Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation

Transcription

1 Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation Marketing automation may be in your future, but there are solutions that can fill your current needs with fewer challenges A E-Book Sponsored by

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 3 The Current State Of Marketing Automation 5 The True Cost Of Marketing Automation 6 A User s Perspective 7 Specialized Tools To Get The Job Done 8 Finding The In-Between Solutions 9 Conclusion 10 About netfactor and Demand Gen Report 11 Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 2

3 Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation Marketing automation may be in your future, but there are solutions that can fill your current needs with fewer challenges Introduction Today there is a lot of noise in the marketplace regarding marketing automation, making it a challenge to manage the wide range of solutions and processes currently in place, much less devise a strategy for the future. While many companies aspire to get to the promised land of ultimate marketing automation integration, not everyone has the need, budget or resources for such a major commitment. The marketing automation space is growing at a rapid pace. Marketing automation revenues are expected to hit $750 million by the end of Specialist vendors, such as Eloqua, Marketo, Infusionsoft and HubSpot, account for $525 million revenue, according to the 2013 B2B Marketing Automation Vendor Selection Tool (VEST) report by Raab Associates, a marketing consultancy. That leaves a great deal of investment in solutions that address specific pain points. Industry estimates put the adoption rate of marketing automation in the range of 10% to 35%, so clearly there are opportunities for in-between solutions. Another driving factor is that budgeting for B2B purchases has shifted significantly in favor of unbudgeted purchases. These are projects that were deemed necessary after looking at a solution s impact on other adopters and building an internal business case for the solution. This has resulted in more ad hoc purchases to address a specific concern, necessitating the need to integrate more disparate technologies. Marketing automation is not a quick panacea, as many marketers have discovered. If you think marketing automation will change your life, it won t, said Dela Quist, CEO of Alchemy Worx, in an article titled Marketer Insight: What s next for ? in the Sept. 16, 2013 issue of BtoB Magazine. In theory, if you have everyone on your list and you ve worked out the perfect frequency and have all the perfect offers, maybe the only place left is to use marketing automation tools. But the point is, most marketers are far away from that stage. The marketing automation space is growing at a rapid pace. Marketing automation revenues are expected to hit $750 million by the end of Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 3

4 If the time is not right to invest in a full-blown marketing automation system, what can companies do in the meantime to make sure their investments are working effectively as they build on their success? Only 62% of companies that have adopted marketing automation say they are strong or full adopters. Some of the topics to be covered in this white paper include: While the goal is to have the most up-to-date marketing automation platform, companies must take into consideration the marketing teams and growth plans as they plot to get to the next level. Many companies that have marketing automation are not using all of the capabilities available. One of the biggest challenges of today s marketers is the fact that B2B buyers complete anywhere from 50% to 75% of their research online before ever contacting a salesperson. Due to their preference to engage with sales later in the process, many do not identify themselves when they visit web sites. As the responsibilities of the marketing and sales departments blur and companies restructure their teams, it will be increasingly important to integrate solutions to meet changing demands of today s dynamic environments. Among the tools available, technology that identifies anonymous visitors to your web site can help gather vital information that will improve the chances of converting a lead to a sale. Sending out an alert when a particularly high-value prospect visits your web site, even anonymously, is essential to success as many marketers are now being held responsible for meeting revenue goals and conversion rates. Being able to reach to the prospect when they are most likely to be engaged can improve the chances of a win. Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 4

5 Roadblocks To Success Source: Lead Generation Strategy Outlook Report from Ascend2 52% Generating the quality of leads expected 37% Generating the quantity of leads expected 20% Implementing marketing automation Firms That Froze Or Reduced Marketing Spend % % Source: 2013 Lead Management Optimization Key Trends Analysis from CSO Insights The Current State Of Marketing Automation Marketing automation systems have generated a lot buzz over the past several years, due to the increased number of mergers and acquisitions, as well as the heightened interest in trends such as content marketing. While marketing automation is making inroads at many B2B companies, adoption and implementation rates are still below 50%, and many companies are not using all of the capabilities of their marketing systems, according to a study by BtoB Magazine. The study revealed that 46% are currently using marketing technologies in some form, while another 20% are evaluating platforms to adopt. Even those who have adopted marketing technology are not using their systems to the fullest. Among those marketers currently using marketing technology, 62% said they are strong or full adopters. When asked about the obstacles that are preventing them from using marketing automation more effectively, one third of respondents to BtoB Magazine s survey cited budget constraints. Marketing budgets are expected to remain lean for the foreseeable future. According to the report 2013 Lead Management Optimization Key Trends Analysis from CSO Insights, the percentages of firms that froze or reduced their marketing spend for the year increased from 31.7% in 2012 to 42.5% in These findings indicate that marketers must find creative, lower-cost, higher-return solutions as they look to support the sales effort. Marketers are also feeling the pressure to ensure that as many leads as possible turn into sales. Generating the level of lead quality expected by sales is consistently the most challenging obstacle to success, according to the Lead Generation Strategy Outlook Report from Ascend2. Generating the quality of leads expected was cited by 52% of respondents as a roadblock to success, while 37% reported that they were hampered by the ability to produce the quantity of anticipated leads. Only 20% cited implementing marketing automation as a factor that was holding them back. In some cases it can be three times the cost of marketing automation if not more to develop all of the content and processes necessary to fully power a marketing automation system -Brett A. Schklar, CEO, Market Creation Group Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 5

