Marketing automation improves data-driven campaigns
B2B marketers used to be able to visit trade shows to reach prospects, but Internet lead generation is increasingly becoming more common. While many companies do this effectively with marketing automation, marketing efforts need to be driven by data to succeed. Because B2B buyers are typically tech-savvy, companies need to adapt their strategies to reach prospects in the channels where they are already looking with an online marketing system, according to an article in CMS Wire.
Because of the technical nature of B2B purchasing, marketers need to use data to improve decision-making and campaign management. The business climate is changing, and the marketing team is seen as a strategic partner to the rest of the organization. But this role is not possible without data analytics tools.
CRM and marketing automation integration improve reporting
Marketing initiatives and bottom line results are closely tied together in many B2B organizations. Despite the new role of marketing as a major decision-maker within a company, many teams are at a loss when it comes to identifying the right metrics and making improvements to campaigns. Because companies have a large amount of data stored in their customer relationship management platforms, when integrated with a marketing automation system, marketers can make the most of their data.
Marketing automation makes it easy for the company to reach prospects at the right time, but these platforms include reporting tools that help the team analyze campaign performance. If marketers have poor data quality or an absence of formal analytics processes, marketing efforts can lose effectiveness.
With the tracking and reporting tools in marketing automation, marketers can demonstrate the return on investment of their activities to business leaders. Automated platforms can help the team generate higher quality leads.