9 Key Takeaways for Australia from the State of Inbound 2016 Report

Every year HubSpot releases its State of Inbound report, full of the latest insights into sales and marketing trends. The report looks at the top challenges and priorities facing marketers and salespeople today and is a really great read.

We've gone through the State of Inbound 2016 and highlighted nine key findings for the ANZ region.

Key insights for Australia and New Zealand

1. Inbound is the most effective marketing strategy

Do you feel that your organisation's marketing strategy is effective? (pp. 60-61)

• 66% Yes
• 34% No

Answered Yes:

• Inbound: 64%
• Outbound: 47%

The majority of strategically effective marketing organisations follow the inbound methodology. 

2. Generating traffic and leads the top marketing challenge

What are your top marketing challenges? (pp. 62-63)

1. Generating traffic and leads
2. Proving the ROI of our marketing activities
3. Securing enough budget

The top challenge for marketers is generating traffic and leads. This indicates a need to focus on buyer personas, SEO, content marketing strategy and content promotion.

3. Conversion rates the top marketing priority

What are your top marketing priorities? (p. 64)

1. Converting contacts / leads to customers
2. Growing website traffic
3. Proving the ROI of our marketing activities

Conversion rates are the top marketing priority. This shows that marketing teams are focused on the KPIs that most impact their business' bottom line.

4. Growing SEO the top inbound marketing priority

What are your top inbound marketing priorities? (p. 67)

1. Growing SEO / organic presence
2. Blog content creation
3. Content distribution / amplification

For inbound marketers, it's all about being found online and growing traffic. Improving search engine ranking, promoting content on social media and blogging are all high on the priority list.

5. CRM software the biggest focus

Which of the following technologies or tools do you plan to evaluate or purchase by the end of 2017? (p. 68)

Customer relationship management is the key focus for companies and it's no surprise. The CRM software you use has a big impact on your sales team's productivity and success. Evaluating the effectiveness of your CRM shouldn't be put off.

6. Most sales teams spend < 1 hour a day doing data entry

On average, how much time per day does your sales team spend performing data entry or other manual tasks? (p. 68)

The majority of sales teams spend less than an hour each day doing data entry or other manual tasks. This could mean one of two things:

1. They're using an excellent CRM that automates tasks and data entry, saving them a lot of time
2. They don't prioritise data entry and are losing valuable information that could help close customers

7. Sales reps find qualifying leads difficult

In your opinion, what part of the sales process do reps struggle with most? (p. 69)

The hardest part of the sales process for the majority of reps is qualifying leads. This could be the result of companies not clearly defining each stage in the sales and marketing funnel. It could also indicate a need for greater sales and marketing alignment.

8. Phoning the best way to connect with prospects

What has been the most successful channel for your sales representatives to connect with a prospect? (p. 69)

Yes! Personal connection for the win! Prospects respond best to a conversation over the phone with a sales rep. Emails and social media messages are much easier for prospects to ignore.

9. Getting a response from prospects has gotten harder

What is more difficult to do in sales compared to 2 to 3 years ago? (p. 70)

It's no surprise that the biggest challenge for sales reps is getting prospects to respond. There is so much noise in our digital world and cutting through that is tricky. Understanding your buyer personas – their goals, motivations and preferences – will go a long way towards getting them to engage with you.

 Read the full report at State of Inbound 2016.