If you're going up against big players in your market, automation can save time and money while collecting big-data insights for your small business.
Contributed By:
DANIEL NEWMAN
GUEST WRITER
President of Broadsuite
Source: Entrepreneur
Let’s face it: It can be overwhelming to keep up with
new digital-marketing strategies, social media, drip campaigns and all the
other emerging opportunities in the world of marketing technology. There's
so much to choose from, it now has its own blended term -- martech.
While the world’s biggest corporations dedicate entire teams to
social-media monitoring and feedback, startup leaders must run much
tighter ships. The Chief Marketing Officer often is the same person as the CEO
and the CFO. Those challenges make it more difficult to stay on trend when it
comes to marketing outreach -- much less effectively adopt and implement these
strategies.
Still, martech holds tremendous growth potential for
startups whose leaders can make time to explore it. The only caveat: People
choose small businesses for a reason. Don’t begin to rely so heavily on
marketing automation that you lose your personal touch.
In the bigger picture, the time startups invest in marketing
automation will streamline operations and help companies grow faster (and often
in profound ways). Here are a few reasons to consider making the move to
integrate automation in your marketing plan.
1. It levels the playing field.
New startups often feel like minnows trying to outswim and
outsmart sharks in a game of survival. Reports reveal that nearly half of
small-business owners manage marketing efforts on their own, all while carrying
out other duties from human resources to sales. Marketing automation helps
bring some balance by offering incredibly savvy and sophisticated tools
that also are incredibly easy to use and set.
Don’t know much about analytics or
“lead-nurturing?" That’s OK. Companies such as GetResponse and Act-On do,
and they can help reach out, clear out and make marketing decisions for
you. Best of all? Those decisions happen automatically, based on
specifications you set during your onboarding process. That can add hours to
your day, not to mention thousands (or millions) in sales when well-utilized.
2. It creates a valuable
database.
The information gathered during marketing automation goes far
beyond contacts and potential customers. It's actual data -- big
data. It's the type of knowledge that can help you make smarter decisions
about how to move your business forward.
Marketing automation can help you determine which style of
language or tone works best with different audience segments, which
audiences are more likely to buy certain products and when your customers
are most likely to shop. It even can help you understand where you might be
losing customers who drop off during their digital journeys. Why do they
abandon their shopping carts? How can you give them more incentive to complete
the sale and drive conversion-rate growth?
Basically, it’s like employing a full-scale marketing agency.
Except it’s a lot cheaper, and it’s always at your disposal -- no matter how
small your company is right now.
3. It helps turn leads into
sales.
Are you nurturing your prospects? If you’re running a startup,
chances are good you don’t have time for this crucial business-development
function. Nurturing your leads requires more than an ongoing touch-base or
check-in. It means helping steer your prospect toward your desired goal or
outcome.
Nurtured leads show a 20 percent increase in
sales compared to non-nurtured leads. Marketing automation can help you manage
redirects when someone has left an item in an online shopping cart and even
send product discounts or other incentives if a customer fails to buy after
your first reminder. It's all based on a series of simple "if/when"
statements you establish when you create your campaign.
In essence, automation turns you into a savvy marketing
professional with an endless number of hands to hold tight to your customers
throughout their buying journeys.
4. It can save time and (make)
money.
In today’s fast-paced business world, it’s nearly impossible to
reach out to potential business partners manually -- at least not efficiently.
Marketing automation can help here, too.
Once you create your list, marketing-automation tools can do
much of the work for you. They even can help create content and determine its
effectiveness for future campaigns. That means no more hiring freelancers,
working with mail servers or responding to individually to every inquiry.
Martech can handle those tasks -- and a lot more -- starting
around $50 per month. Once you see its benefits, you'll want to move on and
allow Martech to create custom forms and landing
pages as well as manage your responses to leads generated by
those assets.
5. It’s scalable.
It probably goes without saying, but like many other cloud-based
services today, marketing automation is scalable. You can pay based on your
current number of contacts, and the service will grow along with you.
Marketing automation holds tremendous potential for any startup.
Ultimately, marketing automation should help customers better understand your
brand, your vision and your products. It’s one more way to extend your
presence and keep the big fish circling elsewhere.
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