Leveraging the Benefits of Marketing Automation to Grow Revenue

With all the buzz right now around integrating AI and automation solutions into organizational strategy, it is worth taking the time to understand what kind of benefits marketing automation can offer and how to best utilize it to drive organizational success.

Let’s look at which kinds of activities are included in marketing automation, where it is best utilized to drive value, what its limitations are, the ethical considerations to keep in mind along the way, and what is coming next.

Topics: Revenue Growth Strategic Revenue Growth Marketing Trends AI

Should You Use ChatGPT for Content Marketing?

Content marketing is hotter than ever right now and shows no signs of slowing down. As a recent Forbes article explains, “Effective marketing and content creation are inextricably linked. It’s one of the best ways to regularly connect with your audience while boosting your reputation and credibility. ...[So,] in today’s digital-first consumer ecosystem, it’s increasingly important to generate content for potential and recurring buyers.” Echoing this sentiment, HubSpot has declared content marketing to be the most effective form of marketing today, saying, "Consistent, high-quality, and engaging content impacts audience decision-making more than any other technique."

As content marketing continues to be an effective lead generation and customer acquisition tool, companies are starting to evaluate whether new AI-based tools like ChatGPT can provide low-cost assistance with their ongoing content creation efforts.

The answer to the question of whether ChatGPT can save a company money compared to the cost of hiring a professional content writer or digital marketing company is obvious. Using ChatGPT costs a fraction of what a professional service of any type would charge because anyone at any level of the business can generate an article on any topic in a matter of minutes. There is no first-hand knowledge required or research needed to get an article created. You simply need to ask a few questions and copy/paste the answers into a document and voila, you have an article. The hours of brainstorming, researching, outlining, and writing that an experienced content writer would normally spend are replaced by an AI algorithm that aggregates existing content into an article in a matter of minutes. It’s free and it’s fast.

Sounds great, right? Maybe not.

Topics: Brand Management Marketing Trends Brand Integrity Inbound Marketing Content

B2B Revenue 2020 - Looking Back – and Looking Forward

2020 will have many major events that will influence how we do business. The possibility of recession is still lurking in the shadows. An election of generational importance will shape America’s future. The Olympic Games should offer a summer distraction. 2020 will be tough to predict, and many say a wild ride.

This is important because each person on your team has a different world view about what the future will become. Some believe there is little hope while others believe in unlimited possibilities. It is just as important for “belief in the future” alignment as it is to have the sales and marketing activities aligned.

I'm looking forward to the coming year. I can’t remember a time when there has been more opportunity for new adventures. This coming year will provide more and those with the right plans, processes, and aligned teams in place will leap forward.

Let’s take a look at predictions from the past…

Topics: Marketing Trends Statistics

Only Half of Americans Trust Business – What to Do About it

 

The public’s trust in business is in a period of steep decline. However, business is not the only casualty in this modern era of skepticism and distrust.

News headlines and everyday conversations reveal that trust in government, media, science, religion, law enforcement, and the judicial process are all dwindling as well. In fact, the 2018 Edelman Trust Index report declares,

“In a year marked by turbulence at home and abroad, trust in institutions in the United States crashed, posting the steepest, most dramatic general population decline the Trust Barometer has ever measured.”

It goes on to say that the cumulative effect of this distrust has negatively affected the American brand domestically and abroad.

Trust in American-based businesses has fallen 5% in the last year alone, adding to a disturbing downward trend that has left US businesses lagging behind their competition in other developed countries. This 5-point drop was the largest decline of any country surveyed globally.

Topics: Marketing Trends Statistics Brand Integrity