{"id":138503,"date":"2022-02-22T02:00:09","date_gmt":"2022-02-22T07:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/?p=138503"},"modified":"2023-05-16T03:13:13","modified_gmt":"2023-05-16T08:13:13","slug":"marketing-101","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-101\/","title":{"rendered":"Marketing 101: Marketing Basics in Simple Words"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"intro-txt\">This article is an introduction to marketing for small-business owners, solopreneurs, and beginner marketers. Our goal is to help you understand the key concepts of marketing without unnecessary&nbsp;jargon.<\/div>\n<p>This guide is going to be packed with information. But keep in mind that we\u2019re only scratching the surface here. So feel free to follow the links in this guide to learn&nbsp;more.<\/p>\n<div class=\"intro-tok\" id=\"intro_tok\" style=\"display:none;\"><div class=\"intro-title\">Contents<\/div><a href=\"#\" class=\"expand-dots\"><span><\/span><span><\/span><span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"What is marketing?\" data-section=\"1-what-is-marketing\">\n<h2>What is marketing?<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marketing is the process of co-creating desirable products or services and distributing them in a way that increases their attractiveness.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To illustrate, marketing is the difference between Apple I sold as the \u201cmicrocomputer system\u201d and aimed mostly at hobbyists, and its highly successful successor Apple II, the \u201cpersonal computer\u201d designed for everyone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153110\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/what-is-marketing.png\" alt=\"What is marketing\" width=\"1300\" height=\"1714\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/what-is-marketing.png 1300w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/what-is-marketing-322x425.png 322w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/what-is-marketing-768x1013.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/what-is-marketing-1165x1536.png 1165w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1300px) 100vw, 1300px\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Why is marketing important?\" data-section=\"2-why-is-marketing-important\">\n<h2>Why is marketing important?<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Businesses transfer (sell) goods or services to customers in exchange for value (money). Sounds easy. But here\u2019s what can go wrong for a business:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The customer may not know about the product\/service.<\/li>\n<li>Even if they know it, they may not have a desire for&nbsp;it.<\/li>\n<li>Even if they know and have a desire for it, they may choose to buy from another business.<\/li>\n<li>Even if a business manages to go through all the steps to transfer its goods, the customer may not be satisfied enough to come back, buy again, or recommend the business to others.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Marketing is a business practice meant to address all those issues, such as&nbsp;generating awareness through generating&nbsp;desire, fostering customer loyalty, and encouraging advocacy.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, because marketing connects the business with its customers, there can be no sales without marketing.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"The four Ps of marketing\" data-section=\"3-four-Ps-of-marketing\">\n<h2>The four Ps of marketing<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>So now we know what marketing is and why it is important. But what does marketing actually do? What are the main roles or key areas of marketing?<\/p>\n<p>For decades, marketers have been answering these questions with the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/implementing-the-4-ps-of-marketing\/\">four Ps of marketing<\/a>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Product<\/strong> \u2013 What you&nbsp;sell<\/li>\n<li><strong>Price<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 How much you sell it&nbsp;for<\/li>\n<li><strong>Place<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 Where you sell&nbsp;it<\/li>\n<li><strong>Promotion<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 How you get customers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Let\u2019s dig&nbsp;in.<\/p>\n<h3>Product<\/h3>\n<p>One of the roles of marketing is co-creating the product. In fact, this is where all marketing starts.<\/p>\n<p>Every product development process needs to take market conditions into consideration. Things like who the customer is, what product features the market demands, who the competitors are, and how to do better than these competitors. We can answer these and similar questions during <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/market-research\/\">market research<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Discovering what to build is a critical stage in marketing and in business. That\u2019s because it\u2019s virtually impossible to effectively market a product that doesn\u2019t <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/product-market-fit\/\">fit the market<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Conversely, a product that can satisfy an existing demand in a promising market doesn\u2019t need complicated or pushy marketing tactics.<\/p>\n<p>So, to give you a taste, here\u2019s how <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/\">Ahrefs (our product)<\/a> matches against fundamental marketing questions:<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153220\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/4ps-of-marketing-product-fundamentals.png\" alt=\"The 4Ps of Marketing: Product Fundamentals\" width=\"1300\" height=\"1855\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/4ps-of-marketing-product-fundamentals.png 1300w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/4ps-of-marketing-product-fundamentals-298x425.png 298w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/4ps-of-marketing-product-fundamentals-768x1096.