Companies continue to invest heavily in marketing campaigns, especially at the start of the year. Re-branding, rebuilding, and creating new marketing strategies are healthy activities to grow a business. Yet, often, disconnects happen within those marketing campaigns that leave companies spending money on campaigns that aren’t reaching their full potential. Krishen Iyer works closely with each of his clients to ensure that every relationship is given the best tools and support possible.
What Are Disconnected Marketing Campaigns?
The goal of any marketing campaign is to make a sale. However, the cost of marketing continues to increase, and with that comes the need to make every single transaction matter as much as possible. Instead of focusing on just one sale, most companies need to use campaigns to develop lifetime customers, those that will make the ROI of any campaign worthwhile.
Many marketers and companies as a whole struggle to do this. They may get a sale, but they don’t always develop a relationship the way they should. There are plenty of reasons this happens. In many situations, though, the problem is focused on one specific thing – a disconnect believes Krishen Iyer.
The lack of marketers and marketing campaigns connecting with customers properly is critical to the success of any campaign. This may be due to various problems – a lack of data, poor technology, or even experiential issues, that campaign will cost money that doesn’t return a profit.
“Recognizing that disconnects exist is an important first step. Companies need to work to address them as soon as possible before they become problems later,” Krishen Iyer states.
Consider a few of the ways campaigns fail due to such disconnects.
Lack of Understanding the Issue
One of the most common problems companies have is not fully understanding what customers want and need. What is the customer’s need? What do they want from the product or company? Customer experience is not just about creating a cohesive website that’s easy to navigate. It is also about improving the customer’s experience at every touchpoint whenever they work with the organization or come in contact with the organization.
Close the gap between what a customer expects to receive from the company and what they get to see results. That gap is where profits are lost when it comes to successful marketing campaigns. Unfortunately, when disconnects like this exist, it is often too late to bring that customer back in to fix the problem. That’s why it is critical to consider what is lacking in every customer experience early on and correct it quickly.
Lack of Data Use to Better Define Experiences
Many companies are collecting data – and that is a good thing. The problem is, only a small fraction of marketing companies are using that data to deliver improvements in the customer experience that customers receive. There are still challenges in gathering first-person data due to privacy rules, but tools exist to make this possible. The key is having the time and putting in the effort to make the switch doesn’t always happen.
When marketers use the available data for decision-making within campaigns, it’s clear to see opportunities exist. However, this data can also help to pinpoint those disconnects long before they become a problem.
It’s important to know that the quality of data is essential. “It’s not just about having data, but having high-quality data that relates specifically to the target customer base that matters,” says Krishen Iyer. There may be a need to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve data for some organizations. The automation these tools offer may help organizations achieve more of their goals using less funding to do so.
One of the interesting things about the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning is that more companies than ever want to use it, and many are doing so, yet few are actually applying these tools to the marketing segment of their companies. Marketing can significantly benefit from the use of automation tools like this when it is designed and implemented thoroughly.
These types of advanced technologies need to be seen as valuable tools across the industry. They are not just meant for manufacturing help or aiding in logistics. Rather, these tools can be utilized in marketing efforts in several ways.
- Marketing automation through artificial intelligence and machine learning may be beneficial in helping with customer segmentation. They allow companies to better use the data they have to improve customer segmentation overall. Better segmentation means that companies are more likely to send effectively targeted messages to customers based on various demographics or needs.
- The use of these tools can significantly improve time-consuming tasks through automation. Often, marketers are tasked with numerous mundane tasks that need to be done to create campaigns. In situations where these can be automated, that cuts down on the frustrations marketers may have when it comes to time management.
- Artificial intelligence may also help with improving campaign personalization. This, in itself, may help to improve relationships with customers and build more of an authentic experience. A lack of personalization in campaigns may cost companies money.
The investment and application of artificial intelligence and machine learning in the marketing sector creates a disconnect and limits customer growth. This is very important for organizations working on growing into enterprise-level brands.
What Can Be Done to Improve Disconnects in the Marketing Sector?
Krishen Iyer, the founder of MAIS Consulting, is constantly working closely with his client to find these opportunities for improvement. The company is dedicated to helping clients improve across the services they offer, including improving marketing efforts, building brands, and creating opportunities. At the core of this is knowing how to spot and improve disconnects.
At the heart of the marketing process is creating and launching campaigns, watching how they unfold, and making adjustments. What is holding the customer back? What type of experience does the customer have in reality, not just in what the company expects?
Look at all aspects of the customer experience. Is the content they are receiving thorough and on-brand? Does it overpromise on what the customer will receive? Is it under-promising?
It’s also important to look at the marketing technology in use within the organization. If automation, artificial intelligence, and machine learning are investments the organization has made, are they applying those tools to the marketing aspect of their business? If not, that could be limiting in terms of what these tools can do for the organization.
It is always important to consider the digital strategy being applied. Determine where the disconnects lie in the communication process, delivery, and customer experience overall. By pinpointing these areas of concern, it is possible to create sales and long-term customers. It is also possible to ensure each campaign’s ROI is really on point.
Krishen Iyer points out that marketers and companies that take a look at customer experience at this level may be better positioned to use marketing dollars wisely and achieve more than other organizations do.