Having worked in direct digital marketing and marketing automation, I’ve seen my share of implementations. Most follow the same pattern: big dreams of new revenue, the implementation of a multi-touch outbound campaign, some focused landing pages, and the requisite contact push to SalesForce (usually based on activity rather than any sort of lead scoring).

In other words, a very solid base effort…and if done right, the initial implementation that brings in a very nice bump in revenue and list response. But from there, improvements to the system can become neglected. Perhaps there is a regular quarterly refresh, but in other instances the entire operation may just lay fallow with a lack of focus or champion.

SO WHAT'S THE ISSUE?

When I ask the marketing team why these things aren’t getting more attention, the answer is usually a mix of issues: Lack of time, lack of executive interest ("We saw the ROI, why invest further when SnapChat isn’t getting the attention it needs?"), and often a lack of understanding of the core systems by the execution team. Marketing associates and interns who handle the day to day asset production just don’t understand the content management system, Marketo (or whatever), SalesForce, and all the other tools in marketing’s arsenal.

A SINGLE SOLUTION

This is where an integrated system really pays off. Whether you’re using Kentico, Sitecore, Sitefinity, or a number of other similar platforms, this integration translates to a system that gets the attention it needs. The reason is simple: these tools are at your production team’s fingertips every single time they make a website update. One interface. One tool to learn. And in some cases (with Sitecore in particular), the capabilities are intrinsic to day-to-day activity.

Once the tools are with your team, it’s just a matter of adding a few items to your checklist. Setting up a landing page? Set up a split test. Building a new page? Assign a user profile or tag it for the intended audience. Creating an outbound campaign? Don’t re-use the last campaign’s landing page…build a custom landing page that’s personalized based on the link that drew people in.

REAP THE REWARDS

This, in practice, is a minimal investment of time, and the results can be tremendous. An ongoing testing campaign will find those areas where a 1% or 2% lift can translate into substantial revenue. And using a single tool saves more money than you might think, from saved training costs, fewer platforms to upgrade (even SAAS systems change their approach and API, which has downstream effects).

Need to figure out which integrated system might be best for your business? We can help! Contact our MarTech team to request an evaluation of your custom digital marketing needs.