6 The True Cost Of Marketing Automation Although some companies may have the budget for a marketing automation platform, the cost of marketing automation goes beyond the cost of the technology, explained Brett A. Schklar, the CEO of the Market Creation Group, a full-service marketing firm focused on B2B technology. The question is, are you willing not to just invest in the tool, but also invest the time and methodology to make that tool as useful as possible, he stated. Schklar noted that in some cases it can be three times the cost of the marketing automation system if not more to develop all of the processes and content necessary to fully power a marketing automation system. The engine doesn t do you much good if it is not connected to the car, he said. The tool is just the how. You still need to focus on things such as developing personas and key messaging. While the concept of one platform that can provide all of the support necessary for true marketing success is intriguing to many marketers, strategic tools that solve specific problems can provide a greater return in many instances. Marketing automation can be great, but it can also be the 300-pound gorilla in the room, Schklar said. Marketing automation provides incredibly robust reporting, and that is a big part of what you pay for. Companies have to ask themselves if they need that level of sophistication, or do they just need certain data points? Enhanced lead generation and ability to track web site visitors were cited as top goals, ACCORDING TO B2B Magazine s 2013 Marketing Automation Best Practices study. Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 6

7 A User s Perspective Such was the case at SheerID, a business that helps companies protect their special offers by instantly verifying customer segments, such as military members or college students. The company was intrigued by the potential of marketing automation to identify anonymous web visitors with follow-on marketing. After gaining some experience with marketing automation, SheerID realized it did not use the full functionality of the system. They kept wanting to integrate more and more with our systems and web site, and it was just too much for us, said Marci Hansen, Chief Marketing Officer at SheerID. It would have cost $1,500 a month for all of the functionality that SheerID needed from the system. SheerID decided to concentrate on anonymous web visitor tracking and moved to a focused solution to meet their lead generation needs. By going with netfactor s VisitorTrack, a simpler, à la carte solution to track anonymous web visitors, the company was able to reduce costs by 75%. In addition to anonymous visitor tracking, the company also uses the system for analytics, business intelligence and keeping tabs on search terms to reduce its pay-per-click costs. They kept wanting to integrate more and more with our systems and web site, and it was just too much for us. -Marci Hansen, Chief Marketing Officer Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 7

8 Specialized Tools To Get The Job Done While many marketing automation systems have some ability to track anonymous users, they typically use a closed system and track the web visits of people who are already in the customer database. However, there is a heightened interest in learning more about web visitors that are not part of the current database. Sales success hinges on the ability to identify active prospects through their digital body language and firmographics. In fact, B2B Magazine s 2013 Marketing Automation Best Practices study cites enhanced lead generation and ability to track web site visitors as the top goals amongst marketers implementing a system. It is estimated that buyers are anywhere from 50% to 75% of the way through the buying cycle before they contact a salesperson. As B2B buyers engage with sales much further along in the sales cycle, being able to identify and engage with anonymous web buyers is going to be a more critical component of the marketing strategies of many companies going forward. Users are even reluctant to enter their address to download a white paper out of concern that they will be bombarded with product pitches. The need is growing to collect detailed information about site visitors in an unobtrusive way. When asked about the most challenging obstacles to achieving lead generation objectives, optimizing lead-to-visitor rate was among the top challenges cited by respondents to the Lead Generation Strategy Outlook Report from Ascend2. For anonymous web visitor tracking to be of value, it needs to provide relevant reporting. There is a lot of noise that has to be filtered out, such as the web addresses associated with ISPs. Knowing the visitor s behavior, firmographic data and geographic location can also help the sales person target their efforts. The best-of-breed providers also integrate detailed contact records, which reveal executive names, titles, addresses, Anonymous web visitor tracking, tracking and reporting tools, web form builders and landing pages are among the alternatives to full-blown marketing automation. phone numbers and more. If a salesperson s territory is financial services companies in California, they want a way to quickly pinpoint those leads and make contact with specific and relevant prospects. When a high-value prospect fitting that profile makes a visit to the site, the salesperson can get an immediate alert to take quick action to bring them into the sales funnel. marketing is another strong player when it comes to lead generation; however, a successful marketing strategy doesn t necessarily entail all of the bells and whistles provided by marketing automation. While , open and click-through rates are helpful metrics, they don t have a true impact unless those leads are identified and contacted quickly. The best way to accomplish this is through marketing-sales integration and actionable data on the person and company who has clicked on your s. Marketers are charged with identifying top prospects, so they need a high level of detail on who is clicking through from campaigns. Powerful new specialty tools can provide greater visibility into the visitor, and bolster the information available about who clicked on an and visited your web site. These active prospects can then be identified in real time, with rich profile intelligence to drive selling and marketing effectiveness to the most qualified without a marketing automation system. Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 8

