Our world functions under constant information overload. As a marketer, you’ve never had more data at your fingertips. There’s no telling what’s left or right, and up or down. The amount of information gleaned from customer activity easily overwhelms the uninformed viewer; thus, a successful data-driven marketer knows how to draw out the important information. In the age of automation, the easiest way to collect data is to have technology do it. Marketing automation platforms (MAPs) collect and store data from programs; without being able to maintain data collection, it’s impossible to see the value in it over time. Here are a few MAPs that you can look into:
However, there is no value in simply letting your data rot away in a corner that no one looks at. Three ways to examine your marketing data and improve your account based marketing strategies immediately are engagement, audience, and ROI.
Engagement
It’s the time-old debate: quantity versus quality. For data-driven marketing, you need both. Each interaction requires engagement to convert leads to opportunities; just because something gets a high number of clicks, doesn’t mean that people are engaging with the material.
The average person reads less than 20 percent of your online content.
The depth and quality of engagements is just as valuable as the number engagements tracked. Using tools like Google Analytics shows you how people interact with your programs. Time spent on content, follow through to the website, where engagement originated from are all ways to determine the quality of your marketing programs and their success at reaching new leads.
Audience
If you’re overwhelmed by all the data you’re receiving, imagine how overwhelmed customers are by the constant barrage of marketing strategies seeking their attention and investment. Marketing is more about the customer than ever before. Programs require targeted customization to create a narrative each market segment identifies with. Clearly define your audience before sending out a program because, chances are, you don’t need to send it to everyone.
ROI
ROI determines whether you should even run a program. The cost of the program in relation to the revenue gains in the future may tell you that based on program history, the program isn’t worth it. Without knowing conversion rates for past programs, you can’t determine the worth of a future program. As a result, aggregate data will show you if it’s sensible to run a program at all. There’s no reason to run a marketing program if it doesn’t make fiscal sense.
Conclusion: Drive Your Data
Looking at these three key indicators will help you improve you’re marketing strategies. Over time, your data will show you how you’ve made gains in new areas. An analysis of the data continuously throughout the year will give instant feedback on marketing strategies. This is preferable compared to letting your data go to waste until you begin annual planning at the end of the year. Data will immediately show you where to focus your budgets and resources throughout the year. Here at ORM Technologies, we provide optimized marketing metrics that let you know when and where to focus your marketing strategies. If you have any questions or would like to know how we can enhance your marketing metrics and data collection, please let us know at info@orm-tech.com.
