogs will help you know more about general inbound marketing and also specific aspects of online marketing.
Free or Open Source Courses

There may not be comprehensive courses on inbound marketing, but colleges are certainly releasing courses on topics that are directly related to internet marketing. For example, Stanford has a course on Human Computer Interaction where you can learn about how visitors can engage with your website.
Online Marketing Conferences

If you are new to marketing and especially inbound marketing, be on the lookout for online marketing conferences in your location. Conferences can be a good crash course for you. If you live in Boston, look out for Inbound, an annual conference held by Hubspot. Salesforce holds Dreamforce in California and Content Marketing Institute holds Content Marketing World in Cleveland.

With inbound marketing, there is no option but getting practical. Use all the above resources to keep abreast with industry changes and educate yourself. If you are a student, learn under an experienced online marketer. If you want to master Internet marketing for your business, start blogging and using social media sites to reach your target audience and know the bottom line is that you must stay ahead with the changing dynamics of the online marketing industry.