This week we have explored the use of social media and multichannel marketing strategies in B2B practices and one of the more alarming statistics demonstrates that more than 3 out of 4 small business owners fail to use any type of automation. Not only does this waste valuable time and money, but becomes a critical area of concern when combined with the fact that 60 percent of business owners also list lack of available staff as a major obstacle to implementing a viable social media marketing strategy. As a social media consulting firm, we have seen first-hand how much time, money and effort can be saved via the use of automation.
Benefits of Automation
Before exploring the data details, a quick description of the benefits derived from automation is in order. Social media marketing automation tools come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes; from complex and costly solutions used by the big boys of business to relatively simple solutions designed to solve specific problems for small business owners. All marketing automation solutions have one thing in common; the ability to positively impact revenue, reduce staffing costs, eliminate many long term liabilities, increase growth potential to nearly unlimited levels.
Automation Trends
Market automation has experienced rapid growth and adoption rates among big business entities as a way to cut costs and increase revenues. Unfortunately, small business owners have been reluctant to follow the lead due in part, to the misperception that automation is expensive. While the initial investment may feel a bit more costly up front, the long term benefits are clear; reduced expense and increase revenue. However, there is another reason for the adoption delay among small business owners; marketing companies. Believe it or not, many B2B marketing organizations have been slow to adopt automation as a product or service offering to their own clients; in fact, only 7 to 10 percent of marketing organizations implemented automation platforms during 2010. As a small business owner, clearly one of the very first steps you should taken when selecting a social media marketing agency is to determine their use of automation. With over 100 marketing automation vendors to choose from, every social media marketing agency has an opportunity to offer a wide range of automation solution to their small business concerns.
Automation Outcomes
The use of marketing automation is expected to increase to 50 percent by the end of 2015?just three short years from now?with the vast majority of this increase due to adoption of automation solutions by the small business sector.? As more business owners are exposed to the benefits of marketing automation, the demand continues to grow. The most sought after automation outcomes include lead generation (76%) and the ability to close sales faster (81%). This isn?t surprising since the combination of automation and marketing yields an average of (ready for this?) 417% increased revenue! That is an average revenue increase among business owners which have adopted automation solutions as part of a well designed marketing strategy. The benefits don?t stop there ? business owners that use automation as part of the lead generation process report over 450% increase in qualified leads. Once those leads are properly nurtured, they make 47% larger purchases than non-nurtured leads. Impressed yet? It?s not a mystery why savvy small business owners that understand the potential of automation are rushing to implement. Unfortunately, these business owners are still in the minority due to a basic lack of knowledge, know-how and access to automation options.
Untapped Potential = Enhanced Opportunity
As we?ve already seen, many small business owners are actually limited by their selection of social media marketing firms. You can be sure, our clients are fully informed about automation options and the incredible outcomes made possible. However, the untapped potential associated with the reluctance of other business owners to adopt automation is actually an enhanced opportunity for growth among those that do adopt the technology. Consider this, even among those small business owners that have implemented some sort of automation, only 36% ? roughly one out of every three ? actually use it to nurture leads. As dismal as that sounds, even fewer use their platform to help follow-up later in the buying cycle; less than 10%. In fact, experts estimate that among those which have an automation plan in place, more than 75% fail to use them to their fullest potential. ?When asked about the failure to fully utilize available marketing automation options, the top two reported obstacles included 1) people problems and 2)the process. This exemplifies the final critical consideration small business owners must keep in mind when option to adopt an automation protocol.
Build for Success
The potential of automation is clear; 450% increases in revenue, enhanced conversion rates and significantly higher sales data. But all of this is only possible if the people and process fit your needs. Among business owners that have adopted an automation platform, failure to fully implement all features remains a constraint to success. Proper planning and preparation is essential to the long term viability of the platform. Decisions as to whether to outsource or keep staff in-house should be part of the planning stage. Likewise, details on how to evaluate information and create a comprehensive feedback loop is essential to fully understanding the power of data derived from automation. Search for a social media marketing firm willing to listen to your goals, objectives and obstacles during the planning stage.
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