Marketing automation is one of the most powerful tools you can add to your marketing arsenal. Getting the most out of this expansive tool, however, requires strategy and planning. Having worked with hundreds of companies, I’ve found there are some “must-dos” in executing ROI-driven automation strategies. This three-part blog series tackles those imperatives and will hopefully serve as a guide for businesses planning to use marketing automation to its full potential.
Must-do #2: Know What’s Possible
Owning a fast car does not make you a race car driver. Even if you’ve had marketing automation for some time and keep wondering why your results aren’t what you’re hoping for, be sure your expectations are aligned appropriately with what you’re investing in the way of time, planning and resources. Many factors influence success in automated campaigns. A keen understanding of your audience, which leads to list quality, subject lines, messaging, offers, design, calls to action, timing, sending cadence and knowing what excites your audience, are just some of the influences of a successful marketing automation deployment.
Setting the right expectations about what you can do with your existing contact list within marketing automation and how you can grow that list or lead database will save you from frustration down the road. This is true for those assessing MA software and even for those who may have already adopted automation tools and strategies. If you invested in marketing automation thinking it was an end rather than a means, your expectations may be too high.
This is the second post in the three-part series, “The ‘Must-Dos’ in SMB Marketing Automation”, written by guest blogger Lynn Anderson. The first and third posts can be found here.
