What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the phrase “marketing automation”? Is it a detailed diagram of emails that are sent to specific prospects at scheduled times in your Salesforce marketing cloud? This has become the norm for many businesses, yet it is one of the most ineffective paths that you can take as a marketer. The most inherent flaw with this technique is that it begins with the marketer’s timeline rather than the prospects. The marketing team sits down and defines what information the prospect will consume, what actions they will take and how they will convert into a customer. The reality is, however, that you can’t control what your prospects do or in what order they would do it. You can, on the other hand, control how you react to your prospects behaviors. One way to do this is by using triggered emails.
Triggered emails are automated marketing messages that are based on a prospect’s behavior (or inactivity). These emails are effective because they are both timely and relevant. There are many ways to incorporate triggered emails into your marketing plan on Pardot:
When Prospects Download an Educational Offer
When this occurs, you can send an email with next steps or a call-to-action. Your triggered email can be a transactional email that confirms the download and any related information.
When Prospects View Specific Content
When prospects view content such as product pages or blog articles on your website, you can use this as an opportunity to send a follow-up email. The data you collect about prospects can be used to make your marketing more relevant. You can infer that people who view this content care about that topic and may want to know more.
When Prospects Mention Your Company on Social Media
If a prospect asks a question about your product or service, you can send how to or product feature information. Along with this, if a prospect mentions that they are evaluating a competitor, you can send third-party reviews or a comparison guide to help them evaluate different options.
When Prospects Have Not Engaged with You in a While
It is important to follow up on customers that have not engaged with your marketing assets after a certain period of time. A simple check-in or “how are you doing?” can be very effective to get a prospect’s attention.
Triggered emails are a great way to personalize your B2B marketing automation. Relevant and timely emails can be the last push to convert a prospect into a customer.
Still need some more inspiration? Check out this link to see some great examples of effective triggered emails.
