There’s no longer any argument that marketing automation provides the best toolset for building long-term sustainability, but the technology involved is only part of what makes it tick. Choosing the right marketing automation platform is just the first step in the process of optimizing your revenue-based marketing strategy. You also need a strategic partner – a marketing automation consultant.
Defining the Playbook
One of the prime benefits of marketing automation is that it uses a cohesive, consistent set of rules to manage an increasingly complex universe of data. Who makes the rules that govern how your MAP handles incoming data? That’s where your marketing automation consultant comes in. The analytics your system generates only matter if you have a knowledgeable analyst going over them and deciding where they lead.
Your marketing automation team puts data in context using a keen awareness of the marketplace and a deep familiarity with the technology you’re using. As your marketing automation consultant develops a blueprint for operations, you also get real-time feedback from the system to point you in the right direction, improving results with each campaign and the analytics it generates.
A Not-So-Odd Couple: Data Science and Marketing
There’s a tendency to think of marketing as a creative, people-oriented aspect of business. That’s certainly part of the picture, but as marketing has gone digital, there’s also an increasing emphasis on data science. The art of marketing and the science of data aren’t in conflict; on the contrary, they work together beautifully. Your marketing automation team can use data to derive insights that guide you in the most promising directions, optimizing your efforts and ensuring the best possible return on your investments of time and creative energy.
Rethinking Processes, Defining Outcomes
Re-engineering the steps you take to achieve success can be a daunting challenge if you’re trying to go it alone. Your marketing automation consultant will help you to identify the guideposts that allow you to create paths to success through the unique terrain that defines your organization’s landscape. With a better understanding of benchmarks to meet along the way, you’re able to optimize key processes within your workflow, eliminating wasted effort and focusing on the channels and marketing activities that make the greatest difference to your bottom line.
Speaking of your bottom line: How do you define a successful launch of a campaign? Is it based on total number of responses, conversions, sales, or other metrics? That’s part of what your marketing automation consultant will help you define. With a clearer understanding of what constitutes success, you can work toward achieving it consistently.
Your competition may have started to invest in marketing automation, but technology alone doesn’t make the difference. Finding the right strategic partner to optimize its use is where you’ll see lasting results.
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