On the market right now there are 11 times more organizations using marketing automation than there were in 2011. Currently, 42 percent of companies have adopted marketing automation while 54 percent are using a CRM. An astounding 82 percent of companies use email marketing technology.
Marketing technologies in all shapes and sizes are integrating into the business world at a rapid rate. And, with this, comes a large selection of providers for organizations to choose from.
An important question to keep in mind when trying to select a marketing automation platform is: how do you want to communicate with your audience?
There are platforms out there that only offer one or two channels for you to use to connect with your users. Is that enough for your business? Even then, when a platform offers more than one channel in the same platform, they tend to be siloed off separately and don't communicate with the other channels. This means that you can have an SMS or an email campaign – not a marketing campaign that includes aspects of both.
Even with the high adoption rate of marketing automation, companies are not adopting the right technologies. Instead of selecting an option that has all the channels they need in one place, 57 percent of marketers said that their automation solution was separated by channel and was not well-integrated. Only 14 percent of marketers reported having a standard, fully integrated cross-channel marketing automation platform.
To avoid needing to change automation platforms after realizing that you need more out of the functionality, choose the platform with the channels you need all in one place. Additionally, you need to ensure that these channels are able to work together to make cohesive marketing campaigns that provide your audience with the right message through the right channel at the right time.
Using an integrated multi-channel marketing automation solution is beneficial to both you and your users. Some of these benefits include:
- Less duplication of effort
- Better automation
- One common opt-in process
- Cater to different preferences
- Have the most effective channel at each stage of nurturing
The SimplyCast difference is its seamless integration of communication channels that interact easily and natively. With SimplyCast, you may send an invite by email, reply by SMS, a reminder by voice, and confirmation by email — or any other combination that makes the most sense for your organization. With SimplyCast, you can incorporate different channels into a single communication flow.
To see the difference a comprehensive multi-channel marketing automation solution can make to your organization, sign up for a 14-day free trial of SimplyCast 360.
