July 25th 2011
Marketing Automation is Not the Magic Bullet for Your Sales Issues
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Sharon Drew Morgen recently authored a good article on the marketing automation guide on marketing automation. It spurred some good comments, many of which I agree with. As we develop more expertise in Content Marketing I see a very strong correlation between great content marketing and increased momentum through the sales cycle. As I read this weekend, “nurture your leads towards value, not the sale”. What bothers me is that technology companies seem to want to reach first for a technology solution, before they identify their major impediments to sales. Witness CRM systems that sales people still do not use. If they do use it, CRM does not improve the sales activities. Marketing Automation is now under that same cloud.
A long time ago I found that as a CEO you need to be in front of the customer to find out what they think of what you make and what you need to do to better serve their needs. Of course marketing automation will handle lots of leads and provide support to a strong nurturing program. But to do this properly you need compelling content, written for the buyer to support their buying process, when they need it. This is now the time for the writer, not an automated tool. The power is now in the hands of the buyer, not the seller. Buyers chose the field making the old push model, which never worked well, way past its best before date. Sales must be beefed up with a strong inbound marketing program. If you do not have the marketing chops already, buying a tool will not give them to you.
Related articles
- Demand Generation Necessary For Lead Generation! (customerthink.com)
- B2B Marketing Automation Industry Size and Segments (customerthink.com)
- Outbound vs. Inbound: The Risk Management Issue in the Complex Sale (customerthink.com)
Similar Posts:
- eMarketing Strategies for the Complex Sale. Ardath Albee
- Marketing automation (MA) likely a really bad idea for you.
- The long term sales view. Are you effective as well as efficient? Part 1 of a series
- Implementing a Value Based Sales Approach. Part 2 of 4. Marketing
- Lead generation for the Complex Sale. Brian J. Carroll
Category: Technology Industry
