Marketing automation is expected to be a $32.6 billion industry by 2024. As budgets shift from offline to online, the growth of marketing automation has been staggering in recent years. But just as we saw with CRM 20 years ago, just buying the software doesn’t get you across the finish line.
Here are 5 marketing automation mistakes “U” need to avoid.
Underdeveloped Plan
Marketing automation is exciting. It’s the toy all marketers can’t wait to get their hands on. But a well thought out strategy is the foundation of your marketing automation campaigns. Before you purchase marketing automation software and begin sending automated emails, assigning roles and creating buyer journeys, you need to take the time and develop a thorough content and lead generation strategy. Check out some important considerations before you purchase the software.
Underutilization
Ranging from $5,000 – $48,000 a year, marketing automation tools can be expensive. If your business is ready to invest in marketing automation, you must utilize it fully. Marketing automation software includes everything in the buyer journey such as landing pages, building websites without IT, real-time SEO suggestions, creating personal paths for leads, email automation, analytics and the list goes on! If your company isn’t ready, that’s OK – there are tons of free tools and free basic starter packs for marketing automation. Check out the 10 best free marketing automation softwares in 2019.
Unnecessary Automatic Emails
Just imagine you go to a conference and make a fantastic connection with a potential client and you receive an automated email the following day saying “Hi XX, great to meet you”. Personalization is the key to email marketing. Small Biz Trends found 82% of marketers reported an increase in open rates through email personalization. At the very least, new 1 on 1 relationships should not be getting automated emails like this. Though automating emails can make your life simpler and save you time, it can also be detrimental to relationships. Focus on using marketing automation to nurture leads and not 1 on 1 relationships.
Unappealing Content
You may have a nifty marketing automation platform that can help you manage the precious time you’ve lost but you still need to be able to create good content. If your potential client or customer opens the email – that’s simply not enough. Click rates can help you understand whether your content is engaging so you must monitor this regularly. Content should also be tested. A/B test for emails is a must because you never know what subject line or CTA will improve engagement. Determine if your content is any good here.
Unintentional Spammer
No one likes a spammer. Marketing automation makes things easy and there’s always that temptation to blast your contact list with email but this can only lead to one place – a hurt business. Remember, there is a time and place for everything. Be sure to only send relevant things and keep things personalized. You need to balance the fine line of automating and over- automating. If you’re not sure what the best automation workflows are that won’t make you look spammy, read this blog.
There you have it, the 5 big U’s of marketing automation. If you’ve recently discovered marketing automation or are looking for more answers and guidance, download our free marketing automation guide.
