Marketing automation to increase your sales... while reducing your expenses!
Companies using marketing automation solutions see an average 14.5% increase in sales, while observing a 12% reduction in marketing expenditure*.
Marketing automation can thus become a key asset for your productivity!
What is marketing automation?
Marketing automation refers to the set of methods and tools used toautomate repetitive marketing tasks and manage campaigns in a more efficient, personalized way.
Thanks to a marketing automation solution, you can ensure that your campaigns are triggered by a certain behavior of your prospect or customer, and that they are tailored as closely as possible to their needs!
This can include actions such as :
- Automatically send personalized e-mails based on the stage of your prospect's buying journey 📧
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- Managing automated advertising campaigns 📰
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- Segmentation and scoring of your prospect and customer base according to qualification criteria 👥
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- Automatic transmission of your hot leads to your sales team 📞
In short, marketing automation allows you to create more personalized, effective and consistent marketing experiences for your prospects and customers, while enabling more efficient management of your campaigns!
Today, we're sharing with you the 4 steps you need to take to launch a marketing automation initiative in your organization!
*Invesp, 2023
STEP 1 - Define your campaign objective
To ensure the success of your marketing automation campaign, make sure it fits in with your overall marketing strategy , and doesn't stand alone.
Theobjective of your marketing automation operation must be clearly identified and in line with your other marketing objectives.
To define it, use the SMART method. Your goal should be :
- Specific 🎯
- Measurable 📐
- Achievable ✊
- Realistic 🛠️
- Time-dependent ⏱️
Let's take an example!
Your SMART objective for a marketing automation campaign will be :
increase the number of qualified leads by 20% over the next three months thanks to an email nurturing campaign.
To help you determine your SMART goal for your marketing automation campaign, we're sharing our dedicated canvas !
Download and complete it to make sure your campaign meets every success criterion.
KEY No. 2 - Segment your database
The second key to using marketing automation to interact with prospects is to segment your database.
This stage involves defining your targets and segmenting them according to various criteria, so that you can send them personalized messages tailored to their needs and preferences.
1/ Identify and analyze customer and prospect behavior 🔍
Analyzing customer and prospect behavior is a crucial first step in segmenting the database. It enables us to understand their needs, motivations and expectations.
This analysis can be based on demographic data such as profession, type of structure, company size, or sector of activity. It can also take into account behavioral data such as buying habits, interests, interactions with your company...etc.
2/ Create personas to personalize messages 👩🏻💼
Once you've identified the different profiles of your customers and prospects, you can create personas, which are fictional characters representing each profile.
These personas will help you to personalize the messages you send to your targets according to their needs and preferences. Personas can be used to adapt the content of your communications.
3/ Segment according to needs and behaviors 🎯
Behavioral criteria are particularly interesting for database segmentation in marketing automation.
They take into account the actions customers and prospects have taken on your website, social networks, e-mail or other communication channels.
To find out more about targeting, view our webinar on the subject. Click on the button below!
KEY No. 3 - Create scenarios and workflows
Once you've segmented your database, it's important to create scenarios and workflows for each identified category of prospects and customers.
This stage consists of drawing up an action plan for each of these segments, and responding to the behaviors and issues of the targets previously identified.
Scenarios should be composed of several sequences of events that will guide your prospects towards conversion. It's advisable to start with simple scenarios, and to avoid multiplying steps and content, in order to master the conversion cycle.
To help you build these scenarios, we recommend creating workflows. Workflows are sets of automated actions triggered by one or more of your prospects' actions . A workflow systematically consists of a trigger and conditions.
In short, the creation of scenarios and workflows is essential to automate your marketing actions. This will enable you to guide your prospects towards conversion in a personalized and efficient way.
If you would like us to help you create your first scenarios and workflows, click on the buttons below for a 30-minute session with Nicolas Boissard, Kestio's Marketing Director.
KEY No. 4: Expert advice - Lead scoring