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/4ps-of-marketing-product-fundamentals-1076x1536.png 1076w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1300px) 100vw, 1300px\"><\/div>\n<h3>Price<\/h3>\n<p>A good price is one that your target audience can afford and makes your business profitable.<\/p>\n<p>This is easier said than done. But marketing is here to&nbsp;help.<\/p>\n<p>Setting a price point arbitrarily is rarely a good idea. There are various ways marketers can inform executive decisions based on market insights. Here are some basic&nbsp;ones:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Run a survey or conduct interviews<\/strong>&nbsp;with your target audience. You can discover what price will make people question the quality of a product and what price will make people deem the product too expensive for their wallets.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Make comparisons with your competitors<\/strong>, aka benchmarking. If you set your price close to what your profitable competitors charge, you will likely get a pricing model that works in your market.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Adjust for the psychological aspect of pricing<\/strong>, i.e., focus on what your price should communicate to your future customers. Make sure you\u2019re not offering fewer benefits for the same price, or even worse, fewer benefits for a higher price. On a typical value proposition matrix, the best options are the ones highlighted in&nbsp;green:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153221\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/value-proposition-matrix.png\" alt=\"The Value Proposition Matrix\" width=\"1300\" height=\"1162\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/value-proposition-matrix.png 1300w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/value-proposition-matrix-475x425.png 475w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/value-proposition-matrix-768x686.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1300px) 100vw, 1300px\"><\/div>\n<h3>Place<\/h3>\n<p>How and where customers will buy a product or service, i.e., place, is another factor that marketing influences (this happens even before we touch on promotion tactics).<\/p>\n<p>Here, market research offers insights into important information, such as the customers\u2019 shopping habits and competitors\u2019 sales channels, to determine the optimal distribution model.<\/p>\n<p>Have you ever wondered why some products are not directly available on the producer\u2019s website? Or why do some types of software come in both digital and physical versions while others do not? That\u2019s no coincidence. That\u2019s marketing.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a quick rundown of some popular distribution models that marketers can choose from:<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153222\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary.png\" alt=\"Quick summary of distribution models\" width=\"1300\" height=\"2652\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary.png 1300w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary-208x425.png 208w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary-768x1567.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary-753x1536.png 753w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/distribution-modesl-quick-summary-1004x2048.png 1004w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1300px) 100vw, 1300px\"><\/div>\n<h3>Promotion<\/h3>\n<p>Only after establishing sound fundamentals in the product, price, and place can marketers then focus on promotion.<\/p>\n<p>Promotion is about the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-tactics\/\">tactics<\/a>&nbsp;used to reach the target audience with a message. Think advertising, blog post creation, social media, email marketing, etc.<\/p>\n<p>Marketers are usually associated with activities from this area of marketing\u2014and this \u201cimage\u201d is not wrong. Once the strategic components of marketing are in place, marketers spend most of their time working on promoting what their companies have to&nbsp;offer.<\/p>\n<p>When planning promotion tactics, marketers need to know things at&nbsp;least:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Who are they trying to&nbsp;reach?<\/li>\n<li>What <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-channels\/\">marketing channels<\/a>&nbsp;work best?<\/li>\n<li>What is the typical buying journey of their prospects?<\/li>\n<li>What budget and staff do they need to achieve their&nbsp;goals?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For example, at Ahrefs, our core marketing tactic is <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/content-marketing\/\">content marketing<\/a>. We\u2019ve chosen to focus on this type of marketing because:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Lots of people are searching on Google for solutions to problems our product solves. So if we create content that ranks high enough, people can find us through Google and learn about our product. (We\u2019ll talk more about product-led content in the last section of this article.)<\/li>\n<li>If we can create content that ranks while \u201cdrinking our own Champagne,\u201d we can send an authentic message about the quality of our product and the expertise of the people who build&nbsp;it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In the next paragraphs, we\u2019re going to focus on the promotion part of marketing. But if you want to read more about the four Ps of marketing, check out <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/implementing-the-4-ps-of-marketing\/\">this guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>OK, let\u2019s move&nbsp;on.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"The marketing funnel\" data-section=\"4-marketing-funnel\">\n<h2>The marketing funnel<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Marketing is a process.<\/p>\n<p>Professional marketers are well aware that visitors don\u2019t become customers immediately\u2014at least not in every type of business. And marketers don\u2019t argue with that fact. Instead, they take that into account and develop a \u201cpath\u201d to convince people gradually.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s likely no other marketing concept conveys that truth better than the marketing funnel.