As more companies hear about the benefits of using marketing automation software, more companies will implement it. But be aware: implementing a marketing automation software doesn’t guarantee you will generate high quality leads.
The Marketing Automation Software industry has been around for a few years now. I first discovered this new product category when, as a marketing manager for an international software company, I had the challenge to revert the trend of having less and less leads coming through company website. When trying to solve this business challenge is when I heard first about this innovative approach that combines lead generation, lead nurturing and content marketing. A new door got opened for me and I had access to a new array of possibilities.
Since the beginning of my career I’ve been creating high quality content for technology companies: from brochures to websites content to success stories, and everything in between. The discovery of a software program that allows companies to place the right content in front of very specific, segmented audience brought my skills in marketing and lead generation to a new level. Through marketing automation software, a company can identify who, how, when, how often, the prospects interact with each marketing material I create. The software even helps prioritizing the leads based on their behaviour. You can send different materials to specific people based on different criteria such as their behaviour, whether or not they opened specific email, whether or not they registered to your webinar, etc. Everything becomes trackable and measurable. Magic!
However… The software itself doesn’t make the trick.
When considering marketing automation software for your company’s needs, the following points must be evaluated:
- What are the goals to be achieved? It can be lead generation, nurturing email campaigns for prospects in your pipeline, nurturing campaigns for current customers, campaigns for training prospects while they are testing your product… Know and set your goals, test the waters and measure results so you can properly adjust tactics.
- Is there any plans in place? Each campaign you will run involving marketing automation requires careful planning. By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail
- Who are you trying to connect with? Not all the content is appropriate for all your audiences. Segment your audience and talk to them with tailored information they value and appreciate. Set the basis to succeed.
- What is the role of your sales team in the implementation of the marketing automation solution? The sales department should be engaged in the process of generating leads through a campaign that uses marketing automation software, from the beginning. If Sales don’t see any value in your newly generated leads, they will end up in a black hole. Work with Sales within your team, starting from the planning process, to see the benefits of a successful campaign and ROI.
- What content is your company planning to share? This is a huge point. The quality content you need to feed the marketing campaign with automation software needs to be carefully planned. A smart content marketing strategy will deliver amazing results when your team can offer a certain level of commitment. Take it into consideration since day one. Do you have enough content for your campaign? What type of content will you share with your prospects? How many campaigns are you planning to run? How much content do you need for feeding each campaign?
- How is your company planning to feed the marketing automation machine with content? Processes for creating new content are key for the success of the content marketing strategy. The campaigns that use marketing automation consume tons of content. Plan in advance.
- How much time can your team dedicate to prepare content? In the case of companies that sell complex or technical products, it is my experience that the best results are achieved when the experts within your company take ownership and write good content. How much time can these people dedicate to produce new marketing materials? How can that be balanced with the manuals, guides, training, deadlines, proposals, etc. these experts have to work on?
- What is the level of expertise of the person implementing the marketing automation solution? A learning curve should be expected unless, of course, you find a senior resource or hire a third-party (like NicheMktg) with hands-on experience. Decide whether or not you want to be someone else’s guinea pig.
Unless you fully utilize the features and capabilities available in the marketing automation software, it can’t be blamed for not delivering ROI. The technology per se won’t find new leads nor it will convert them into sales opportunities. More names in your database won’t immediately translate into more revenue.
However, when implemented properly, the marketing automation software is a tool that can provide your sales team with an business insight that they have never experienced before. They will engage prospects in meaningful conversations that will turn into more proposals and sales. The right information in the hands of your Sales team becomes powerful intelligence. Lead generation can be boosted to an amazing new level.
Is your company using or considering implementing a Marketing Automation software tool? What has been your experience using it? Or why are you hesitant about moving forward?
