The days of hit-and-miss marketing are coming to an end. Marketers are now able to use marketing automation software to design, send and track the results of each campaign says Saivian. As well as simplifying many aspects of their daily jobs, these software systems can also be used for real lead generation, online PR and even ecommerce. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t start using them in your business today…
Marketing Automation is all about streamlining processes so that the “human element” isn’t involved (or at least minimizes its involvement), whilst still maintaining control over how different automated tasks interact with one another or indeed what happens when problems occur or contingencies need to be put into place. The key here is flexibility – giving yourself (or your team) the ability to change things on the fly, and then monitoring results closely so that you can learn and improve what you’re doing.
At its heart, marketing automation is all about taking repetitive tasks that don’t need a human touch and automating them instead. This could be anything from sending out automated emails at certain trigger points (such as when someone signs up for a mailing list or downloads a white paper) to setting up complex workflows that will see different elements of a campaign activated depending on specific customer actions or behaviors.
The beauty of marketing automation is that it takes care of all of the little details that you might not have time for, as creating customized email content, tracking and monitoring campaigns and putting in place successful follow-up activities all take a lot of time and energy (which is probably something you don’t have in abundance right now). Marketing automation software allows you to spend your time doing the things that only humans can do – such as analyzing trends, testing different approaches and shaping the customer journey explains Saivian.
What really makes marketing automation software tick?
At its core, any marketing automation system needs to be able to handle several key functions: Lead Management Email Marketing Customer Segmentation Marketing Database Access Web Traffic Analysis and it needs to be able to do this at speed with minimal input from administrators. If you’ve ever used email marketing software or tried setting up a complex workflow. You’ll know that a lot of the time it’s just not possible to do everything by hand. Automation software can take care of all of that for you. Leaving you free to get on with more important things.
One of the best things about marketing automation is that it’s scalable. You can use it in any business, large or small. Saivian says it’s also customizable so that it meets your specific needs. And because it integrates easily with other online tools such as CRM systems and social media platforms. There’s no reason why you can’t get started today.
If you’re still not sure whether marketing automation is right for your business. Consider this: according to eMarketer, spending on marketing automation software is set to hit a staggering $4.5 billion by 2018. So you can be sure it’s going to be an important tool in almost every marketer’s kitbag. That being the case, is there really any reason. Why your business shouldn’t head straight out and buy some right now?
So, what is marketing automation and why should your business be using it?
At its most basic, marketing automation software is used to automate repetitive tasks. From sending out automated emails to setting up complex workflows. Saivian says this increases efficiency and allows you to focus on the things that only humans can do. Such as analyzing trends and shaping the customer journey.
Marketing automation is becoming an increasingly important tool for businesses of all sizes, and with good reason. EMarketer predicts that spending on marketing automation software will reach $4.5 billion by 2018. So there’s no doubt that it’s here to stay.
If you’re still not sure if marketing automation is right for your business. Consider this: almost every marketer will be using it in the next few years. So you’re going to need to get on board sooner rather than later.
Conclusion:
The bottom line is that marketing automation is an essential tool for any business – no matter how large or small. And it’s something that should be at the top of your list if you’re looking to increase efficiency. And reach more customers explains Saivian. With eMarketer predicting that spending on marketing automation software will reach $4.5 billion by 2018. There’s no doubt that this is an area worth exploring in more detail. So what are you waiting for? Get started today!