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-funnels\/\">marketing funnel<\/a>&nbsp;is a system designed to attract customers (or clients) to a business. And then convert them. Gradually.<\/p>\n<p>A typical marketing funnel consists of several stages of converting visitors into <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/lead-generation\/\">leads<\/a>, then into customers, and then possibly into brand advocates.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-152908\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3.png\" alt=\"Marketing funnel with two post-purchase additional stages.\" width=\"1600\" height=\"2110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3.png 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3-322x425.png 322w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3-768x1013.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3-1165x1536.png 1165w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/marketing_funnels_3-1553x2048.png 1553w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"><\/p>\n<p>Take these two tactics, for example.<\/p>\n<p>A blog post about doing <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/keyword-research\" data-ahr=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/keyword-research\/\">keyword research for SEO<\/a>&nbsp;is likely to drive visits from search queries related to the topic, such as \u201cseo keyword analysis\u201d or \u201chow to do keyword research.\u201d This means that this content is a good way to generate awareness and interest about our brand and product, as people Googling these terms don\u2019t need to know about us in the first&nbsp;place.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-138489\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/5-ranking-keywords.png\" alt=\"List of keywords with corresponding data\" width=\"975\" height=\"631\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/5-ranking-keywords.png 975w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/5-ranking-keywords-657x425.png 657w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/5-ranking-keywords-768x497.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 975px) 100vw, 975px\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/div>\n<p>On the other hand, we have a landing page that <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/vs\">compares Ahrefs to some of our competitors<\/a>. Since it will be mostly visited by people who already know our product and are most likely in the market for an SEO tool, this is a proper tactic for the Consideration stage of the funnel.<\/p>\n<p>The other important takeaway from the marketing funnel model is that marketing as a process doesn\u2019t end after someone buys from you. If you want your customers to come back and make repeated purchases, it\u2019s a good idea to keep people engaged after the \u201cpurchase\u201d stage.<\/p>\n<p>One of the ways to achieve this is to send out a regular newsletter to your mailing list. Datacamp, a code learning platform, aims to keep its users engaged by sending regular emails. They contain a \u201cweekly goal\u201d reminder and a curated list of resources. Here\u2019s an excerpt from one of those emails:<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/6-datacamp-newsletter.png\" alt=\"Excerpt of Datacamp's email \"><\/div>\n<div class=\"further-reading\"><div class=\"reading-title\">Further reading<\/div><div class=\"reading-content\">\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-funnels\/\">Marketing Funnels for Beginners: A Comprehensive Guide<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Marketing vs. sales vs. PR\" data-section=\"5-marketing-vs-sales-vs-pr\">\n<h2>Marketing vs. sales vs.&nbsp;PR<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some aspects of marketing may sound similar to sales and PR (Public Relations). And it\u2019s true - there are some overlaps. Only bigger companies can afford to have dedicated personnel to handle these three tasks so it\u2019s quite common to see marketers doing PR and having typical sales goals (such as revenue growth).&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But these three were created for different things, and they are different in \u201cnature\u201d. However, they were designed to complement each&nbsp;other.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In general, the role of marketing is to generate demand, sales converts that demand into revenue while PR makes sure the company maintains a positive image which can help to generate demand and revenue. You can think of them as working together in a triangle:&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153111\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/marketing-vs-pr-vs-sales.png\" alt=\"Marketing vs. sales vs. PR\" width=\"1300\" height=\"1814\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/marketing-vs-pr-vs-sales.png 1300w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/marketing-vs-pr-vs-sales-305x425.png 305w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/marketing-vs-pr-vs-sales-768x1072.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/marketing-vs-pr-vs-sales-1101x1536.png 1101w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1300px) 100vw, 1300px\"><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Introduction to the types of marketing\" data-section=\"6-marketing-types\">\n<h2>Introduction to the types of marketing<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Marketing is a business challenge that has more than one solution. These different solutions are the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/types-of-marketing\/\">types of marketing<\/a>. And these are not secrets in the industry\u2014companies copy and remix them all of the time. The key lies in choosing the optimal combination of these types and using them well. Let\u2019s take a look at some examples.<\/p>\n<h3>B2B and B2C marketing<\/h3>\n<p>These acronyms stand for business-to-business marketing and business-to-consumer marketing, respectively.<\/p>\n<p>Marketers often differentiate the above types because some tactics are more effective for marketing to businesses and others for marketing to consumers. Even the messaging style differs.