The ROI for an Inbound Marketing campaign can be dramatically higher than any other traditional marketing channels. These savings will equate to increased employee retention and employee recruitment, ancillary revenue growth and improved profit margins. However, it takes a lot of hard work and planning – over a 3-5 year period. Every month, marketers spend upwards of $500-$1,000 on metrics such as website analytics, email opens, call data, conversions, and media investments. By doing an Inbound Marketing audit, marketers can identify areas that have not scaled to their full potential – and areas for improvement that could increase ROI dramatically.

Cliff Barton, CEO and President, Efficent Marketing Partners, offers advice on planning a successful Inbound Marketing strategy:

1. Success is not determined by traditional marketing sources.

The ROI of traditional marketing channels is 10x to 30x greater than traditional Inbound Marketing channels, and projections suggest it will continue to grow. These inbound channels provide more precise ROI and outperform the traditional channels by much higher margins than ever anticipated.

2. Effective evaluation strategies impact ROI beyond traditional sources.

Effective strategies are an essential part of an Inbound Marketing audit. More than one in four marketers admit that they use “old” or less than functional methods for cost savings, which make it hard to distinguish between inbound and traditional channels.

3. A cost/value equation is critical to achieve sustainable ROI.

No organization, business unit or individual can survive from one-year to another. So, any future marketing budget must consider at least the 1st 5-year budget. But, it is not just about budget, it is about ROI, too. By assessing the cost/value equation for each channel, brands can quickly identify areas where they could make improvements and gain competitive advantage.

4. Proper planning and evaluation are imperative.

Most Inbound Marketing pilots fail because campaigns are not evaluated. Our study showed that over 80% of Inbound Marketing campaigns fail to deliver the ROI promised. In fact, they frequently fail because they may not represent the value that marketers have at their disposal.

5. 2 streams of revenue do not equal 2 streams of success.

Success is achieved in a “stream” with many sub-categories. Each sub-category may be specific to one of the revenue streams. The strategic planning process should consider what is successful for one sub-category and look for synergies in other channels – such as email marketing and customer service – for all sub-categories.

6. Use strategic assessments to understand opportunities for improvement.

Early in our study, we found that a relatively small number of email and website performance metrics had demonstrated growth that greatly exceeded expectations. This surprised us and still surprised us. It is a good business practice to assess performance once a year. Gather key performance indicators (KPIs) that have experienced growth in recent years. You can accomplish the same task with an Inbound Marketing Audit. This is a one-time, organized analysis that you can use to avoid repeating the costly and frustrating process of their lack of performance.