The Best Quotes From Inbound 2014

Here on the Crowdly blog, we bring you weekly digital marketing highlights from thought leaders across the country. Since we spent most of the week absorbing the wisdom of our peers at Hubspot’s Inbound 2014 here in Boston, we thought we’d bring you a special edition of the Quote’s of the Week featuring our favorite insights from the conference.

The Quote:

"Start with your strategy and then figure out which technology will support it."

 

Why it matters: 

  • As part of the technology portion of this quote, we think Schumlts’ quote is sage advice and would pass it along to any potential clients. Shiny new toys are appealing to anyone working in our ever-changing industry. The advancements out there are exciting and constantly changing. But technology should never be considered a substitute for strategy, it should be considered in the execution. Brands that understand that important differentiator will be able to use the cutting edge tools available consistently and successfully.

Is your brand developing an Advocate Marketing strategy?

The Quote:

Why It Matters: 

  • Mashable’s CMO knows a thing or two about building a strong community. This session was full of quotable wisdom as a panel of media’s best spoke about the future of news. Martinet cited marketing as a big part of that future, going as far as saying it’s the core of today’s news industry. As brands become more integrated in that strategy through native advertising and branded content, it’s important for companies to understand the publisher communities to really enhance the partnerships they’re forming. When done right, branded content can provide a synergy between the brand and publisher communities that engage both bases of loyal customers.

The Quote:

 

Why It Matters:

  • This was one of the most interesting sessions of the entire conference. Harvard’s Chief Digital Officer showed exactly why the university’s digital properties continue to lead the global academic landscape. You’d be hard-pressed to find a brand held to a higher expectation from its community, but its focus on the aggregation and curation of the highest quality content has Harvard students, alumni and staff engaging and participating in droves. Trusting that community to make the University shine is Hewitt’s gift and a strategy marketers in every industry should take note of.

The Quote:

Why It Matters:  

  • Every brand has a story to tell. Many, in fact. Whether it be advantages in price, quality, customer service or all of the above, learning when to share that information and to whom is the key to sticky marketing. Social helps that process greatly, by allowing brands to monitor what their communities care about and becoming a part of that conversation when it makes sense. No one knows this more than insurance brands looking to connect with customers in new and personal ways. Which leads us to the next quote, which speaks to the direction marketing is heading in.

The Quote:

Why It Matters: 

  • Marketing should be collaborative. By allowing the consumer to become the story, brands are both finding out more about their best customers and obtaining new ones in the process. By having an open and engaged community, brands have the ability to nurture a fanbase of advocates that will create with them for years to come. Instead of storytelling, they’re creating their own success story together with their customers.