<\/p>\n<p>Here, we have an example of <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/account-based-marketing\/\">account-based marketing<\/a>: A company uses emails to promote a new product feature. The emails were carefully targeted, and sent only to accounts most likely to benefit from the new feature. Instead of urging prospects to \u201cbuy now,\u201d the message is a case study of a solution to a business problem.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-138500\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/7-abm-example.jpg\" alt=\"Datanyze's email containing link to case study \" width=\"1059\" height=\"873\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/7-abm-example.jpg 1059w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/7-abm-example-516x425.jpg 516w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/7-abm-example-768x633.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1059px) 100vw, 1059px\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/div>\n<p>Below, we have a tactic often used in B2C marketing: <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/influencer-marketing\/\">influencer marketing<\/a>. In this example, an influencer with 21.5K Instagram followers quite obviously advertises a food delivery company on her&nbsp;page.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a simple yet powerful message: If that company is good for me, it\u2019s probably good for you too. Here\u2019s a handful of discounts so that you can take action immediately.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/8-influencer-marketing-example.jpg\" alt=\"Influencer's Insta post promoting Foodpanda and discounts\" width=\"854\" height=\"598\"><\/div>\n<h3>Inbound and outbound marketing<\/h3>\n<p>Another pair of basic marketing types that can be used to describe most marketing tactics is <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/inbound-marketing\/\">inbound<\/a>&nbsp;and outbound marketing.<\/p>\n<p>The first one is about \u201cpulling the customer in\u201d by, for example, providing helpful content to the prospect when they\u2019re ready. The latter is about pushing the offering to the customer with an \u201cinterrupting\u201d message, e.g., advertising.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153223\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing.png\" alt=\"Inbound vs outbound marketing.\" width=\"1800\" height=\"2714\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing.png 1800w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing-282x425.png 282w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing-768x1158.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing-1019x1536.png 1019w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/inbound-vs-outbound-marketing-1358x2048.png 1358w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1800px) 100vw, 1800px\"><\/div>\n<p>For example, when we aim to attract new visitors with an article about <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/email-outreach\/\">email outreach<\/a>, it\u2019s inbound marketing (if people access the article via a search engine).<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-138485\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/10-finding-ahrefs-via-search-engine.gif.gif\" alt=\"Someone searching for &quot;email outreach&quot; on Google, then clicking on Ahrefs' article on SERP\" width=\"480\" height=\"270\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/div>\n<p>But when we launch a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/ppc-marketing\/\">PPC marketing<\/a>&nbsp;campaign with ads featuring the same article, that\u2019s outbound marketing. This is because we\u2019re reaching out to potential customers who may not necessarily be interested in us or ready to learn&nbsp;more.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/11-ppc-example.jpg\" alt=\"Ahrefs ad promoting &quot;email outreach&quot; article\"><\/div>\n<h3>Content marketing<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/content-marketing\/\">Content marketing<\/a>&nbsp;is the process of creating and distributing content to attract and retain customers. By content, I mean blog posts, podcasts, videos, infographics, ebooks, etc.<\/p>\n<p>Promotion through content marketing usually involves satisfying a prospect\u2019s need (e.g., the need to solve a problem at work, the need for entertainment, etc.) while giving exposure to the product or&nbsp;brand.<\/p>\n<p>For example, Trader Joe\u2019s (a grocery store chain) found a way to serve up helpful and entertaining content featuring everyday products that shoppers can find on its shelves. And it\u2019s doing this in more than one&nbsp;way:<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_138501\" style=\"width: 1297px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-138501\" class=\"wp-image-138501 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/12-trader-joes-types-of-content.png\" alt=\"Links to three types of content in Trader Joe's catalog \" width=\"1287\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/12-trader-joes-types-of-content.png 1287w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/12-trader-joes-types-of-content-680x176.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/12-trader-joes-types-of-content-768x199.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1287px) 100vw, 1287px\"><p id=\"caption-attachment-138501\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Trader Joe\u2019s regularly generates three types of content in the Fearless Flyer food catalog that\u2019s also distributed in&nbsp;print.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>So not only does it go the extra mile and provide product information on neatly designed pages, but it also gives some inspiration on what to do with those products:<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_138484\" style=\"width: 1610px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-138484\" class=\"size-full wp-image-138484\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/13-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-1.jpg\" alt=\"Recipe write-up on left. Picture of ingredients on right\" width=\"1600\" height=\"871\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/13-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-1.