Marketing Automation
Wikipedia says, “Marketing automation refers to software platforms and technologies designed for marketing departments and organizations to more effectively market on multiple channels online and automate repetitive tasks.” So, things like drip campaigns scheduled through software like Pardot can be an effective tool to grow business. “Drip marketing,” according to Wikipedia, “is a communication strategy that sends, or “drips,” a pre-written set of messages to customers or prospects over time. These messages often take the form of email marketing, although other media can also be used.” Borrell and Associates recently released a chart of the impact of email marketing.
Last year, Salesforce predicted that marketing automation was one of the five biggest trends for sales teams. Media companies, however, are still heavily reliant on institutional relationships that have often been in place for decades.
Self-Serve Platforms
The new opportunities to sell multiple channel advertising packages created by local media companies’ online changes that dynamic.
The combination of the availability of self-serve advertising platforms from iPublish Media´s SMB platform, and the overall comfort with Do-It-Yourself advertising for local businesses means that a little work on the front end can produced hundreds of sales at a time.
Marketing automation simply means that different kinds of prospects receive different messages based on behavior, with each message design to drive them through the funnel. Email messages to prospects, for example can be based on their actions. How does a local media company create a list of local targets to send a drip campaign to? Let’s start with some basics: customers who used to do business with you (attrition list), subscribers (who often are the owners of small businesses), former subscribers (same thing). Local media companies can also work with companies such as Site Impact, who maintain all types of email lists. Local media companies can partner with the Chamber of Commerce in their communities, and host seminars and webinars for local advertisers to learn how to grow their businesses. Also important: create a list of existing accounts who may not be worth calling on in person because they are low margin and not a target growth account– see if they can be converted to self-service.
A business that has started to design an ad, but abandoned the check out, for example, could receive an individualized email tailored to help them “restart”, such as tips on calls to action, with a link back to the funnel. In fact, media companies may find their best advertising sales people are actually email marketers, and may be located in the circulation department, where marketers have years of experience driving online sales.
Implementing a marketing automation platform that enables organizations to more effectively market on multiple channels online and automate repetitive tasks is a much needed service for media companies to engage local businesses and it can drive substantial new revenue.
