Boosting the service sector with cutting-edge marketing automation

Boosting the service sector with cutting-edge marketing automation 

The service sector has traditionally been defined as the part of the economy that produces intangible goods. In this sector, the consumer no longer behaves in a one-way direction, seeking a clearly defined product on their own, whether through a physical or virtual store, minimally interacting with the company at the time of payment for said item, and ending their relationship at that moment. In contrast, the commercial dynamics in the service sector seek a two-way, long-term relationship with close proximity to the customer, to meet their demands and needs in a more personalized way. 

This characteristic makes a more elaborate marketing strategy necessary, whose main challenge is the differentiation and personalization of a service among thousands of customers, while maintaining a more demanding level of attention, where customers expect to be contacted at the right time, and in turn be able to contact the company immediately under an efficient environment. Additionally, the current offer in this sector usually requires greater scalability, due to the demand for new and better options with the potential for growth in the number of subscribed customers that this means, and the increase in revenue for companies. 

Given this level of constant demand and growth, marketing actions must keep pace so as not to neglect either the brand or the customer, and in turn anticipate any competitive strategy that may mean loss of market share. Due to these demands, marketing automation is born, which seeks to optimize processes at the level of promotion, communication and customer service, through immediacy, and mass communication, while maintaining the level of personalization that customers expect. 

What does a service company need to start with marketing automation? 

To achieve adequate automation, the integration of 4 fundamental elements is required: large database management, scalability, personalization and security. Regardless of the size of the company, there is a robust offer in the market of specialized software in automation, and marketing professionals with experience in the field, which can be adjusted to their needs. We take as an example 2 prominent programs such as Oracle Eloqua, or Marketo by Adobe, which allow emails to be sent massively, making efficient use of the information available in databases to personalize names, dates, subscription information, among other elements, which are very useful for the customer to see only the information relevant to their business, despite receiving a mass email. This type of software also allows you to program complex Nurture-type campaigns, over time, in an almost unattended manner, where communications will be activated as the customer interacts with certain websites or forms, or when they meet certain milestones in their cycle as a user of the services. These processes in turn are integrated with CRM software to close the commercial cycle properly, and thus maintain a robust relationship with each customer. 

What role does Artificial Intelligence play in marketing automation? 

AI can be of great help in generating content for more personalized emails and websites, from the analysis of available data, and information provided by Bots specially designed for customer service, which can now be integrated into Nurture-type campaigns as part of each user’s cycle. However, proper integration with the supervision of marketing professionals is recommended, whose mission is to maintain the human factor in the interaction, since this is something highly appreciated by the customer, remembering that automation does not mean dehumanization. 

 

Picture of Sergio Cáceres Velasco

Sergio Cáceres Velasco

Production Manager
Red Design Systems