No one likes tedious duties; that’s why we spend money on enterprise know-how. And that makes it all of the extra irritating whenever you discover your advertising initiatives delayed since you should enter a step or add an inventory manually.
Advertising and marketing automation workflows are the answer that makes your advertising sooner, extra environment friendly, and simpler.
Whenever you create advertising automation workflows, you guarantee a greater and extra constant buyer expertise. These workflows make creating segmented and customized communications simpler with 46% larger open charges. And this higher expertise results in larger conversion charges, elevated lead technology, and better income.
Maybe the very best a part of all is that, together with making your advertising simpler and your prospects happier, enterprise workflow automations free you from low-value, time-consuming duties.
This text will cowl advertising automation workflows, how one can create them, and 6 of a very powerful workflows to begin with.
What’s workflow automation?
Workflow automation makes use of know-how to automate and streamline the steps of a workflow.
One instance is doc workflow automation. That is the place instruments like DocuSign robotically notify every signer of a contract when it’s their flip to signal.
These instruments additionally stop customers from submitting the doc if they’ve uncared for to signal or preliminary. This safeguard in opposition to incomplete steps is one other function of workflow course of automation.
What’s a advertising automation workflow?
Advertising and marketing automation makes use of know-how to automate guide duties and steps in your advertising initiatives, usually through the use of conditional enterprise guidelines and triggers.
A advertising automation workflow is a step-by-step course of that particulars the automations that happen at every level of a typical advertising workflow — for instance, onboarding a brand new consumer.
Advertising and marketing automation workflows enable you to automate advertising duties by arranging individually automated advertising duties right into a collection of ordered steps that make your e-mail advertising campaigns simpler. Properly-done workflow automations might help you save time, keep away from errors, and transfer potential prospects down the advertising funnel sooner.
For instance, if a consumer opens an e-mail, that acts because the set off for the following step. That is how particular person factors of selling automation are linked to create a advertising automation workflow.
A fast instance of selling automation
If somebody subscribes to your e-newsletter, your workflow automation software program provides them to your e-mail listing and sends them a welcome e-mail.
Ideally, every step within the gross sales funnel ought to contain some type of advertising automation. For example, a advertising automation workflow for lead nurturing may start with the consumer turning into a lead.
Your advertising automation software program will add their e-mail tackle to the suitable e-mail listing on this first step. For the following step within the workflow, your e-mail advertising software will robotically ship the primary nurture e-mail marketing campaign.
How do advertising and operations work collectively?
Whereas advertising automation workflows may be extraordinarily highly effective and in the end save your workforce effort and time, creating them requires forethought and precision. That’s why your advertising workforce and operations workforce have to work intently to construct the workflow.
Often, entrepreneurs will create a imaginative and prescient for the shopper expertise, and the operations professionals will present the technical and operational experience to automate the method. If operational realities make a part of advertising’s imaginative and prescient inconceivable, it’s as much as each groups to get artistic and discover the very best different.
Why do you want workflow automation?
Workflow automation means that you can enhance effectivity by lowering the period of time spent on guide duties in your advertising workflow. Workflow automation could possibly be the reply when you’ve got extra duties than manpower or if issues are falling by means of the cracks since you don’t have time to personally information accounts from one step to a different.
Plus, automations like these make it simpler for advertising and operations groups to work collectively.
Maybe the best approach that workflow automation saves you time is by making a repeatable advertising expertise. As an alternative of figuring out what must occur each time a buyer takes an motion, you might have mapped out their course and determined what comes subsequent.
Higher but, your workflow automation instruments are already doing it for you.
How do companies profit from advertising automation?
It’s not simply you and your coworkers who profit from advertising automation. Clear workflows and automation additionally create a greater buyer journey. Your contacts obtain the suitable content material and communications on the proper time, which helps information them towards a purchase order.
Clients not have to attend so that you can ship them related emails or sources manually. Small enterprise automation focuses on easy workflows that assist owner-operators and managers save time.
Mike Morrow is the founding father of Morrow Audio, which supplies cables and different audio gear to prospects in 70 nations. “I like to consider what else I may do by means of automation to raised serve the shopper,” Morrow says. “The alternative ways to create curiosity, and the best way to give them one thing they need.”
Advertising and marketing automation additionally frees up your time and vitality for extra impactful work by taking small and repetitive duties off your plate. Morrow says, “With all the automations that we’re utilizing, the shop runs by itself. I’m capable of concentrate on different initiatives.”
A survey of selling professionals revealed that, after utilizing advertising automation, 56% noticed a rise in conversion charges. Different advantages included elevated productiveness, elevated leads, and elevated income.
Let automation deal with the gross sales funnel and convert each potential buyer whilst you concentrate on working the enterprise.
How one can create a advertising automation workflow
Advertising and marketing automation sounds nice, however some individuals really feel intimidated by the know-how. Don’t be. We’ll enable you to get began by protecting the important thing parts of an environment friendly advertising automation workflow.
