Gone are the days when marketing (and marketing analytics) were primarily used to kick off the buying cycle. We were generating leads, “throwing them over the wall” to sales, and cheering from the sidelines. The internet, blogs, and social media have greatly expanded the role of supporting sales efforts throughout the entire buying cycle. Studies show that between 57-77 percent of the typical buyer’s journey involves self-directed research, often prior to contact with a salesperson. Now, marketing plays an increasingly larger role in moving buyers through their decision process. The Sales and Marketing Relationship From lead generation through purchase or prospect drop-off, marketing is responsible for creating content that matches a prospect’s needs at every step. What’s more, marketing must tailor content for audiences of specific communication platforms. It’s a growing list which includes Facebook, Google, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, Tumblr, Twitter, and more.
As a result, marketing is generally considered to drive approximately 60 percent of the sales funnel. And sales drives the remaining 40 percent. The Sales and Marketing Feedback Loop Under this new order, the sales and marketing feedback loop is more important than ever. It provides answers to questions like these and more: What marketing tactics and platforms are driving quality leads? Which marketing Diabetes Email List tactics and platforms are driving substandard leads? Where are prospects dropping off? Which messages/content are succeeding? Which messages/content are failing to meet expectations? “You can’t manage what you can’t measure” rings loud and true in today’s increasingly complex world of content marketing. And without detailed information, it is extremely difficult to make intelligent decisions to improve your results. Fortunately, there are plenty of marketing analytics tools that measure and evaluate the results of content marketing activities.
And, they support data-driven strategic decision-making to gives sales organizations a competitive advantage. Four Types of Essential Information Let’s begin by categorizing marketing analytics tools according to the four types of information they provide: Website trends – If you want to continue growing website traffic, you need to know where your traffic comes from. Which sources are delivering visitors—organic search, external links, email, etc. Understanding how long visitors spend on a site and on specific pages is valuable for creating content that holds attention. Identifying who is visiting the site will help craft compelling calls to action (CTAs). Assessing the effectiveness of your CTAs in driving conversions will pay off in creating future campaigns and landing pages that improve lead generation. Competitive benchmarking – Comparing results across various channels for key competitors identifies gaps and enables comparison of strategies and tactics.