Marketing Automation: five common misconceptions

Marketing automation is still just a notion for many companies. They all want to implement it at some time in the future, but those who actually use it are still quite a rarity.

Accordingto our Statistical Observatory, in 2017 only 9% of companies had at least oneautomatic email or SMS flow in place. Undoubtedly its adoption is slowed bythe lack of clarity regardingthe necessary technology. It’s the usual problem: everyone talks about it, butfew have adequate knowledge of it.

Some time ago we wrote about 5 myths about marketing automation to be debunked. Today we wanted to pick up where we left off, especially now that the topic has even more misconceptions. Let’s look at five common clichés about automation that should be clarified.

Americanscall it the “set it and forget it” error to underline the fact thatautomation is still all too often seen as a magical tool that lets you configure automatisms and actionsthat will work for you.

Notentirely false, but obviously not entirely true either. Automationobviously automates processes and actions that would otherwiserequire manual operations, but it is still a tool that requires activeresearch, continuous optimization, and refinement.

It’sbetter to consider the advantage from another angle: by seeing to certainoperations, automation freesresources (in terms of time and professionalism) that can concentrateon other aspects, which can be of a creative, strategic, sales, or analysisnature.

Sinceit works with significant amounts of data, automation creates statisticallyrelevant information on what worksand what doesn’t, offering precise indications on the aspects that have thegreatest impact on results.

Automationplatforms continue to refine their analysistools, helping companies orient themselves on where and how to intervene toimprove performance and engagement withcustomers and prospects.

Apremise: marketing automation is not simply a marketing tool. While it’s truethat the marketing team is the one that most benefits from its use, it should not be forgotten thatthe sales team is also affected by the introduction of automation into acompany.

Oneof the great advantages of marketing automation is its ability to take on tasksthat we could call “routine”, and perform them at a much faster pace than a marketercould do.

Marketingautomation amplifies andempowers what your team is already doing. Let’s take the case of acompany that uses accurate criteria to qualify andsegment potential customers, already having an effective contentmarketing plan for cultivating contact throughout the customer journey. Forthis type of team, automating activities such as segmentation (sending theright content to the right recipient) allows applying a proven and effectiveprocess to a large pool of data.

Onthe other hand, for a team without good foundations in terms of data,qualification and segmentation processes, automation will not magically convertthe contents and campaigns that convey them into effective foundations. In thiscase automation is only a tool that speedsup operations.

Automationis based on data, but this does not mean that it will fill any gaps and shortcomings in adatabase.

Thefirst problem is insufficient data or the lack of a constant flow of new incoming information. To functioneffectively, automation requires a certain volume of data. Overwhelming yourcontact list with weekly triggers is inconceivable. Instead, a constant supply of contacts andinformation is necessary, so as to make the database tend to expand.

Thesecond problem concerns incorrect data. If you import information from othermarketing systems and Business Intelligence software, you also need to take thetime to clean it up. Incorrect data means incorrect campaigns, regardless ofthe software used. It is therefore necessary to always take the time to do somedata cleaning before divinginto automation.

Emailmarketing is only one part that automation can manage and optimize. In reality,marketing automation is the combination of many features and parts: CRM, lead management, and webanalytics, for example. An essential tool in both B2B and B2C; for example,multi-channel retailers have to deal with a growing number of users that aredifficult to reach through traditional channels. In these cases the combination of different channels withina single automated flow becomes almost a necessary condition

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This must be clearer than ever before: automation activities extend beyond conversion. Indeed, customers who have just purchased something represent a new opportunity for sales, cross-selling, upselling, or repeated sales. Marketing automation is essential in order to continue to engage them, keep the conversation going, and convert them into brand ambassadors who share your content and promote your proposals.

In short, automation lets you nourish the after-sales relationship with as much effectiveness as it does in the lead nurturing phase.

Theadoption of marketing automation continues to grow. Its potential is simply toogreat to be ignored, because it is capable of combining process automation and the personalization of therelationship between brands and recipients.

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