10 Lessons I Learned From Inbound 2020
I recently got the chance to attend Inbound, a conference hosted by HubSpot. If you’ve never been, it was an exciting experience, even if it was digital. Today, I wanted to share some of the many lessons I learned while attending Inbound 2020.
Related Listening: How To Create An Inbound Marketing Strategy For Your Freelance Business
Listen On Your Platform Of Choice: Apple | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher
1) They Ask, You Answer
Marcus Sheridan
One of my favorite sessions during Inbound was the session with Marcus Sheridan. I took SO many notes on this session. He talked a lot about creating buyer-centric content.
He shared that buyer’s care about the following:
Pricing: When you are a customer, what do you look for? Prices. Why do we not consider this as freelancers?
Problems: Acknowledging problems helps build trust. If consumers know what problems they might run into and how to avoid/fix them, they will feel more connected and comfortable with you.
Vs/Comparisons: How do you compare to the competition or another way of doing something. Ex. How hiring a freelancer compares to having an in-house writer. Your competitors exist, even if you don’t acknowledge them.
Best/Reviews: People love reading reviews of stuff. They want to make sure that they are getting the best value. Works best with product-based businesses, but can be used in service-based businesses too.
2) The Various Ways To Use Authority In Your Business
Nancy Harhut
Providing lots of value. Ex. providing a huge 110-point e-commerce checklist or a huge case study of your best client.
Using the authority of big people in your niche to prove your authority. Ex. Creating a “logos” area on your website and sharing all the fun places you’ve been published that your audience would care about.
3) Focusing On Brand Has Longer-Term Benefits
Ty Heath
Many companies focus heavily on short-term wins because those are the wins that bring money in quickly. While these wins are successful, it can be challenging to keep up the charade forever. These wins cost a ton of money, and businesses don’t have much control over their costs.
Ty suggested some of the benefits of these longer-term branding strategies. Branding increases cash flow over time, but it also gives people:
Long-term sales (your customers will stay with you longer.)
Pricing power (stronger brands can command higher prices)
Talent acquisition/retention (the best brands get the best workers.)
4) Do Fewer Things, Better
Jon Lombardo
During Ty Heath’s session, her colleague suggested that companies should run big bets to monetize their business. These bets are risky, but they are monetarily helpful.
An audience member asked how to run big bets as a small business, the answer: fewer things, done better.
Instead of trying to be big in all the categories, get focused. What’s one thing you want to be known for? Bet big on that thing.
5) You Can Use LinkedIn To Make Some Huge Shifts In Your Business
Michaela Alexis
Be careful with how you share content. LinkedIn shares get horrible engagement (I’m talking 10x less engagement than sharing natively.)
Use things like documents to stand out. (Checklists and templates work best)
Use polls to make prospects feel heard and understood.
6) Defaulting As A Strategy For Radical Helpfulness
Lou Cimaglia
When it comes to the word “default” in business, we have a lot of thoughts about it. Some people use defaulting to trick people into paying more money instead of trying to be helpful. Lou Cimaglia thinks that defaulting can really help your customers and clients, if you use it to be helpful.
Some examples of defaulting:
Reusing payment details to speed up future site visits.
Preselecting geographic locations, so you don’t have to scroll through lengthy dropdowns to find your country.
Search autocompletion to speed up searching for things.
Suggested donation amounts for charities.
7) All Friction Is Not Bad, But All Friction Has Consequences
Doug Davidoff
I was attending a random session with Doug Davidoff, and this quote really spoke to me.
Doug shared that there is often conflict and friction between people at a company, and maybe even customers. Friction can be a powerful force for good or bad.
The important thing everyone needs to keep in mind is that you ensure that friction doesn’t happen accidentally (where you can’t manage it) and that you use that friction to make decisions that move your business forward.
8) Investing In Yourself Is Important
As a freelancer, it’s easy to not invest in yourself, but you’ve got to do it. Personal development is key.
Listen to episode 40 for The 5 Investments You Should Make In Your Freelance Business. In that episode, I talk about things like personal development, time savers/outsourcing, and branding. You need to invest in yourself if you want to succeed.
9) Let The Sessions Lead You
I sat down prior to the conference and wrote out all the sessions I wanted to attend. In the end, I didn’t go to some of those sessions. I let the sessions lead me, and ended up attending whatever felt right. Some of those sessions were my favorite!
10) Take Time For Yourself, Even During A Virtual Conference
I went all-in on the first day, so the second day was much more relaxed. I had to take time to take care of myself, because conferences are taxing, even virtual ones.
Related Listening: 7 Ways To Improve Your Inbound Lead Flow
