CRM Software Brings Accountability to Marketing Campaigns
What a difference technology has made to our ability to market more effectively. Not that long ago our options to a large extent were limited to television, radio, newspapers, magazines, conferences and direct mail to name a few. The real question to answer was how effective that marketing was. Marketing departments of course would always give themselves a rap, but did their efforts really turn into sales leads? The reality was that no-one could really be certain. Real direct measurement was difficult. Perhaps in a consumer environment results could be seen, but in a business to business marketing campaign it was even more difficult.
Why has technology helped marketing? Firstly, applications such as Microsoft CRM software have enabled us to record in depth details about clients and prospects. As this technology has become more sophisticated, the type of information has become almost limitless. In real time for each client you can access data that will tell you of sales activities, marketing collateral sent, customer service calls and resolutions as well as the age old contact details. Preparation is vital to the success of both sales and customer satisfaction and products such as Microsoft Dynamics CRM has made that preparation and knowledge easily available.
Marketing departments can now be more nimble in their approach. Given the right information, CRM allows marketing to segment people based on wide criteria. By using email and the internet, measurement is becoming much easier. Email campaigns can be developed quickly, sent to a select group of people and within hours results can be analysed. For example, you can understand if the email has been opened and at what time. By providing a link in the email to more information that comes back to your website, you can understand if an email recipient has taken the next step and clicked on the link. In fact you can “test” campaigns and determine which are the most effective before sending to a wider audience. If your campaign does not seem to be working you can make adjustments quickly.
Technology such as CRM software can bring accountability to marketing and alignment with sales and customer service.
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