Triggers
A set off is an motion or occasion that tells your know-how it’s time to maneuver on to the following step. Sometimes, a set off will probably be some sort of consumer motion (or a interval of inaction).
In ActiveCampaign, when establishing your advertising automation workflow, you possibly can select from triggers corresponding to submitting a kind, clicking a hyperlink in an e-mail, making a purchase order, and extra.
Actions
In programming phrases, if the set off is your “if,” the motion is your “then.” That is the motion your advertising automation platform will absorb response to the set off. For example, if somebody opens an e-mail (the set off), then your system sends them a follow-up e-mail (the motion) 48 hours later.
Situations
Situations are traits that have to be in place for the system to finish the triggered motion. For instance, customized reductions and particular presents are widespread examples of e-commerce advertising automation.
You could possibly create a advertising automation workflow the place the set off is a buyer finishing a purchase order, and the motion is to ship them a reduction code for the following time, however provided that the preliminary buy was $50 or extra. On this case, the consumer should carry out the set off motion and meet the situations for the follow-up motion to occur.
Situations exist to set guardrails round your automations to verify an motion is simply triggered beneath the suitable circumstances. Situations also can function a fork within the consumer’s path. If the situation is met, they obtain one message, and if the situation shouldn’t be met, they obtain one other.
Time controls
Time controls, generally known as movement controls, are what you employ to find out when exactly an motion is taken. With customized time controls, most of your automated advertising duties occur on a delay, from as brief as a couple of minutes to days and even weeks later.
Whereas constructing a advertising automation workflow to your gross sales funnel, consider:
- The set off tells your system that an motion have to be taken
- Situations present guardrails to verify the motion is acceptable for this contact and scenario
- Time controls decide when the motion is taken
- The motion engages with the contact to deepen and proceed the connection
What makes advertising automation workflows so highly effective is that, after the motion is taken, the consumer has a chance to set off a brand new set off, which units the following step of their buyer expertise in movement. An improved buyer expertise in the end results in larger buyer retention and elevated income.
High 6 advertising workflow automations
There are an virtually countless variety of doable advertising automation workflows between completely different triggers, situations, and actions. Happily, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.
There are a number of widespread advertising workflows that almost all companies discover helpful. Learn on for six of the commonest and beneficial advertising workflow automations you possibly can adapt for your online business.
1. Welcome workflow
Whatever the services or products you supply, first impressions matter. That’s why so many companies take care to create an partaking collection of welcome emails. You could possibly even section your welcome e-mail workflows when you’ve got extra than simply subscriber contact data.
2. Onboarding workflow
The way you onboard a brand new buyer generally is a pivotal consider whether or not they stay a buyer. If welcome e-mail messages make sure you make a superb first impression, an onboarding workflow ensures that your working relationship runs easily. An onboarding workflow will happen after somebody purchases or begins utilizing your product.
3. Re-engage workflow
One of the crucial efficient makes use of of e-mail advertising automation workflows is re-engaging contacts who’ve stopped interacting with you. You possibly can create a set off based mostly on what number of days because the contact final engaged or what number of emails they’ve obtained however not opened. This set off tells your system to begin sending messages designed to achieve and reactivate inactive customers.
4. Lead nurture workflow
A lead nurture workflow will information contacts by means of an extended shopping for cycle, a significant workflow automation. It makes use of their actions to assign consumer attributes and triggers probably the most acceptable advertising messages.
A lead nurture workflow can incorporate e-mail interactions, web site exercise, SMS advertising, and extra. The higher built-in your completely different programs are, the smoother your lead nurture workflow will run.
5. Renewal or upselling workflow
When you’ve made the preliminary sale, you wish to preserve that buyer loyal to your organization. A renewal or upselling workflow will assist retain prospects and maximize the worth of every buyer relationship. That is nice since buyer retention is extra reasonably priced than buying new ones. Buy historical past and buyer particulars might help you recommend extra merchandise they may like.
6. Deserted cart workflows
As soon as somebody has chosen a product and positioned it of their digital cart, they will nonetheless get sidetracked or have second ideas. The truth is, the speed of cart abandonment is almost 70%. An deserted cart workflow can automate the method of finishing that sale. Deserted cart emails stands out as the best and most profitable e-mail automation workflow to arrange.
Get began with advertising automation workflows on ActiveCampaign
“Advertising and marketing automation workflow” may sound like an intimidating time period, but it surely’s actually only a means of utilizing two extra widespread instruments, advertising automation and workflows, in tandem. Automated workflows can prevent effort and time and supply a greater buyer expertise, main to raised enterprise outcomes.
The simplest strategy to get began is to decide on one among ActiveCampaign’s pre-built automation templates. You possibly can all the time alter the template to your wants, however importing these pre-made automations makes beginning (or ramping up) your automations a lot easier.
Even should you’ve struggled with previous makes an attempt at advertising automation, it’s by no means too late to make your life simpler and your prospects happier.
Wish to see how ActiveCampaign might help you create extra highly effective and fascinating advertising experiences? Begin your free 14-day trial immediately.
