Freya Oxton-Grant
As a building product or construction business, you know that the buying cycle for the industry is long and complex, and that maintaining a one-to-one relationship with prospects and existing customers at each point is quite a difficult task.
That’s where marketing automation comes in. It doesn’t just help put your marketing activities on autopilot, but it helps you keep on top of building and maintaining that customer relationship, especially when customer experience is all that matters in the decision to buy or not to buy.
Investing in marketing automation, is also an investment in improving your specifier’s customer experience.
Today’s Customer Experience
Traditional ways of marketing to customers through cold calls and direct mail are not as successful as they once were. Today’s buyers are empowered through the use of the internet. They know what they want, where they can get it, and can do this research independently.
Building your business’ brand, and the associated trust in it with your customers, is not an overnight task. It takes time, effort, and planning. Finding those significant touch points where you can truly engage, interact, and delight your target customer is complex.
It all comes down to offering them valuable and tangible contributions at their preferred space and time and continuing this even after they have purchased from you with customer support. Finding these ways to delight your customers with each interaction, and each time they switch device, all works together to improve your engagement and satisfaction.
You also have to think about strategy: consider each stage of your buyer’s journey. Are they in the consideration and research phase or are they in the decision stage? This makes a difference in how you deliver effective communication.
Sales teams no longer have to actively guide prospects along, marketing automation can do it in the background. If you want to read more about how marketing automation can help you in each stage of the buyer’s journey read this: 5 Ways to Automate Your Construction Business' Lead Generation.
How Your Customers Benefit from Marketing Automation
Marketing automation gives you the ability to deliver targeted and personalised interactions, through lead nurturing and follow ups, while saving you the time and effort of doing it all manually. The thought and care are there, but the hard work is not.
This means well-planned automated lead nurturing builds trust and loyalty in your business and therefore improves overall customer experience. This is especially important for new customers who need that extra bit of support when they first purchase from you.
Automated after-sale follow up and customer service is extremely important to make sure your customers know you are there still, even once the chequebook has been put away.
Its also important to note that your marketing can not be a one-size-fits-all strategy. Each prospect you have will be at a different stage of their buyers’ journey. Through marketing automation, you can score leads with how ready they are to buy and set up workflows that are customised to their needs.
This is great for your customers as they get relevant information and advice, but also good for business as this approach can double your chances of converting these leads.
Craft a Seamless Customer Experience
Marketing automation allows you to stand back while authentic interaction and engagement happens with your prospects and customers.
Even though the technology may be sending the emails or social media messages, you were the one that crafted the message with your tone of voice and helpful content. The automation system then delivers the communication and improves your customer’s experience with your timely, relevant, and personalised attention.
A good customer experience is one where the final feeling your customers have about your brand is trust and positivity. It is the outcome of consistent, quality interaction with them throughout their entire buyer’s journey.
Maintaining this from beginning to end gives them a reason to stick around and even become advocates for your business.
A seamless customer experience benefits from marketing automation through its efficient and effective way of nurturing prospects and delivering them the right content at the right time.
Want to learn more about marketing automation for your building products or construction business? Read our BEGINNER'S GUIDE to Marketing Automation for Construction Companies.
About Insynth
Insynth Marketing is a leading UK construction marketing agency based in Shifnal in the West Midlands.
They use the latest inbound marketing techniques such as construction inbound marketing, to support building product companies to grow their business by proactively driving sales lead generation activity.
As the only HubSpot certified agency to major on construction marketing, we bring together construction marketing strategy, digital strategy, website design, SEO, content marketing, email marketing, sales automation, marketing automation and HubSpot CRM implementation to produce successful campaigns and great results for our clients.