9 Finding The In-Between Solutions Marketers who may not need or be ready for or need a full marketing automation suite have a number of options for lead generation. Among them are: Anonymous web visitor tracking. One of the fundamental questions every marketer has is who visited my web site? VisitorTrack from netfactor is a powerful application for capturing detailed information on a web site s business visitors in real time. As many B2B buyers are reluctant to provide contact information while they are in the exploratory phase of their research, the information is captured in an unobtrusive manner. The visitor is matched to a B2B database with more than 65 million business contacts to attach names, titles, phone numbers and addresses to those anonymous visitors. tracking and reporting tools. netfactor s 2lead connects the visibility of web site visitor tracking to s sent through service providers, such as icontact, Vertical Response and MailChimp. Marketers who rely upon these systems to deliver can get the same kinds of tracking capabilities as provided by marketing automation platforms. The tracking data is enriched with powerful business intelligence to reveal a comprehensive profile for respondents in real time. This tool can be integrated with the anonymous web tracking capabilities of VisitorTrack to provide person-level detail about those coming to a web site from an campaign. Web forms builders. Capturing data about your prospects is a critical function of marketing. After all, you can t follow up with the person who downloaded your white paper, signed up for your newsletter or attended your webinar if you don t have the ability to collect and manage the relevant information. These free or low-cost tools are easy to implement. There are a number of third-party sources than can enhance the basic contact data with rich demographic and firmographic details. This can help identify the leads that fit your ideal buyer profile and are most likely to result in sales. Landing pages. Content management systems (CMS) are another set of free or low-cost options to power a lean marketing operation. A CMS can be used to build landing pages to direct web traffic when you want to prompt a certain action or result, such as signing up for a product demo or downloading a piece of content. Done correctly, a landing page can provide customized content for each visitor. Social media monitoring applications. There is a wealth of activity taking place on social media sites, and there are a number of affordable solutions to help turn social interactions into leads. These tools offer analytics, campaign management, and the ability to link social media actions to your prospect and customer databases. While marketing automation may be the ultimate goal, success truly hinges on moving the lead generation forward. There are a number of alternatives that can achieve that objective. Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 9

10 Companies that identify their most important lead generation efforts, and employ the tactics and technologies to get them there, have the greatest chance of success. Conclusion Although companies almost universally aspire to the latest marketing automation platform and some even have the budgets and resources to reach those goals most need to bring together disparate technologies, teams and processes. Few companies can support complex projects and, instead, take incremental steps to reach their goals and keep the business moving forward. As the responsibilities of the marketing and sales departments blur and companies restructure their teams, it will be increasingly important to integrate solutions to meet changing demands of today s dynamic environments. Buyer behavior also continues to evolve, and the new norm is for customers to engage with the sales team much later in the purchase cycle. Being able to identify those prospects early and respond to their needs quickly and efficiently is critical. Companies that identify their most important lead generation efforts, and employ the tactics and technologies to get them there, have the greatest chance of success. Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 10

11 About NetFactor netfactor Corporation provides a suite of products to drive new levels of sales performance from Internet marketing for the BusinesstoBusiness market. VisitorTrack, the company s core technology platform, is the world s leading application for website visitor tracking. VisitorTrack integrates lead generation, marketing intelligence and web analytics into a powerful toolset used by B2B sales teams and marketers for website lead generation it s like Caller ID for Your Website. netfactor is privileged to serve customers in nearly every industry to include software, telecom, healthcare, technology, financial, professional services, manufacturing, and transportation. For more information on netfactor Corporation s performance driven products and services for Internet marketing, please visit About NetFactor 6041 S. Syracuse Way, Suite 105 Greenwood Village CO, P: About Demand Gen Report Demand Gen Report is a targeted e-media publication spotlighting the strategies and solutions that help companies better align their sales and marketing organizations, and ultimately, drive growth. A key component of the publication s editorial coverage focuses on the sales and marketing automation tools that enable companies to better measure and manage their multi-channel demand generation efforts. About Demand Gen Report 411 State Route 17 South Suite 410 Hasbrouck Heights, NJ P: F: info@demandgenreport.com Should We or Shouldn t We? Considerations for Marketing Automation 11