Marketing Automation Archives - gettectonic.com

17May

Sales Prospecting Tools

The Complete Guide to Sales Prospecting Tools Sales prospecting tools: Two men examining a touchscreen displaying dashboards and charts. With the right tools, you can spend more time building relationships that convert prospects into loyal customers. Learn how technology can help you identify and engage the right prospects more efficiently. Selling has become more challenging, with 69% of sales professionals agreeing that their jobs are harder now. That’s why sales prospecting tools are crucial—they streamline the process, making it faster and more accurate. When equipped with the right tools, you can focus more on nurturing customer relationships, turning prospects into long-term clients. In this guide, we’ll explore what sales prospecting tools are, key features to look for, and the biggest benefits they provide. What Are Sales Prospecting Tools? Sales prospecting tools are software solutions designed to help sales teams identify, engage, and convert potential customers. These tools enhance the sales prospecting process, enabling sales reps to quickly and effectively reach new buyers. They often integrate with existing platforms, such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software and email marketing systems, to optimize outreach and engagement. Typically, prospecting tools focus on outbound marketing, helping sales reps connect with potential customers who may not yet be familiar with the company or product. Types of Sales Prospecting Tools Selecting the right sales prospecting tool depends on your current prospecting methods and future goals. Below are the most common categories of prospecting tools: Lead Generation Tools Lead generation tools help sales teams identify prospects who are ready to purchase. These tools streamline workflows, enhance productivity, and flag potential buyers based on their online activity. For example, they might alert a rep when a prospect searches for solutions related to your product or service. Some lead generation tools also enable mass outreach, such as power dialers that allow sales reps to call multiple prospects simultaneously. Choosing the right lead generation tool depends on how your target customers prefer to engage. For instance, if you have better results from social media interactions than phone calls, a power dialer may not be the best fit. Evaluate your analytics and future goals to determine which tool will maximize your success. CRM Software CRM software manages all customer and prospect interactions across sales, service, marketing, and more. Acting as a single source of truth, CRM platforms centralize all sales activity in one location, allowing leaders to assign prospects and track progress more effectively. With AI-powered features, CRM tools can guide reps on the next best steps and personalize workflows, improving conversion rates. CRMs also provide critical insights for targeting prospects more likely to convert. Social Media Prospecting Tools Social media has become a powerful channel for sales prospecting. Specialized tools scrape social platforms for data to help sales reps identify prospects ready for outreach. For instance, they can track user activity related to the business problem your product solves and notify reps when users engage with relevant content. The integration of AI in social media prospecting tools has further boosted their effectiveness. As AI continues to evolve, expect more sophisticated features in this space. Why Are Sales Prospecting Tools Important? In today’s competitive market, your prospects are also being contacted by your competitors—most of whom are using advanced sales prospecting tools. If you’re not using similar tools, you risk falling behind. Sales prospecting tools help level the playing field by streamlining research and outreach, allowing reps to connect with the right prospects at the right time. However, these tools must be used strategically. Simply contacting more people won’t guarantee more sales. Personalization and targeting remain key. Using the insights provided by these tools, sales reps can tailor their messages and approaches, making each outreach effort more effective. Benefits of Using Sales Prospecting Tools When fully integrated into your sales processes, prospecting tools can deliver substantial benefits, including: Key Features to Look for in Sales Prospecting Tools To ensure your sales prospecting tool adds value to your business, consider the following features: Compliance Keeping up with constantly changing rules around prospecting—especially across different channels—can be daunting. A good prospecting tool automates compliance, ensuring your emails, calls, and social media outreach meet best practices and regulations. Ease of Use Your prospecting tool should simplify your workflow, not complicate it. Look for intuitive interfaces and tools that can automate repetitive tasks, such as dialing multiple numbers or sending emails in bulk. AI-Powered Analytics Tools with AI capabilities can generate valuable insights, such as identifying the best time to call a prospect or suggesting which channel is most likely to yield a response. System Integration Your prospecting tool should seamlessly integrate with existing systems, such as CRMs and marketing automation platforms, to ensure data flows smoothly and insights are actionable across your entire workflow. Customizable and Scalable Your sales process is unique to your business. Opt for customizable and scalable tools that can adapt as your needs change, ensuring you get maximum ROI from your investment. Make Prospecting Work for Your Business Without the right tools, your team is at a disadvantage compared to competitors using advanced sales prospecting technologies. Finding a tool with the right features and customizing it for your specific needs—such as pricing structures and campaign strategies—can empower your team to prospect more efficiently, yielding better results in less time. Content updated October 2024. Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

May 17, 2024in Data, Marketing Automation, Technology

28Apr

Mobile Marketing Strategy

In today’s multitasking digital landscape, customers are constantly engaged in various activities like texting, searching with Google, browsing social media, and ordering lunch, all on the same screen. Their usage requires you to develop a Mobile Marketing Strategy. To effectively reach these customers, mobile marketing must seamlessly integrate into their current mobile experience. This requires a unified platform that aligns with their digital habits. According to the Insider Intelligence 2023 Research, email remains the most preferred communication method among customers, with a whopping 93% preference rate. However, customer preferences vary significantly across different channels, presenting a challenge for marketers who need to choose the right channels for each context. To deliver the best customer experience, marketers need to bring together multiple channels by adhering to changing data sources and evolving customer expectations. As data sources for targeting shift towards digital identities and declared preferences, marketers must adapt their strategies accordingly. Here are guiding principles for an effective mobile marketing strategy: Understanding Mobile Channels: Push Notifications: SMS Messaging: Chat Apps: Key Takeaways: Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 28, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Einstein, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Salesforce Sales Cloud

23Apr

If Not Informatica, Then Who?

