Marketing Automation – no matter what the business size

Marketing automation refers to software that automatically sends emails or email campaigns to customers and prospects behind the scenes, based on rules that you define. Marketing automation uses customer journeys that start with a trigger, such as signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase. These journeys are designed to be more relevant to the recipient than just a mass email campaign. By using marketing automation you can reap the many benefits that come with it. Marketing automation brings an exciting opportunity for both greater efficiency and improved customer experience at a reduced cost.

Automated processes can take care of any tasks that don’t require active human involvement. For example, nurturing leads is a crucial communication to get right to keep your leads warm. However, this doesn’t require your staff to spend all day responding to emails. A sequence of well written and well-timed emails can be automated to respond throughout different touchpoints your customers take. Beyond automated emails, you can look to use other automation tactics such as chatbots for customer support on your website and automatic phone reminders. There are a few key steps you need to plan before implementing an automated marketing process.

Marketing Automation Flow

Firstly you need to identify the right tasks. The areas you will gain the most from are often where you have the most repetitive marketing tasks. Such as the automated email responses we previously mentioned. Create a list of all the current marketing tasks your business is undertaking and chooses a few that are both time-consuming as well as tasks you can easily switch to automation.

Once you have selected the exercise you want automation to take over you need to select the correct software. There is a huge selection of marketing software so make sure to do your research before you commit to one. There may even be software tailored to your industry. It’s worth noting that most give you a free trial, so experiment with a few and see which is the best fit with your business.

You may need to train members of your team so they understand how this automation will fit into their job role. Make sure everyone understands the benefits, especially as marketing automation is predicted to become one of the most important marketing skills by 2020!

Finally, like any good marketing process, implementing this strategy is not the end. It is important to review and improve using key metrics. Making appropriate adjustments at relevant times will help to keep your automation at the top of your game.

Content Creation Priorities

Just as important as setting up the logistics of marketing automation is the content. Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind when creating the content for your automation.

In the same way that you would start any form of marketing, you need to research your audience. Determine the demographic profile you are targeting. Their age, location, interests, etc… Creating a buyer persona will help you to hit all of these points and set you up to deliver impactful content with a purpose.

Keep in mind that even though robots are sending out the emails on your businesses behalf, the emails still need to feel genuine. Write the email with a way that the recipient feels it has been personally crafted for them. Customers like to feel noticed and appreciated by the brand they buy from. You can use automation software that allows for personalization. Creating the illusion that each email is completely bespoke.

To go alongside the personalization, you need to decide on and maintain the right tone of voice. This can vary in terms of the campaign and the demographic you are targeting. However, it should stay in line with your company’s brand voice and stay consistent through the campaign.

How We Can Help

There is a lot to gain from marketing automation. Improved efficiency and productivity, insightful data and better customer relationships. The ultimate success of any automation campaign is simply based on how your customers react to it.

We recently set up marketing automation for one of our key clients. After reviewing their customer journey we concluded that they needed to bridge the gap they had between a customer’s initial inquiry and a member of the sales team contacting them. Together we decided the best route would be an automated email. We created 4 journeys, one for each touchpoint on the website. Plus one for the Facebook advertising that captured lead data. Now, once one of the touch points is met the data instantly goes to the relevant data list and a tailored automated email is sent to the user. This keeps the customer informed of all relevant information until the sales team get in touch. As well as ensuring our client doesn’t lose any leads.

We know that marketing automation can seem intimidating. But with the right advice and guidance, it’s much easier than you first think. Get in touch if marketing automation feels like the right next step for your business and see how we can help you.         studio@bopgun.com     +44 (0) 1225 351715