Beating the downturn

Ten easy to implement tips to improve marketing response

Woe is the life of the marketer, budgets are being squeezed at the same time that marketing channels have fractured, making it more difficult to target customers. Just keeping up with the new wave of opportunities that have grown in the last few years, (apps, social media, email marketing, mobile), is a full time job. So what is a stressed and overworked marketer to do when they are expected to get a pint out of a quart pot? In this article, I look at 10 easy ways to improve marketing response for hopefully little effort.

1) Test creative and keywords
One of the first rules of marketing is to run split tests to see what works. Web analytics packages can be used to review traffic increases and conversions from online activity. Traditional direct response marketing can be monitored using call tracking; the method of using an 08 telephone number that tracks all calls made to it providing the data via online reporting. A whole campaign can be tracked and viewed using Google Analytics™ (integrated with call tracking), so why not run a test prior to your next campaign to get an idea of how well it will be received. Send out two emails, each with a different subject line and monitor the difference in response.

2) Keep sales messages simple
In these straightened times, companies are looking to increase sales, but have less money to spend on branding. Our experience shows that customers are now so overwhelmed with advertising messages that it is becoming increasingly difficult to get cut through. If you try to be too clever in an advert it will go over a consumers head and not generate response. If you are trying to generate response keep the message obvious, it is better to generate more sales through simple to understand messages than win awards with great creative that only the advertising world understands.

3) Monitor response immediately
One of the great advantages of the internet revolution is that it has created monitoring systems that give virtually instantaneous feedback on how web sites and campaigns are working. As a result of reporting systems such as Google Analytics™, marketers are much more attuned to getting instantaneous feedback across all of their campaigns. The key to monitoring a campaign is having access to timely and accurate data. No longer is it acceptable to start a campaign and review its success a month after the end, data should be generated on a daily basis to show whether it is working. At the very least the following should be monitored:

• Telephone calls generated
• Web forms filled in
• Emails received
• Page impressions \ unique users
• Sales made over the campaign period
  • To new customers
  • To existing customers

4) Be prepared to make tactical changes quickly
When a marketing plan is put in place, much effort is devoted to ensuring all the parts fit together and then the campaign is rolled out. However, due to the fickle and fast moving nature of customer response, if a campaign is being properly monitored then feedback on the campaigns success should be almost instantaneous. If a campaign is not working, plans should be put in place to be able to change the message or emphasis to ensure it generates the response required.

5) Review the response handling process
Just because you can make the telephone ring, does not automatically mean that the call will lead to a sale. We find that up to 50% of calls do not even get to a salesman due to internal problems with how the calls are being transferred. Before you start a campaign, make sure you test all the different response mechanisms to ensure they are working and your team are briefed on how they should take customer enquiries.  If you are using call tracking to monitor sales calls, you can keep a close eye the campaign to ensure that all the calls are being directed to the right place.

6) Ensure customers can interact via multi channels
There have been two dramatic revolutions within customer interaction in the last 10 years and these have been the fracturing of response that marketers can use combined with the increase in response mechanisms. We are getting closer to creating one to one marketing which throws up significant challenges. In order to improve response, it is important to provide customers with response mechanisms regardless of the extra perceived cost of providing them. For instance many web based companies do not like to provide a telephone number on their web site because they do not want to be inundated with telephone calls. However, unless the company is a trusted brand, if a customer cannot find a telephone number this will often dissuade them from interacting with the company and therefore the sales volumes reduce. We have found that the simple act of putting a visible telephone number on a web site can double the sales volumes.

7) Listen to phone enquiries
Although companies are trying to drive more and more response online, in many industries, the telephone remains the key method of communication. You can spend lots of time driving people to web sites but consumers want reassurance and want to pick up the phone. If you are using call tracking numbers you will be able to monitor the amount of leads you are receiving. If these call tracking numbers have call recording attached to them then you can listen to the quality of the leads and understand what is motivating a customer ring the phone. If the calls are not sales calls then maybe you need to change the offering and advertising message.

8) Monitor the sales teams conversion rates
Using call tracking numbers and listening to the calls will allow you to understand the conversion rates from the calls. Just as you can follow online advertising through to an online sale, you can link telephone response from adverts through to a sale. This can be done either by listening to calls and seeing the customer journey, or by washing CRM data against the callers’ telephone numbers and linking these to sales. By linking actual sales to the marketing that generated the calls, you can refine your marketing spend – especially keyword advertising – to be more targeted and create a better return.

9) Keep a little budget to trial new ideas
As mentioned before one of the great challenges of current marketing is the fracturing of channels and mediums available to spend marketing budget. However, where possible every budget should keep back a small amount of “punt money” to trial new ideas or channels. As companies struggle to create cut through, they also find that the places open to them to advertise are the same as their competition. On the basis that fortune favours the brave, it is worth stretching your marketing reach into previously untapped areas. This will freshen things up and also keep your competition on their toes.

10) Report back and monitor all of the above
Plan – Do – Review, runs the old marketing mantra. Most companies do the first two well, but are poor on the review section. The best way to improve sales conversions is to focus on the review section. This involves putting in place reporting systems and process to monitor effectiveness. Once a baseline has been established this can be continually monitored and tweaked to improve response without hopefully having to increase spend.

To find out how Mediahawk can help stretch your marketing budget, please call 0844 243 5888 or email us and we will call you back.

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