Whether it is marketing for a global brand or a small community charity, there are certain tech basics that all modern-day marketing campaigns will need to have to be successful. This article details these aspects and explains why all marketing campaigns will need these tech basics. It is no longer prudent to choose whether to use technology in your marketing, but only rather what pieces and aspects of technology you need to use. Marktech (marketing technology) is now so much more than a buzzword, and if you want to get your business and brand message out there successfully and be able to monitor and manage the process, then you will need the following.
Image source
1. A Professional Website with CMS
Although there was a decline in popularity of the company website as social media marketing boomed, the website or landing page has become the hub for most companies marketing processes and systems. It is generally still the epicenter of the brand and, as such, is accepted as the first step in this process. The CMS will allow you to professionally manage the content on the site and make for a much more professional approach to what your business or organization puts out there. Systems such as WordPress, Drupal, or Joomla are all well used and recommended, but the final choice will depend on the type of content that you wish to put out there and how much effort will be required to understand the platform and get the best use from it. Many will have built-in tutorials and help bots to get you up and running, just be sure that you spend some time on this process and choose a platform or program that suits the aims of the campaign.
2. Clear Knowledge of the Other Programs and Software
There are specific pieces of software and programs that you can then add to the basic website or use the website to access and monitor. For example, for those who are marketing a political cause or running a political campaign, then Tatango is a must-know, and they will need to understand how such programs and software can be integrated and used in conjunction with the other platforms developed. Keep it simple and don’t add too many layers or programs until you are clear about exactly who they intend to reach and why. There are just so many options that can be used to include in your marketing tech stack and a great example is to have a presence on all the platforms that your audience uses. Or, to start in one place and only move and diversify once that specific target group has responded to the call to action, or the marketing message put out. The new marktech aspects to be aware of include gamification and online loyalty schemes, and all new aspects of your marktech that you will have to be chosen based on the perceived need or to be where your target audience is.
3. A Clear Message
Regardless of how many different platforms you integrate and link to the website, you need to ensure that all of them have a clear and consistent message. There is nothing worse than a convoluted message that loses clarity the further the audience gets from the original landing page or brand hub. Keep in mind that with the proliferation of various marketing platforms and outlets, there will be the need for different voices to interact with the different stakeholders and customers. You may very well use a different voice, but the underlying message must always be consistent, or you risk diluting the brand and confusing your target audience. This is something that you need to build and finalize according to the tech you intend to use. SMS messages will need to be short and sweet, while an email marketing message may be a bit longer and provide more details as to the product and how to access your services.
4. A Means to Measure and Analyze
To be able to analyze responses and the success of any marketing or fundraising campaigns your business or organization will need to record and monitor all responses and interactions between your target audience and the campaign message and call to action. Furthermore, being able to measure the success of the marktech stack that you have instituted is an essential aspect of ongoing improvement and being able to change the direction of the campaign to improve its effectiveness and efficiencies. Unless you have a clear means of monitoring all interaction and communication, as well as any related sales and after-sales support and care, then you will not be able to competently institute a successful marketing campaign. Flexibility and the ability to change horse in mid-stream is only possible if you fully understand the lay of the land and the marketing tech possibilities that you have at your disposal.
5. A Level of Automation
If you intend to reach a wider audience as well as build relationships with them that will sustain the business or organization, then you will need to set up a level of marketing automation that allows you to be in touch and respond to all those who engage with the campaign or marketing messages. You will need to have a clear understanding of the precise needs of the company before you automate, so that you have chosen the right processes and functions to be self-run. Marketing automation programs (MAPs) are the latest trend in marktech, and the aim is to be able to reach more people in your target demographic, but with less effort and in a means that is ongoing and continuous. Many firms and businesses use chatbots, frequently asked questions, and a 24/7/365 help desk where personalized and automated responses serve to assist the customer when and as they need such assistance. The ability to automate marketing, with mass email campaigns and bulk text messages has changed in that these aspects are still done, but they are more personalized and bespoke than ever before. This requires more precise Artificial intelligence (AI) for marketing and related support to ensure that the right messages go to the right subgroup and that all customer responses are recorded and monitored and then responded to by the business. Generic responses just won’t do anymore, and clients and customers want to feel important and special. Your automated marketing is now able to do just this.
6. Customer Relationship Software
Another vital level of the recording and monitoring process is about designing and using a CRM (customer relationship management system) to track marketing and sales information across all customers, to be able to determine whether there has been a return on investment and whether the marketing message is getting through.
7. Holistic Modern Marketing
The rise of holistic marketing in this modern era has arguably been the most successful means of setting up your marktech. The use of all platforms, all means and methods from the old and so-called traditional means of marketing to the most modern and tech-driven, they all have their place depending on who you want to reach and why. Keep your marketing campaign holistic and include as many different aspects as you need.
8. Look to What You Have Before You Add to It
Many modern businesses and organizations find that they have spent too much on their marketing stack and that the technology capabilities that they already had would have been sufficient to reach the target audience and disseminate the messages that they had planned. It is not a specific requirement but rather a step to take and to do a full tech audit before you rush out to improve the marktech. Tech underutilization has always been a major issue for marketers and advertisers alike to overcome. Keep this in mind and as a specific step in this process and you may very well save a great deal of time and money.
9. Big Data
The availability of masses of data on customer interaction, case studies of similar businesses, and the success of marketing campaigns in your sector are all the kinds of data that you must have access to. Big data must become the basis of all your marketing, and any financial spend in marketing and advertising must be supported with the data that shows it is an essential spend to make. This is the way of the future, and the present and big data will provide the basis for most of what your business now plans and implements.
10. A Clear Strategy Before You Build the Tech Stack
You will not be able to build a cogent and integrated marketing tech stack without a very clear idea as to what the overall strategy is regarding the marketing of the business and the brand. Although listed at number 10, the marketing strategy will need to be developed before you finalize your marktech.
Conclusion
These ten marketing tech basics will form the foundation of any successful marketing stack and you will need to have planned and thought this through in detail before you have any marketing success. Lastly, the advice as condensed and presented herein are those aspects that have been noted as the main success factors of a successful advertising or marketing campaign by a range of others in the business on the online marketing forums and blogs and are proven to have worked.