You probably already know that the purpose of a marketing automation system is to generate and feed as many qualified leads to your sales team as possible. But a marketer’s job doesn’t end there. In fact, if you’re not mining the sales data being generated by those leads, then you risk leaving additional sales and revenue on the table. To really benefit from all of that effort and expense put in to every marketing campaign, businesses need to leverage sales data from their Dynamics 365/CRM platform to power additional marketing automation campaigns. Knowing what you need to look at to really understand who your customers are and what they want can go a long way towards building out additional effective marketing campaigns. Let’s take a look at some of the best ways marketers can capitalize on the Dynamics data “goldmine” to reap the benefits.
Target existing customers
Your existing customers are obvious candidates for marketing reengagement. Once a purchase has been made, it makes sense to build out additional campaigns targeting these customers for special offers. Such campaigns can include “you might also like…” offers or upselling campaigns that entice customers with upgrades or service add-ons. But you don’t want to just hammer them with random emails pushing every product or service you sell. By taking a close look at the data in your Microsoft Dynamics environment and combining that data with you should be able to learn which customers are more likely to buy certain products or services based on past purchases, as well as the ideal time to engage them. You can then feed this information into your to generate timely campaigns that target the most likely buyers of additional products or services.
You can also use Microsoft Dynamics CRM data to identify past customers who have not purchased from you for a while. If you know how long your customers generally wait before buying a product again, and you probably do, you can deliver exclusive offers based on that specific timeline (for example 30, 60, or 90 days after last purchase). Your marketing automation platform can then be set to , re-engaging with them at just the right time.
Use Microsoft Dynamics sales data to personalize your marketing campaigns
More and more, your customers want to be treated like individuals, not just a group to be marketed to. According to a study conducted by , 86% of consumers now claim that personalization plays an important role when it comes to deciding on a purchase. And each individual customer you have has a unique preference when it comes to how they buy and how they want to communicate with your business. Your Microsoft Dynamics sales data can be a big help when it comes to personalizing the way you interact with these buyers.
You know more than just names and addresses of your past customers. Every interaction with them has been recorded in Dynamics, so use it to your advantage! Beyond simply addressing your customers by name (which you should, of course, be doing), you can incorporate all of the data you’ve collected on their buying habits and preferences to tailor additional marketing campaigns that show you know them as individuals. You can use your Microsoft Dynamics sales data to suggest ideas, package information just the way your individual customers like, and shape the way you communicate with them to align with their unique preferences. Not only will your sales increase, but the way your customers perceive you will improve as well.
Lookalike Audiences: Marketing to People Similar to Your Top Customers
If you are using your Microsoft Dynamics 365/CRM platform properly, then you should already know who your top customers are. Wouldn’t it be great to find more people just like them? You can, by creating your own “lookalike audience”. Simply put, a lookalike audience is a demographic group that resembles, in a variety of customizable ways, another demographic group. So by knowing your customers inside and out through careful analysis of your Microsoft Dynamics sales data, you can look for new customers with similar habits and preferences.
This tactic is especially effective on social media platforms, as many offer lookalike audience lists as a service. Once you’ve populated these lists based on data from Microsoft Dynamics, you can use your marketing automation platform to trigger personalized ads, emails, and other communications to potential customers who best resemble your best buyers. And depending on the size of your business, you can build out the campaigns to best suit your needs, modifying the size and look of these audiences to accommodate your specific needs and sales goals.
Connecting Microsoft Dynamics to your marketing automation platform
Connecting your Microsoft Dynamics environment to your marketing automation platform can open up a world of marketing opportunity, but it can be tricky to figure out where to start once your integration is complete. Learn what we recommend here, and be sure to see how the .
