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Is Your Marketing Automation System in Need of a Tune Up?

By July 17, 2017June 13th, 2019No Comments

How reliant are you on your marketing automation system (MAS) to keep your marketing and sales engines running? When is the last time you had your MAS assessed by an expert? If you rely heavily on marketing automation or if it’s not generating enough output, it might be time to have an expert service your system.

A marketing automation system is an engine made up of component parts, much like a car. Those components need review or servicing on a regular basis to keep everything running at top performance. To make sure your system is in working order, have a marketing automation expert (MAE) perform an assessment. They can give you a list of what needs to be done to get your system operating at peak performance. Don’t have the talent in-house? Reach out, and we can help.

Auto-mechanics and car experts check things like fluid levels, brake pads, tire treads, etc. Marketing automation also has a list of vital components that keep it running, and these components need checking on a regular basis. Even if you have an in-house MAE, there might be things they’re not checking (see questions below), or they simply don’t have the time to examine or fix them. Ask yourself the following:

  • When was the last time you audited your database for hygiene? Did you identify issues but never corrected them?
  • Are your email, landing page, and funnel conversion rates in line with or above industry standard? If not, what’s under-performing and why? What would even a 2% – 5% uplift do for your business performance?
  • Do your email and landing page templates display well across all major browsers, email clients, and devices? Have you tested them extensively with an email deliverability tool like Litmus or Email on Acid?
  • Do your marketing automation specialists complain about manual tasks that take forever? What would you get in cost savings if there was a way to cut that time in half, and how long before it paid off?

Marketing automation experts can not only answer these questions, but enact on them. Which is why if you haven’t had your marketing automation system serviced recently, it might be time to schedule an assessment.

How Do I Know if My Marketing Automation System Needs Servicing?

There are a few ways to look for the warning signs that you need to have your MAS checked out. Have your resident Marketing Operations Manager or Marketing Automation Manager check the below list. An experienced person with a healthy marketing automation reporting system should be able to answer these questions in approximately 30 – 60 minutes. If it takes considerably longer, or if the results show anything concerning, it may be time to have your marketing automation system serviced.

Marketing Automation Health Assessment

  1. Emails
    1. What’s your limit on how many emails a person can receive per day/week?
    2. Has anyone received more than 3-4 promotional emails per week in the last 90 days? Please note that anything above this is probably excessive.
    3. Who hasn’t received any communication in the past 90 days? Is it worthwhile to re-engage? If so, how?
    4. Who hasn’t performed any actions in the last 90 days? Should you re-engage them or remove them from active communication?
  2. Programs
    1. What have been your most and least successful programs over the last year? Are you determining success based on just engagement or actual sales funnel performance?
    2. Were there any performance issues that skewed the results of your programs?
    3. What do your best performers say about the type of programs you should be running to generate results? Are you prepared to adjust your priorities and tactics to accomplish this?
  3. Operations
    1. Are you fully capitalizing on key best practices like tokenization, hierarchical program organization, multiple lead scoring, nurture campaigns, etc?
  4. Database
    1. Is your database clean (no junk leads), and are your lead records mostly complete? Do you have a plan to make them more complete?
    2. How big is your database vs. how much of it are you regularly marketing to?
    3. How many leads are email invalid, blacklisted, unsubscribed, or otherwise blocked from communication? Are you still trying to communicate to them?
    4. Are you getting everything you need out of your MAS and its integration with your marketing stack?

Let Us Help

Solomon Solution has a fully trained staff of marketing automation certified experts, making us one of the premiere service providers for when you want to do what’s right for your marketing automation system. Our focus is on engagement and crafting journeys that deliver the right messages at the right time. We will look at your marketing automation system and help you figure out what combination of optimization and strategy will drive the results you’re looking for. We service all kinds of marketing stacks top to bottom, from marketing automation to CRM to custom development.

Interested in figuring out how healthy your marketing automation system is? Want to make sure there isn’t anything terminal with your stack or how you could be doing it better? Drop us a line to discuss a marketing automation assessment.

Request an Assessment

Solomon Solution

At Solomon, we believe every lead, contact, and opportunity is more than a transaction – they’re relationships that need to be nurtured far beyond a single campaign or transaction. We are an engagement design firm that focuses upon the real motivators for strong customer engagement and we deliver actionable solutions and company-wide marketing strategies. Solomon Solution uses innovative products and expert consulting services to transform your customer engagement journey – from initial spark to advocacy.

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