There’s no denying that the business world has evolved rapidly in the last five to ten years. We now have Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and plenty of other technology at our fingertips, and this has shaped the way employees work, managers lead teams, and entrepreneurs run their businesses. If you find that you’re working harder than your software, though, then something’s not adding up. Remember: technology should work for you, not the other way round.
Want to reevaluate your tools and processes, and start harnessing the power of automation? In this article, we’ll walk you through how you can utilize marketing automation software, CRM systems, and other tools to improve your team’s productivity and generate more revenue. Read on to find out more!
Marketing Automation Software (And How It Impacts Your Bottom Line)
If you haven’t invested in a marketing automation software yet, it’s time to do so, pronto. These tools help you to increase productivity, reduce cost, and skyrocket the effectiveness of your marketing and sales teams.
The beauty of marketing automation software lies in its ability to take on the menial, tedious tasks that are eating up the bulk of your team’s work day. For instance, say someone fills up a form on your website, and this person gets converted into a lead in your database. With marketing automation software, your marketing manager doesn’t need to step in and assign the lead to a sales rep; this can be done automatically, based on a predetermined set of rules.
This does several things: first, it frees up your marketing manager’s time and allows them to focus on more strategic activities. Next, it allows your lead to get a response more quickly. Last but not least, it increases the chances of your sales rep successfully closing a deal with the lead (according to statistics, a whopping 78% of B2B buyers end up making a purchase from the first company that responds to them). It’s a win-win-win!
Before we move on to explore how to choose the right marketing automation software for your company, here’s one final thing to note: it’s been proven that marketing automation has a direct impact on your bottom line. More specifically, statistics show that marketing automation drives a 14.5% increase in sales productivity and a 12.2% reduction in marketing overhead. On top of that, 78% of high-performing marketers identify marketing automation as a key contributor to improved revenue.
How To Choose Marketing Automation Software
When choosing marketing automation software, be sure to consider whether the features offered by a particular software are consistent with your marketing goals.
For example, if your goal is to drive more revenue via a specific channel (such as email), you might be able to get away with using a software that’s channel specific. These tend to be lower cost, and you can integrate them with the rest of the tools/software you’re currently using for the rest of your marketing efforts.
Alternatively, if you’re working toward a goal such as generate 200% more leads, you’ll probably need a software that addresses the entire spectrum of activities that has to do with capturing leads. In this case, you might want your platform to come with more features, like a landing page builder, for example.
Making Your CRM System Work For You
Here’s the thing: not all CRM systems are created equal. The old-school options can be tough to use, require your marketing and sales reps to do data entry manually, and are generally a pain in the neck. The more effective ones, though, come with data automation features and integrate well with all the tools that your team uses, making adoption a breeze.
If you’re switching to a new CRM, be sure you get your team’s input, and choose a CRM system that’s user-friendly and simple to set up. More specifically, ask your team to compile a list of tools that they use on a regular basis, and check that the new CRM you’re looking at integrates with these tools.
If your team utilizes Sogolytics, for example, we integrate with Salesforce CRM. This allows you to easily import data from Salesforce into your Sogolytics account, or to export data from Sogolytics into Salesforce. Statistics have found that when a CRM system is properly integrated, the ROI of using that CRM can exceed an impressive 245%. With this in mind, it’s an area you definitely shouldn’t compromise on!
Cost-effective Automations To Streamline Your Workday
One common misconception about automation software is that it’s exorbitantly priced, and totally unaffordable for smaller companies or start-ups. But here’s the truth: Even if you’re a start-up that can’t afford to pay for a pricey CRM system or marketing automation software, there are other wallet-friendly automation tools that you can add to your toolkit when tackling all kinds of goals. For instance, use Calendly or Evie.AI to reduce the time your team spends on scheduling appointments and meetings.
A final word on automation and software
The average sales rep spends less than 36% of their time selling — the rest of their time goes to administrative work and other non-revenue generating activities. The good news? You can empower your team to become more productive, and allow them to spend more time on building relationships and selling. All you need to do is start using automation software and tools to streamline your workflow, and cut back on inefficiencies. Here’s to doing more with less!
Want to learn more about automation and integration with Sogolytics? Get a demo today!