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/13-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-1-680x370.jpg 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/13-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-1-768x418.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/13-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-1-1536x836.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"><p id=\"caption-attachment-138484\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">While sharing recipes for delicious meals, Trader Joe\u2019s also promotes its products.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Take a look at this picture from one of its blog posts titled \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.traderjoes.com\/home\/discover\/entertaining\/take-a-dip-into-the-new-year\">Take a Dip Into the New Year<\/a>\u201d (pun intended). The main characters here are two ordinary jars of olives. But by showing them in the context of a delicious olive dip (there\u2019s a recipe for it too), the olives now look exceptionally tasty.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-138495\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/14-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-2.jpg\" alt=\"Olive dip with bread \" width=\"1370\" height=\"918\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/14-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-2.jpg 1370w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/14-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-2-634x425.jpg 634w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/14-trader-joes-content-marketing-example-2-768x515.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1370px) 100vw, 1370px\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/div>\n<p>Through its content marketing, Trader Joe\u2019s is turning dull grocery shopping into a colorful, funny, and appetizing journey that gets better with every product shoppers put into their&nbsp;carts.<\/p>\n<p>Trader Joe\u2019s content is an example of product-led content, which we\u2019ll talk more about&nbsp;later.<\/p>\n<h3>Email and social media marketing<\/h3>\n<p>Email and social media, although quite different from each other, share a similar idea for marketing: gather an audience and use an owned marketing channel for direct messaging.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, here is the same message distributed in two different ways. One is in a newsletter sent to our email subscribers; the second is a tweet to our Twitter followers.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/15-email-marketing-example.png\" alt=\"Excerpt of Ahrefs' newsletter containing short write-up on one of its articles\"><\/div>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/ahrefs\/status\/1477837177837002763?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/p>\n<p>Do you notice the intersection of different types of marketing here? There\u2019s content marketing (the article about statistics) mixed with email marketing; there\u2019s also content marketing mixed with social media marketing. By \u201cmixing\u201d these, we can reach more people with our articles instead of only publishing them on our&nbsp;blog.<\/p>\n<h3>Growth marketing<\/h3>\n<p>The last type of marketing I want to talk about is a rather new addition to the \u201cfamily.\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/growth-marketing\/\">Growth marketing<\/a>&nbsp;is the process of increasing a company\u2019s revenue by applying an experiment-driven and integrated approach to all stages of attracting customers.<\/p>\n<p>So instead of simply copying what\u2019s working for other marketers or focusing on one marketing channel, growth marketers devise hypotheses and then verify them through data from marketing experiments. Therefore, growth marketing needs to be open to any type of marketing and all marketing channels\u2014as long as they work and there is data to prove&nbsp;this.<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s also distinctive here is that growth marketing, unlike some more traditional theories of marketing, doesn\u2019t just attract people to a business. It aims to take care of the entire marketing funnel. So, at one point, a growth marketer may be optimizing ads on LinkedIn. At another, they may be turning customer feedback into product feature ideas.<\/p>\n<p>Take a look at the example below to see how growth marketing can be different from the types you\u2019ve seen above. This model shows a growth loop that works for Notion, a productivity app: Every new user is a chance to attract (and\/or retain) another user without the company needing to incur additional costs or take further actions.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/16-growth-marketing-example.png\" alt=\"4-step growth loop for Saas: attract new users, activate users, retain users, then users build templates \"><\/div>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Three marketing tips from an eight-figure ARR company\" data-section=\"7-three-marketing-tips-from-Ahrefs\"><\/div><\/div>\n<h2>Three&nbsp;marketing tips from an eight-figure ARR company<\/h2>\n<p>Everything we\u2019ve discussed so far may sound like basic marketing theories. But make no mistake here\u2014these things work. Here\u2019s how applying some of the above principles helped Ahrefs become a successful, eight-figure annual recurring revenue (ARR) company.<\/p>\n<h3>Tip 1. Marketing relies on the product more than anything else<\/h3>\n<p>The effectiveness of marketing depends on many factors, e.g., the budget, how well a business stands out from the competition, and whether the business targets the right audience. But above anything else, marketing relies on its fundament which, if you remember from the four Ps of marketing, is the product.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s why:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Marketing can\u2019t effectively promote something that the product doesn\u2019t deliver<\/strong>, i.e., it has to be based on what the product truly offers.<\/li>\n<li>Marketing is expected to generate customers. But <strong>the message that marketing creates is not the only factor that a potential customer takes into consideration<\/strong>. Marketing can point someone toward a product. But the person\u2019s final decision will most likely depend on the functionality and price of that product.