The evolution of marketing automation has had a profound influence on marketers and buyers alike. From the days of spray-and-pray email marketing and complicated database marketing, the technology and expertise of marketers have truly elevated marketing automation as a practice. Today, we use technology to analyze buyers’ digital body language to personalize, engage, and incite action on dozens of channels.
But we still have a long way to go. Today’s MarTech platforms advance at an uncatchable rate. It is incumbent upon marketers to strive to make the customer experience better by being present, relevant, and helpful. This imperative to improve will be the underlying theme in how marketing automation evolves. The industry will need to shift to anticipating what buyers need and how to serve them.
In this blog, we’ll explore the top five trends that will define the future of marketing automation.
The Need for Experimentation and Testing
In traditional marketing, the costs for trial-and-error experiments were significant. Today, the capabilities of specialized testing tools allow marketers to make micro-investments in new channels and tactics that enable rapid optimization and course-correction.
The concept of experimentation will have a profound influence on the marketing automation industry. Marketers crave the ability to test and learn to get ahead of the competition and to connect with busy and distracted buyers. Those looking to achieve sustainable results will need to develop a fearless culture of innovation, with an iterative approach to strategy and tactics.
In a 2018 interview with VentureBeat, Steve Lucas put forward: “[The future] belongs to those who embrace change, act boldly on their convictions, and understand that the willingness to take risks is what drives innovation.” When it comes to marketing automation, these questions must be considered:
- Are we using marketing automation to deliver better experiences for our customers and prospects?
- Have we invested enough in experimentation, to try new things and new approaches?
- Are we using technology to automate processes that can free up time for our marketers to be able to think more strategically and holistically?
The Shift Toward True Omni-Channel
Many marketers today excel in mainstay digital channels like email and social media. However, the marketers that will be successful in the future will look at all channels holistically to build relationships with customers. What used to be known as integrated marketing, will be omni-channel marketing for the years to come. Technology will advance to incorporate and invigorate how marketers leverage these channels.
“Marketing automation is vital to omni-channel marketing,” says Helen Abramova, Marketing Automation Leader at Verizon Business. “Generally speaking, marketing automation is all about connecting the dots, creating a complete picture, and planning and executing upon your strategy. Of course, there are some gaps, as not all channels are easily tracked digitally, but that makes it even more important to collect and process all possible touchpoints.”
The marketers and MarTech platforms of tomorrow will embrace and integrate all channels, while still allowing for personalization and relevance every step of the way.
The Resurgence of “Permission Marketing”
Though almost 20 years since its publication, Seth Godin’s book Permission Marketing rings as true today as ever. With new data privacy laws and regulations, consumers and governments are requiring companies to take consumers’ personal information seriously and to treat it with respect.
New anti-spam and data acquisition laws necessitate earning the trust of your audience. To do that, marketers must provide value, and demonstrate authenticity and transparency.
“Being ‘anticipated, personal and relevant’ is not optional—it is a must.” Helen continues, “It’s easier to load a list and send them an email—but it’s so much more important to find the right people, create the right message, and deliver it at the right time.”
Business buyers today are informed, curious, and aspirational. The marketing automation of the future will evolve to support that: to let buyers know what is interesting and helpful, and what can be done to achieve greater heights for their business.
The Never-Ending Evolution of Social Media
The ever-changing landscape of social media further defines the future of marketing automation. Social media is rapidly becoming a staple in the lives of digital consumers. It falls onto marketing leaders to orchestrate the right mix of channels to best engage them. This includes listening to what customers are saying, guiding them to the resources and answers they need, and crafting the right conversations based on the given platform.
An online study from IDC showed 55% of senior decision makers tap into their social networks before making a purchase, a number that will continually rise in the future. Marketing automation can be a part of that framework by automating processes and workflows caused by specific social behaviors or cumulative activity.
The marketing leaders of the future will need to define the right marketing mix of digital, social, and other methods to move their business forward.
The Need for New Ways to Deliver Content
As the go-to channels become more saturated, it becomes more critical for marketers to communicate to buyers through new channels. This includes changing and matching the communication style, such as shorter content when consumers are busy, and more in-depth content when you have their undivided attention.
The growing trend because of advanced technology, a more reliable internet connection, and better devices is the proliferation of video. As buyers want faster and more visual explanations to become informed, marketers need to cater to this need by communicating in this new medium.
“Video content isn’t new, but the way in which marketers use video to connect to their audience is shifting,” says a marketing leader from an enterprise video platform. “Information that is typically consumed via written guides (tutorials, articles, updates) now can be delivered in a quick, digestible video that users can consume on their mobile devices.”
Along with an evolution of video marketing, the ideas of experimentation and new marketing mindsets will continually drive growth. Marketing automation teams can expect this to impact their future positively. These improvements will undoubtedly create a better overall experience for both buyers and businesses alike.