Technology-focused marketing can be an invaluable tool for increasing ROI and streamlining operations. However, without proper automation management, these initiatives can quickly become inefficient and costly. Learn how to manage marketing technology effectively to save time and money.
Identify Automatable Tasks
Automating tasks typically begins by identifying the areas in which automation can reduce time, costs and effort. A good place to start is to ask yourself what manual processes consume the majority of your marketing time. This could include anything from customer contact management and customer journey nurturing tasks like segmentation and customer education, to lead capture and website analytics. Identify these processes and evaluate how automation could potentially streamline them for improved efficiency.
Establish the Necessary Preconditions
Before integrating automation, it’s important to establish the necessary preconditions. Doing this properly in advance creates a smoother transition when setting up an automated system. Decisions need to be made about data storage, customer management systems and content creation for emails, among others. It is also important to define workflow pathways for customers with marketing platforms that allow multiple paths or touchpoints. To ensure success, many of these groundwork decisions should involve all departments in the organization or any external agencies involved in campaigns or management of tasks.
Choose the Appropriate Automation Technology
Before starting to automate a process, it’s important to pick the right technology for the job. CRMs, Marketing Automation Platforms and Email Service Providers (ESPs) are all very useful tools in automating marketing tasks and campaigns. For example, a CRM is ideal for any customer journey activities that need tracking across multiple channels while an ESP can manage complex email sequences much more effectively than manual processes. Ultimately, the perfect choice of automation technology depends on the specific goals and objectives of the business.
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Create Accessible Policies and Processes for Automated Workflows
A key element of successful automation implementations is the development of clear policies and processes to ensure the workflows function as intended. For example, setting out clear rules and procedures around who can access and edit automated work-flows allows for greater control and visibility over any changes that may be made. This makes it easier for automated marketing activities to be monitored and managed more effectively, ensuring that any results or customer experiences are consistent across all channels.
Monitor and Adjust According to Performance
Automation technology can be used to measure and track the performance of marketing campaigns to determine which initiatives are successful and which need improvement. Marketers should utilize automated analytic tools to gain insights into campaign performance that can help in making necessary adjustments as needed. Automated analytics will provide marketers with a comprehensive view of their customer’s behavior, enabling them to make more informed data-driven decisions around their marketing activities.
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