Imagine if you had to individually email each person who put something in their cart and then left it. How many people do you have to hire just to complete this important task? Marketing automation software is built to automate time-consuming and rote repetitive tasks so that people on your team can focus on strategic work.
What is marketing automation?
Marketing automation is software that automates various aspects of a business’s marketing work. Capabilities differ between different software, but most offer the ability to:
- Create and maintain a single customer data database
- Automate repetitive tasks like welcome emails and tagging buyers
- Create audience segments
- Send custom messages to different audience segments
- Test different messages
- Generate analytical reports
In essence, small businesses can automate repetitive tasks related to the implementation of the marketing strategy. Think about: private message which are automatically sent to customers when they perform certain actions, such as signing up for a newsletter or adding something to their shopping cart.
These messages are sent based on a workflow, or set of instructions, that allows businesses to send specific messages to customers when they do certain things. For example, let’s say a potential customer visits your website and signs up to receive a promo code to their email. That action might trigger a series of emails that start with a welcome message and a discount code, but continue for several weeks with content educating them about your product.
What value can a business derive from marketing automation?
Businesses get all sorts of benefits from using marketing automation—from better use of your marketing professionals to more effective marketing messages.
- Freedom to focus on big tasks. By removing manual and repetitive tasks, you marketing team will have more time to focus on aspects of their work that only humans can do.
- Send targeted messages. Marketing automation tools allows you to segment your audience to personalize and create a more relevant experience. Imagine: A shampoo brand has a product line specifically for curly hair. As soon as the scorching summer heat hits New York City, companies can automatically email existing customers with a NYC shipping address to promote products that tame summer frizz.
- Manage leads better. By collecting and storing data in a centralized location, everyone in the company can offer better customer service. For example, when a customer writes, anyone on your customer service team can retrieve data such as their recent interactions with the company and their product preferences, to provide them with a more personalized service.
Best practices for marketing automation
The best way to implement marketing automation is to clarify your business goals and then find the right type of technology to implement your strategy. Doing so allows your business to earn hugely relevant content, nurture prospects, and create brand loyalty. Here are some best practices to consider implementing in your small business:
- Set specific and measurable goals. You should be clear about what you are looking for and hope to achieve with your marketing campaign. For example, a shoe designer might want to sell a minimum of 1,000 shoes per month through Instagram and Facebook campaigns.
- Segment your audience. Different messages will land with different buyers. Having a clearly defined audience segment will help you reach different types of customers with messages or product options tailored to them. The shoe designer may want to email customers who have previously purchased running shoes to let them know about the debut of their new trail running shoe.
- Map the customer journey. Visualize exactly how you want your marketing campaign to work—how will customers move through your funnel to purchase? For example, you might imagine they see your ad on Instagram, then visit the landing page for a product, then sign up for a 10% discount promo code via email before they finally buy. What do you want to learn at each stage? Determine how you want your audience to enter your workflow—such as signing up for free samples—then determine how and when to advance them.
Test and fix. Knowing what isn’t working can empower you to fix it. You can track campaign performance using A/B testing—trying different messages, platforms, and even email subject lines to see what works best for your audience. The idea is to keep testing and refining until you find the sweet spot in your marketing efforts.