Marketing departments today don’t look anything like they did when the first ones were created back in the early 1960s, but that’s not an indication that they're no longer necessary. On the contrary, in fact—marketing is more important today than ever before, because there are so many more people, more businesses, and more channels, and things change faster than ever before. A successful company today could be floundering tomorrow, and all because they didn’t have a dedicated marketing department looking after their needs.
There was a time when marketing meant television commercials, radio spots, and ads in magazines and newspapers. And while these may no longer be the best practices, the marketing department is just as important.
Inbound marketing focuses on bringing your potential customers to you.
Today’s marketing involves a mixture of traditional marketing tactics as well as modern inbound marketing—content marketing, SEO, and other non-interruptive marketing strategies—and digital marketing, which focuses on best practices in the world of cyberspace. Marketing in the modern world must be a multi-faceted approach that reaches out to consumers through all media available to be effective and successful.
When you think of the world’s largest and most successful companies, you may be tempted to think that they're so successful that they no longer need to spend money on advertising. The opposite, however, is true. Take Coca-Cola for instance: in 2016, their marketing budget reached an astronomical $4 billion. The same is true for other Fortune 500 companies because they know marketing guarantees that they’ve always got more than enough business to keep them in the top tier.
Inbound marketing is a creative process that flows with market trends and keeps pace with the customer journey.
Just because a company has enough business to sustain operations today doesn’t mean they will tomorrow, and that’s where marketing provides a guarantee for future business and continued success. In that respect, marketing can be thought of as sowing seeds in the fall: you won’t be reaping the benefits of those seeds anytime soon, but come spring and summer, you'll have a plentiful harvest to keep your table full.
Your organization changes over time. You grow, you evolve, and you adapt in response to a changing world. In this regard, marketing is important because it reflects your updated image, and keeps customers in the loop about your current priorities and values. Similarly, as your company changes, so too will your customers, and marketing will serve to attract the right customer base as your company evolves.
The marketing department is not dead. The face of marketing today may be much different from what it was, but marketing is still just as important as it ever was, if not more so. Not only does marketing allow you to break through the intense noise of today and reach out to as many customers as possible on as many channels, but it also ensures that you have more than enough business to keep you afloat today and tomorrow. It keeps your image fresh in the minds of consumers and attracts the changing types of customers your business is looking for.