<\/li>\n<li><strong>People don\u2019t need to trust marketing anymore to learn about a product<\/strong>. Before buying anything, they can check product reviews or see what other people say on social media. This ties back to the importance of having a good product.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>At Ahrefs, we made sure our product fit the market before we hired the first full-time marketer. Back then, the product grew mostly thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/word-of-mouth-marketing\/\">word of mouth<\/a>&nbsp;from satisfied customers and impressed reviewers. To this day, word of mouth is one of our top three customer acquisition channels.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/17-wom-example.png\" alt=\"Poll on Facebook where people prefer Ahrefs to SEMrush \" width=\"860\" height=\"554\"><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Just one of many polls where people vote for our product. Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/SEOSignalsLab\/permalink\/2612802659037180\/\">SEO Signals Lab<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Our <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/product-market-fit\/\">product-market fit<\/a>&nbsp;also allows us to invest in content marketing confidently. This brings us to the next&nbsp;point.<\/p>\n<h3>Tip 2. Create product-led content for&nbsp;SEO<\/h3>\n<p>To create product-led content means to turn your product into actionable advice for your audience.<\/p>\n<p>Consider the scale below, which we use to rank topic ideas. Product-led content is basically content that gets at least a \u201c1\u201d on that&nbsp;scale:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-152959\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/business-potential.png\" alt=\"Ahrefs' business potential score.\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1422\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/business-potential.png 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/business-potential-478x425.png 478w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/business-potential-768x683.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/business-potential-1536x1365.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"><\/p>\n<p>In general, there\u2019s nothing wrong with non-product content, as it can offer a vast pool of topic ideas with considerable traffic potential. But we prefer sticking to content where we can feature our product because:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>We can naturally showcase our product in each piece of content<\/strong>:&nbsp;how it looks, how it works, and what it can be used for. And we can do all that in a context that is familiar to the reader.<\/li>\n<li><strong>This style of<\/strong>&nbsp;<strong>content can serve more purposes<\/strong>&nbsp;when it comes to the marketing funnel. The same article can be an effective way to attract visitors and retain customers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And finally, to create product-led content <em>for SEO <\/em>means to develop content with <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/organic-search\/\">organic search<\/a>&nbsp;as the main distribution channel in mind. In marketing jargon, the kind of content that is designed to rank in search engines and attract searchers from search engine pages is called <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/seo-content\" data-ahr=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/seo-content\/\">SEO content<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>This type of content has many benefits. But for the sake of brevity, here are two main&nbsp;ones:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>SEO content&nbsp;generates almost free, consistent, and passive traffic from search engines.<\/li>\n<li>Searchers are likely willing to learn more, as the content answers their search queries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Let\u2019s illustrate the results of this tactic: Currently, the content on our blog alone generates over 625K organic visits every month. If we wanted to generate the same amount of traffic through paid ads, we would need to spend around $831K every&nbsp;month.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-153112\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/organic-traffic-via-site-explorer.png\" alt=\"Organic traffic data via Ahrefs Site Explorer.\" width=\"1426\" height=\"522\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/organic-traffic-via-site-explorer.png 1426w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/organic-traffic-via-site-explorer-680x249.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/organic-traffic-via-site-explorer-768x281.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1426px) 100vw, 1426px\"><\/p>\n<h3>Tip 3. Experiment, measure, and scale what\u2019s working<\/h3>\n<p>At Ahrefs, we mainly stick to content marketing. But that doesn\u2019t mean we don\u2019t do other types of marketing. In fact, we experiment whenever there is a chance to learn something new or improve something that\u2019s already a commonly used tactic.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s why it matters:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>What works for some may not work for others<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 So not only is it wise to take any marketing advice with a grain of salt, but it\u2019s also important to test things yourself.<\/li>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s hard to get things right in the first run<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 And you probably shouldn\u2019t try to. An iterative process of reaching your <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-goals\/\">marketing goals<\/a>&nbsp;is often the best approach.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Trying something out in practice is often a better way to solve problems <\/strong>\u2013 This is compared to just having a theoretical discussion among your&nbsp;peers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>But whatever you do, it\u2019s crucial to measure the outcome. Just like the old business adage says: What you can\u2019t measure, you can\u2019t improve.