How to choose the right marketing automation platform

Good question.

Whether you’re not getting the results you desire, your team is complaining about usability, or support has gone quiet on you, there are numerous and justifiable reasons why marketers choose to switch their marketing automation platform, and here are just a few:

Features are lacking

Maybe your business requirements have grown, maybe you’re new to the world of automation, or maybe you were simply missold. 

Whatever the reason, the realisation that your solution lacks in capability is frustrating. It can hold back your campaign and strategic evolution, cause you to fall behind the competition, and become costly when additional bespoke development is required.

To ensure that your business is keeping up with industry advancements, you need a system that does the same. 

The system is difficult to use

Your system has all the bells and whistles. Great!

But, it’s difficult to use. Not so great

If you and your team are spending hours navigating your system to execute campaigns and automations, then a great customer support team and a little training may be able to help. But, if the system still isn’t fit for purpose, it may be time to look for another solution which prioritises usability. 

Your business has grown

Wouldn’t it be great if all of us marketers had a crystal ball to predict our future needs

Unfortunately, we don’t.

This is why for many businesses growth and evolution can pose unexpected challenges and requirements. Some of which can become problematic for a business’s current solution. In this case, you may need to look for a platform which meets your new needs or offers greater scalability and flexibility. 

Customer support is letting you down

Even the most user-friendly of Marketing Automation Platforms can prove challenging at times. This is why a top-notch support team is essential to help you get the most out of the solution. 

If response times are dragging, your queries aren’t being resolved, or support is impossible to get hold of, then not only will your campaigns suffer but also you will be spending additional time, energy, and resource fighting fires.

Poor integration capabilities

The ability to integrate with a wide range of other business systems, such as CRM, sales, and customer support, is becoming increasingly crucial to execute a seamless marketing strategy.

If your system is lacking robust integration capabilities or is struggling to work seamlessly with other systems in your business, this can lead to messy data, poor inter-departmental relations, and drawn-out processes.

Multi-channel automation 

When looking for a Marketing Automation Platform, it’s a no-brainer that you’ll want to review what automation capabilities are available.

Some platforms may focus largely on email marketing, which for almost 80% of marketers remains one of their top 3 most effective marketing channels. However, with 72% of consumers reporting they prefer to engage with brands through a multichannel approach, we recommend prioritising solutions that offer a range of marketing channels.

Alongside email, consider popular channels such as WhatsApp Business, SMS, mobile apps, and even telemarketing and direct mail to ensure you are capturing each recipient in the places they engage the most. 

And don’t forget to review the solution’s campaign builders, for instance, does it offer a drag-and-drop editor, beautiful email designs, or dynamic content blocks?

Reporting and analytics

Naturally, having access to robust reporting and analytics tools will help you to continuously monitor and refine your campaigns for better results.

Any good Marketing Automation Platform should offer reporting on the basics, such as opens, bounces, click-throughs, unsubscribes, and spam complaints. However, you may want to consider a more comprehensive analysis of your data, including click maps, A/B testing, custom dashboards, and product insights. 

Integration capabilities

Whatever solution you choose should slot neatly into the current tech stack within your business. We’ve already discussed the challenges if this isn’t possible: wasted time, departmental conflicts, and poor data.

Most good Marketing Automation Platforms will offer integrations with all major CMS, CRM, and eCommerce platforms. But be sure to check that your key systems are supported.

If not, all is not lost. Many solutions can provide plugins to support integrations, or APIs that will allow you to build your own custom integration. However, remember to enquire about this process and any associated costs when making your decision.

Customer support 

Even if you’re a seasoned marketing pro, getting set up on a new system can be daunting. And this is only exacerbated if you have a team who are eager to get stuck in.

Excellent customer support is key to getting the very most out of your solution. Your support team will be there to onboard you, fix any issues, and help you get the very most out of your campaigns. Furthermore, look for a provider that offers a range of professional services, such as training sessions, creative services, managed sends, or consultancy. 

Lastly, dig into how quickly these teams will respond to your queries, whether you have access to a dedicated Account Manager, and if your potential solution offers a range of support channels.

Budget

Of course, these big decisions can often come down to budget. And as we’re only human, it’s easy to get carried away with features, functionality, and a charming salesperson, without realising additional potential costs. So, be sure to discuss costs such as dedicated IP addresses, data storage, additional features, and VIP support. 

To help with budgets, explore the free resources which your potential solution offers. For instance, are there accessible blog posts, guides, and webinars available to support your journey?

But also remember this solution should be a long-term investment. Paying more upfront on functionality, solutions, and training can feel costly, but will likely increase your bottom line in the coming months and years.

Reviews and case studies

You’ve delved into features, explored free resources, and had a chat with the support team. Now you need to explore what other customers really think of your potential solution.

Social proof, such as reviews and case studies, are pivotal when selecting a new solution. They provide insights into real-life experiences and can highlight both the strengths and weaknesses of a platform.

Case studies, in particular, are great for understanding how a solution can support businesses similar to yours, and may even spark your imagination for features, functionality, and campaigns you’ve never considered.

By now you have thoroughly researched your new solution and you’re ready to make the plunge. Congratulations!

But we’re not going to abandon you there. To ensure you get the very most out of your Marketing Automation Platform, follow our 6-step guide to change.

1. Start with a clean list

A fresh Marketing Automation Platform deserves a fresh recipient list.

So, ensure that your lists of unsubscribes, bounces, and spam addresses are transferred over to your new platform to secure the best possible deliverability health from the very start. You can also segment your lists for those contacts who haven’t opened in a set period, to ensure all of your sends are to the most engaged recipients as possible.

2. Prioritise your highly engaged recipients

When starting with a new Marketing Automation Platform, your most engaged recipients are worth their weight in gold.

Segment these recipients and prioritise sending to them from your new IP address before anyone else. By doing so, you will start building a glowing sender reputation from the get-go. 

3. Hold onto your sending domain

If you have spent time building up your reputation on your sending domain, you won’t want to lose these brownie points. Where possible, carry over your sending domain when switching solutions, so you’ll automatically be added to your contacts’ safe sender list, further improving your deliverability.

4. Slowly increase send volumes

We know you’ll be excited to start sending campaigns through your new system, but pause and take a deep breath. Because suddenly sending out larger volumes of campaigns from a new IP can cause serious issues. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) could potentially view this activity as suspicious, and as a result, reject your campaigns.

To avoid this, warm your new IP address by gradually increasing the send volumes over days and weeks. Slowly building up your sender reputation, and keeping your ISP happy.

5. Don’t forget your sign-up forms

One easy step to miss amongst the excitement of implementing a new system is updating the basics, such as your sign-up forms. 

To avoid people missing out on joining your mailing lists, make sure your sign-up forms are updated or redirected to reflect your change in Marketing Automation Platform. And conduct a quick audit afterwards to check all forms have been covered.

6. Keep an eye on your results

With the help of this guide, you’ve likely chosen and implemented a fantastic new solution.

However, that doesn’t mean great results immediately. Lots of factors can impact the success of your campaigns, so it’s essential to regularly monitor results from the start and adjust your campaigns accordingly.

In particular, monitor your bounce and blocked rates after each send to ensure you are not increasing your send volume too quickly. If you do notice bounce and block rates over 5% we recommend not increasing your sending volume for a short period, to continue building up your reputation.