# 1-NO PASSION:
As in any endeavor, it certainly helps to have passion if you are to succeed. So it is with marketing automation for industrial marketers.
Marketing automation is one those new shiny objects that attracts so many. Just the phrase, “marketing automation” sounds euphoric to a busy industrial marketer.
Almost without exception, most industrial business owners struggle with marketing in general. They all tell me so. So…when a new strategy includes “marketing automation”, their entrepreneurial brain shifts into overdrive.
The panacea they think it could be…it is not.
I have two good friends right in Kalamazoo that are using marketing automation successfully and I can tell you that passion, in otherwise “boring” industries, is the key ingredient.
If you do not have a passionate evangelist in your organization, don’t even think about marketing automation.
If you are serious about marketing automation and want to meet these people, give me call (269-375-0349). I will take you to lunch with Dan or Tom. See for yourself what a passionate marketer looks like.
#2-A BRAND THEME THAT DOES NOT RESONATE:
Let’s face it, people hate advertising and marketing that interrupts them…especially the more technical crowd industrial marketers are trying to reach.
In a world of sameness, in a world of me-too marketing, in a world of “best service” & “best quality” a strong brand theme that is memorable and resonates can be the difference between the chosen company or not.
In our time-squeezed world, content deployed using marketing automation that hits your audience upside their head can mean the difference between success and content that disappears into the cyberspace black hole.
#3-WHERE’S THE “BEEF”?:
Where is the strategy? As in any major endeavor you must have a well thought out and documented strategy. Abraham Lincoln said it best, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening my axe”
#4-REPLACED CONSTANT CONTACT?:
If done well, e-mailing marketing can be effective, as long as you do not purchase lists.
No spam here.
Your recipients hate it and they will hate your company for it. I am talking about nurturing your audience with content that has engaged them and then opted into a newsletter.
Many industrial marketers will purchase marketing automation to do e-mail marketing thinking it is e-mail on steroids. Well it is…but so much more.
When industrial marketers deploy marketing automation simply for e-mail marketing, they are missing the ability to optimize their content for SEO (search engine optimization). They are missing opportunities to score prospects that visit their web site, open e-books, open informational e-mail. They are missing opportunities to see which landing pages attract the most traffic. When you can easily analyze what content your prospects love, it is much easier to keep producing it and stop producing content they hate.
Most importantly, they are missing opportunities to create dashboards that get to the “beef”. Marketing automation can be a huge waste of time for your marketing department, especially for the ADD crowd. There is so much data it is easy to suffer from analysis paralysis.
A good marketing automation program makes it easy to see what works and what does not work…at a glance.
#5-NO CULTURE OF CONTENT:
Obviously, for marketing automation to work, takes great content.
To develop helpful content that is loved by your audience, takes a culture of content. You need to have regular meetings with the sales, marketing & customer service to determine the content that will be most helpful to your audience.
And…it sure helps to have a passionate evangelist leading that culture.
#6-NOT ADDRESSING YOUR BUYER’S JOURNEY:
A successful marketing automation strategy includes identifying your buyer’s persona. What makes them tick? What keeps them up at night? What information would make their daily lives easier?
Once you figure out who they are, then you need to figure out where they are. At what stage in the buyer’s journey are they? Are they just sniffing around? Are they looking for another provider? Are they just looking for product information? Are they ready to make a decision?
Once you determine who your prospect is and what stage he is in you can develop content to nurture your prospect. Of course, you will be wrong on some of the content. However, with marketing automation you can easily make adjustments that will hit the target with your next campaign.
content marketing for industrial using marketing automation is evolutionary/revolutionary There are bound to be screw-ups. Can you contribute any of your own?
Maybe you are ready to raise your hand and say “Help”. Click the graphic below for a COMPLIMENTARY 30 minute consultation.