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, let\u2019s look at the chart below showing one of our blog posts\u2019 organic traffic. If we hadn\u2019t measured the post\u2019s performance, <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/republishing-content\/\">we couldn\u2019t have improved it<\/a>. Consequently, we would have missed out on a lot of traffic.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-138487\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/20-content-updating-results.png\" alt=\"Line graph showing jump in organic traffic after post was updated \" width=\"1444\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/20-content-updating-results.png 1444w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/20-content-updating-results-680x251.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/20-content-updating-results-768x284.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1444px) 100vw, 1444px\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/div>\n<p>The rest of the process is pretty straightforward. If it works, start doing it regularly. And if it works in the long run, do more of&nbsp;it.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a simple rule, but it sometimes gets overlooked. Marketers tend to get distracted from what\u2019s important by the latest fads. They also get too consumed by the everyday chase of nailing those&nbsp;KPIs.<\/p>\n<h2>Final thoughts<\/h2>\n<p>Let\u2019s quickly sum up what we discussed in this article.<\/p>\n<p>First of all, contrary to popular belief, marketing is not only about promoting a product. It\u2019s also about co-creating the product based on market research and user feedback.<\/p>\n<p>Secondly, marketing is typically a process that connects the right audience with the right kind of product, a sort of matchmaking. It doesn\u2019t end at converting a visitor into a customer. Some marketing tactics will allow you to keep your customers, encourage them to come back, and spur them to recommend your business to others.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, there is no silver bullet in marketing. There are different types of marketing that you should probably try out to see what you can do best and what gives you the best outcomes. On that note, we hope our sharings on the three simple yet powerful things that have worked for Ahrefs will inspire you.<\/p>\n<p>So what are the next steps here? If you\u2019re in need of a battle plan that will guide your marketing efforts, that means you\u2019re in need of a marketing strategy - you can learn how to do that <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-strategy\/\">in this five-step guide<\/a>. And if you want to streamline your learning process, try these <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/free-online-marketing-courses\/\">17 Free Online Marketing Courses to Learn Digital Marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Got questions? Ping me <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/m_makosiewicz\">Twitter<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/seocommunity.social\/@mako\">Mastodon<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This guide is going to be packed with information. But keep in mind that we\u2019re only scratching the surface here. So feel free to follow the links in this guide to learn&nbsp;more. Marketing is the process of co-creating desirable products<span class=\"ellipsis\">\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\">Read more \u203a<\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":159,"featured_media":138505,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[390],"tags":[],"coauthors":[412],"class_list":["post-138503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marketing","odd"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Marketing 101: Marketing Basics in Simple Words<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Introduction to marketing for small-business owners, solopreneurs, and beginner marketers. In under 15 minutes.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-101\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Marketing 101: Marketing Basics in Simple Words\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Marketing explained in under 15 minutes.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/marketing-101\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SEO Blog by Ahrefs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Ahrefs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-02-22T07:00:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-05-16T08:13:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/fb_marketing_101_navigation.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mateusz Makosiewicz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Marketing explained in under 15 minutes.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@m_makosiewicz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ahrefs\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Mateusz Makosiewicz\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c7e64c851ecc4eabb77eaefae90a440c\"},\"headline\":\"Marketing 101: Marketing Basics in Simple Words\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-02-22T07:00:09+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-05-16T08:13:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":3703,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/fb_marketing_101_navigation.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"General Marketing\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/\",\"name\":\"Marketing 101: Marketing Basics in Simple Words\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/marketing-101\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/fb_marketing_101_navigation.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-02-22T07:00:09+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-05-16T08:13:13+00:00\",\"description\":\"Introduction to marketing for small-business owners, solopreneurs, and beginner marketers. 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