Retaining customers is quite challenging not only in the SaaS industry but also across industries that provide various services. Marketers need to be constantly on the lookout for maintaining a strong digital presence and keeping up with the ever-changing customer needs. With an optimised marketing technology stack, i.e. a robust set of tools, you can deal with more data.
Did you know that marketers use only 42% of their MarTech stack capabilities to their full potential? MarTech stack optimisation is pivotal to moving prospective customers down the funnel, engaging with existing customers, and improving the overall business. Here are a few aspects that you need to consider to determine whether you are making the most of your stack.
- Are your prospects reaching the bottom of the funnel?
- Is your current MarTech stack satisfying your needs and providing ROI?
- Is your stack updated with the constantly changing business processes?
- Is your technology stack fully integrated, and can you get a full view of the entire customer journey?
If the answer to these questions is no, you need to first take stock of your current tools and follow the tips below to ensure complete optimisation.
6 Tips to Ensure Seamless MarTech Stack Optimisation
Evaluate your marketing strategy
Using the marketing technology that best fits your business requirements demands a clear understanding of your marketing strategy and the relevant channels that support it. Start off by understanding different marketing channels that need to be used to attain your business objectives. Perform a deep dive and evaluate your current MarTech tools, analyse your core objectives, and choose a marketing channel that aligns with them and boosts conversions.
Analyse your current stack
Rather than continuously hunting for new technology or tools, gather your inventory of existing tools and look for ways to use them efficiently to maximise your ROI. Audit the pre-existing platforms to identify what is underutilised and what aspects can be incorporated to achieve your goals. Browse the web and visit various forums to gather all the required information on the existing tools. Look for ways to maximise the potential of the existing MarTech stack, such as searching for hidden features or less-used attributes. Evaluate MarTech tools before you incorporate them into your stack.
Choose the right tools
More than 51% of MarTech tools used by organisations end up performing identical or overlapping tasks. Did you know that most businesses choose MarTech tools that do not align with their business goals and end up paying extra for features that are irrelevant to their industry or marketing objectives? Most businesses tend to overlook the time and effort involved in training the teams to use these tools, so please pay attention to that. Choose tools that are easy to use, programmed to solve multiple challenges, involve low deployment costs, and a reasonable licensing fee. Most importantly, analyse and understand your business needs before choosing a solution. This will help you minimise the risk of paying for features that you do not require.
Choose the right vendor
With multiple options available for choosing vendors, you need to make the right decision. When selecting a new solution, the company behind the technology is as important as the technology itself. Keep your business needs in mind before choosing the right vendor. Ensure that the vendor is focused on framing a MarTech stack that is a tailored fit for your needs.
Align marketing and sales teams with MarTech
Aligning marketing and sales teams not only improves revenue and organisational performance but also ensures a smooth buying process and improved customer experience. Start with connecting tools together for automated workflows to move prospects to the bottom of the funnel. These workflows help bridge marketing and sales tools for better insights into the customer’s buyer journey across all touchpoints. Also, sync data bi-directionally and identify metrics and KPIs that are important for marketing and sales.
Invest in team training
Newer team members may not have a clear understanding of the same system, resulting in the underutilisation of the MarTech stack. Ensure that training and development are deployed to bridge the gaps in all areas. Consider any hidden costs involved in training your team and make the required changes to the budget.
What Does a Winning MarTech Stack Look Like?
Here are two MarTech stack examples that are worth reviewing.
Three stage stack
In this method, you need to break your existing stack into three key stages: attract, engage, and optimise. This helps you develop a stack that helps you meet your basic marketing requirements. Use an advertising tool to attract customers, and look for a way to engage with your target audience by using a social media platform. However, you need to design your stack so that it continuously analyses and improves your marketing efforts. Start off by using a social media channel to promote your brand in front of the targeted audience. Use a content management system that helps B2B brands get the right content. Finally, analytics can be used to get clear-cut insights and ensure that marketing efforts are on the right track. Integrating with CRM software is also vital for a successful MarTech stack.
Multi-step approach
If you are a larger, well-established brand, it is ideal to invest in a multi-step approach to create an optimal MarTech stack. SaaS companies can focus on this approach, as customer retention will be the core of their marketing objectives. ESRI, a GSI mapping software and location intelligence company based in India, has implemented a six-stage approach in their MarTech stack. This approach involves productivity, communication, acquisition, nurturing, retention, and insights. It has helped them rise to great heights and achieve increased customer engagement and retention. However, if your budget does not support this, you can go with a scaled-down approach that focuses on productivity, communication, acquisition, nurturing, retention, and insights. Ensure that the MarTech stack is integrated with all of these elements, and you will be sure to see the success of your marketing efforts.
Successful MarTech Optimisation by Major Brands
Nike
As a leading sportswear brand, Nike has used social media to connect with customers and drive engagement. By using platforms like Instagram and Twitter, Nike has been showcasing its projects with followers. Their MarTech stack has been optimised to the fullest, resulting in increased online sales and improved brand awareness.
HubSpot
As a leading MarTech solutions provider, it comes as no surprise that HubSpot has used its own inbound marketing strategies in its MarTech stack to drive impressive growth. This enabled them to drive more traffic and generate high-quality leads with improved conversion rates.
Amazon
As the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon used state-of-the-art AI along with a highly-optimised MarTech stack to optimise its advertising campaigns. They also were able to deliver personalised, relevant ads through machine learning algorithms. Their optimisation resulted in increased click-through rates and sales.
MarTech Stack Optimisation Done Right with Vajra Global
Building a team and investing in the right set of tools to build and optimise a MarTech stack can be challenging. At Vajra Global, a leading MarTech solutions provider, we have a team of experts with years of experience under our belt to empower your marketing efforts and optimise your MarTech stack to best fit your needs. Also, you can get access to a plethora of marketing automation tools at a reasonable price as we are a HubSpot Gold Partner. Automation is the way to go, as it is the key driver for business growth. We help you by building a definitive automation strategy and MarTech stack that is sure to nurture delightful customer relationships and satisfy your business goals. For more information on MarTech optimisation, get in touch with us here.