Include specialized information to achieve better conversion

Whether you’re already using more advanced segmentation or still in ‘batch-and-blast’ mode, here are 5 information source stars that can help you target for better conversion in your outbound and cross-channel marketing. The more specifically you address your contacts’ needs, the more likely your message will resonate and prompt them to take action.

One of the challenges with specialized information for advanced segmentation is getting access to it. After we review the information and explain how to use it, we’ll go over how you can easily include this information in both your overall segmentation strategy and your day-to-day marketing.

First things first: Specialized data and how to use it for advanced segmentation

Some of this might be ‘old hat’, but one or two of these star sources might give your segmentation strategy some extra oomph.

1. Product information

Where to find it:  Your company’s ERP or Ecommerce systems

How to use it:  Knowing which products a contact has already purchased (or considered purchasing before abandoning) can help you target immediate cross-sells and upsells more effectively. You can also use this information, along with the information you already store, to identify who is likely to be interested in and enticed by specific content.

2. Opportunity information
Where to find it:  Your company’s CRM system

How to use it:  Let’s assume your marketing or nurture campaigns do a great job and create Sales opportunities. The last thing you want to do is send the wrong sort of marketing content to an identified opportunity. You may choose to suspend your marketing altogether and leave communication to Sales only. You can be even more effective if you know the stage an opportunity is in and send the right content at the right time to help turn that opportunity into a closed/won feather in your ROI cap. You can also use this information to catch abandoned or unusually old opportunities. The right SLA can allow you to resume Marketing efforts if Sales hasn’t reached out to the contact in a defined period of time.

3. Customer support data
Where to find it:  CSS System or wherever you track support tickets

How to use it:  There is a wealth of intel for your marketing efforts in the data locked up in your customer support system. Using customer support information for the good shouldn’t just be Product Management’s domain, include it in your segmentation analysis to find more ways to be effective with your messaging.

Not sure how this might work? Here are two examples:

• Example 1: Let’s say that X% of customers of product ‘A’ all had the same sort of issue that is solved in a new upgrade. If you can create a segment composed of customers who experienced the problem, you can send an extremely targeted and relevant message that can not only prompt an upgrade sale, but also deliver customer delight. You get a win-win: help your ROI and polish the brand at the same time.
• Example 2: You’ve experienced a hiccup in your service and customers called in to complain. Turn that lemon into lemonade: Use that information to target an email about the hiccup. Point those users to content that describes how to recover- or even better, how to avoid further problems. You just met their needs in a very timely fashion and they’ll remember it.

4. Video data
Where to find it:  If it’s not already integrated into your Marketing Automation system, look to systems such as Vidyard, Wistia, or wherever else you track your views.
Chances are you already track views – if for no other reason than to determine topic effectiveness and the ROI of what it took to produce them. If you aren’t using video, now is a good time to add this channel.

How to use it:  Plugging in view numbers for specific content into the segmentation mix can help make that next email or social step more effective. Send one message to Joe Customer who watched your video after viewing your blog post and also visited page A and B on your website. Send a different message to Jill Customer who visited pages C and D first, but only watched your video after viewing a social media post about it.

5. Webinar and Event information
Where to find it:  Systems like Certain, Cvent, and ON24. Tracking all events, from Trade shows and huge webinars to private dinners and everything in between can provide useful segmentation data to huge webinars including sign ups vs attendees and more.

How to use it:  Webinars, events and trade shows all use invites and sign ups. Add in tracking who actually attended and you can target your communications. Invite those that missed the event to the next similar one and tell them what they missed. For those that came, thank them and send them follow up information – including a link to any recordings or presentations.

Second: How to include specialized data on a real-time, ongoing basis

It’s not always easy to get access to information that is currently outside of your Marketing Automation system. There are 2 common ways to get this information that have significant challenges and a new way to access it that does away with the usual headaches.

Common approaches

Conventional integration
Integrating all your systems is usually expensive, time consuming, and let’s face it – often includes organizational politics. You have to get agreement and permissions from each system owner and develop processes and rules to satisfy their fear that you’ll inadvertently mess up their data. You also usually have to stand in line for the IT resources and services needed for the integration, not to mention playing ‘business case bingo’ against the needs of your peers for IT priority.

Workarounds and File Transfers
Workarounds often precede an integration- or result from not being able to integrate. These require reports to be run or file to be exported, – often by someone in another department. Once the results are sent, you usually have to manually manipulate the data and then manually add the lists they generate to your Marketing Automation system. That’s a lot of overhead added to your efforts.

One of the biggest drawbacks of workarounds is getting up-to-date data when you need it. Because you need to run a report to start the process, the data is always a ‘snapshot’ based on when the report was run. Because advanced segmentation usually needs real-time data, any time you want an update, you need to start the entire manual process all over again.

A better way to access and use information

There is an easier and better way to get access to almost any information source in your marketing stack – without the organizational hassles that comes with integration and without resorting to convoluted manual processes.

Imagine the possibilities if you could include up-to-date and accurate information from the data sources we listed- or any other data source.

How much more effective could you be in generating leads and opportunities?

4Segments is a cross-stack, visually-based tool that enables you to act on your ideas when you conceive them instead of waiting for an integration or having to jump through the hoops of a manual process.

You start by creating segments using multiple data sources in real time. Then you can send those contact lists to your Marketing Automation system for immediate use.

In addition to being able to use these segments in real time, 4Segments is visually based and works with all your systems. It’s simple and intuitive, so you can think about your segments the way you want to instead of having to step through Boolean logic or whatever procedure is imposed on you by your Marketing Automation system or other tool.

Your choices appear as a Venn diagram; you can choose the exact contact groups you want to reach and then export those lists for immediate use.  You can also choose funnel stage, waterfall or matrix views. This means you can use 4Segments to help you think strategically as well as for your day-to-day tactical tasks.

If you’re looking for a way to create better-targeted segments and do more advanced segmentation, then accessing and using specialized information will help you do it.  4Segments is easier to use and more cost-efficient than conventional methods. Find out more or get a demo – and see for yourself.