Advantages of Creating an Integrated Marketing Database for Your Business
Filed under: Data Cleansing and Enhancement, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, General Marketing, Marketing Technology Solutions, Uncategorized
Integrated marketing is creating growing complications for most businesses to manage their customer data. Customer Email data management requirements for opt-outs and bounces are often difficult to maintain, and creating intelligent landing pages for customers to provide you with updated customer data adds yet another level of complexity.
In our opinion, one of the easiest ways for organizations to address these new complexities is to create a replicated marketing database driven from your enterprise customer data management tools. Rather than trying to make your enterprise tools something that they are typically not meant to be, creating a replicated marketing database provides the security and fully functioning marketing features for integrated electronic and traditional communications to your customer base.
While you may be concerned about costs, we find that this approach provides significant advantages:
- Typically costs much less than trying to customize your own enterprise system
- Can be launched much quicker and with less hassle than changes to your own system.
- Immediately offers more features (i.e. Landing pages for customer email and general updates, customer preference centers, activity reporting, demographically enhanced customer data) that would require even more costs and development time if done internally
Given the growing demands for integrated marketing communications, you are likely looking at this area if you haven’t already set a strategy for your organization. We recommend that you consider this approach when you do.
Feel free to give us a call to discuss options in this area, or listen to our recent webinar How Changing Communications Trends Drive Integrated Marketing ROI for more concrete Direct Marketing Association facts in this area. You will also find an overview of ICS’s Integrated Communications Platform (ICP) which may be consideration for your business as well.
Our Technology Solutions provide administrative efficiencies for Marketers
Filed under: General Marketing, Marketing Technology Solutions
I was working with a client this week who was looking to implement a new Customer Loyalty program. Our role in the opportunity was to create a new technology portal to manage their customer loyalty activities via the web. This year’s program was going to increase in size … forcing the client to look at more efficient ways to manage the activities.
Our MarketSmart Technology Suite was able to provide this client with advantages in two distinct areas:
First, our technology platform was able to provide clients with a start up advantage. Our “object-oriented” approach leverages pre-built modules of functionality. While we completely customize the application around the unique business processes, our development approach allows us to build solutions for a fraction of the cost, in a fraction of the time of a traditional new build, and with more advanced features right out of the gate.
While startup advantages are critical, the real eye-opener for many clients is the ongoing administrative advantages of today’s technology solutions. Through the typical lifecycle of marketing programs, ongoing efficiencies will pay even greater dividend for clients:
- Clients can now have direct access to real-time reports right from their desktop — versus having to make a call, connecting with a coordinator and having a report run. This takes time and the client will likely be charged for the processing.
- Questions and issues can be quickly resolved via administrative access to the system
- Communications can be structured to clients or participants via email versus traditional print and mail communications
- Updates and alerts can be built into the application to notify you when key issues develop
- Customer Fulfillment activity can be electronically managed … saving you hours of administrative logistics (and expense)
While we will see if we win this business, this is another perfect client situation where we can really change the business model for the marketing organization. Through advanced, data-driven technology, we can reinvent administrative processes … allowing our customers to become more efficient, more productive, and more cost-competitive for their clients. And similar repeat business will become even more profitable.
Today’s marketing technology solutions directly translate into lower costs and higher customer satisfaction. If you are still working in an outdated legacy system environment, you may have an uphill battle long-term. And you are likely battling with competitors who have already made the transition.