What Lies Ahead for Salesforce’s Acquisition Strategy? If Not Informatica Then Who? The Breakdown: The proposed Salesforce-Informatica acquisition, which promised significant advancements in data integration, quality control, and customer insights, ultimately fell through due to disagreements over the deal’s terms. Impact on Salesforce’s Strategy: The acquisition was positioned as a strategic move for Salesforce, building on its largest acquisition of Slack in 2020, aimed at fortifying its data ecosystem and bolstering its position in data analytics and management through enhanced AI capabilities and data management solutions. Future Acquisition Prospects: With the Informatica deal off the table, attention turns to potential targets like HubSpot. This shift underscores Salesforce’s commitment to maintaining a competitive edge in CRM and marketing automation amidst increasing competition and past acquisitions such as ExactTarget and Pardot. The Details: The anticipated mega-deal, which could have significantly expanded Salesforce’s data capabilities and represented one of its largest acquisitions to date, dissolved due to an inability to reach consensus on deal terms, as reported by multiple sources. Informatica, valued at over billion, specializes in data management software, while Salesforce, the world’s leading CRM software company valued at 1.71 billion, has historically expanded its customer data capabilities through strategic acquisitions. Notably, Salesforce completed its largest acquisition with the $27.7 billion purchase of Slack Technologies in 2020. If Not Informatica, Then Who Boosting Salesforce’s Data Ecosystem: The proposed acquisition of Informatica, first reported by the Wall Street Journal on April 12, aimed to elevate Salesforce’s data capabilities, particularly in areas like data integration, quality control, and customer insights. This strategic move reflected a broader trend in the software industry towards mergers and acquisitions to strengthen capabilities in data analytics and management. By integrating Informatica into Salesforce’s data ecosystem, the company was poised to enhance its AI systems and leverage the Mulesoft infrastructure for improved data cataloging, as well as sophisticated solutions like master data management and data governance. Implications for Marketing and Customer Experience (CX) Professionals: The potential acquisition could have accelerated innovation in customer experience management, empowering CMOs and CX professionals with robust data tools for faster, more informed decision-making. This could have translated into enhanced customer interactions, driving revenue growth and enhancing Salesforce’s competitive position in the market. Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 23, 2024in Marketing Automation, Mulesoft, Salesforce

20Apr

Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Email Compliance

Account Engagement Email Compliance FAQs Sometimes it is difficult to get a straight answer as to Account Engagement Email Compliance requirements. Tectonic has you covered. Using Purchased and Third-Party Lists in Account Engagement I purchased a list from a third party who assures me it’s an opted-in list. Can I email this list with Account Engagement? NO. Using a purchased list directly violates our permission-based marketing policy. Emails sent to such lists are unsolicited bulk emails, defined as spam. Using a purchased list can damage your company’s reputation and make you a spammer. I’m a member of X industry and I got this list from the membership directory of a group I’m in. Can I email this list with Account Engagement? NO. Third-party lists, regardless of origin, are not allowed. Before using this list in Account Engagement, you must solicit permission from each prospect through 1:1 emails (outside of Account Engagement) or a phone campaign. Someone followed us on LinkedIn or other social media. Does that mean they opted in? NO. Following your business on social media does not equate to consent for receiving emails. Prospects must explicitly provide their email address and permission to receive marketing emails. CAN-SPAM only requires an unsubscribe link, so can I send email to any list through Account Engagement? NO. Our Permission-Based Marketing Policy requires explicit permission before sending marketing emails to prospects. This policy, part of our service agreement, mandates obtaining permission before using Account Engagement to send emails. Simply including an unsubscribe link does not comply with our policy. I had a booth at a tradeshow, and the organizers gave me a list of attendees. Can I email them with Account Engagement? MAYBE. Tradeshow lists are complex regarding permission-based marketing. While attendees might be aware of opting into communications, explicit permission is still necessary. You can send one initial email indicating where you obtained their information and requesting opt-in for future communications. Prospects who don’t opt-in cannot be emailed again through Account Engagement. I collected these prospects over a year ago, and I’m ready to start emailing them. Can I use Account Engagement? MAYBE. For stale lists (especially over a year old), run a Permission Pass to clean up your list and confirm that prospects still wish to receive your emails. This helps maintain low spam complaints by re-soliciting permission from the prospects. When prospects buy my product, I ask them if they’d like to subscribe to marketing emails. Is it okay to email them with Account Engagement? YES. Emailing customers who have opted in is acceptable. As long as you have explicit permission from the prospect, you can use Account Engagement to email them. I had a booth at a tradeshow and prospects filled out an email opt-in form at my booth. Can I use this list with Account Engagement? YES. Emailing prospects who have opted in through an email opt-in form at your booth is fine. Ensure you have explicit permission from the prospect. To be safe, set up a Confirmed Opt-In Process to verify the opt-in request and validate the email address. I had prospects verbally opt in. Can I use this list with Account Engagement? Yes, but… After receiving a verbal opt-in, follow up with an email thanking the prospect for opting in. This confirms their consent and reduces the likelihood of your emails being reported as spam. I was searching Hoovers and spotted some employees who would be interested in my content but don’t know their email address. Can I guess their email address and send to them? NO! This practice, known as appending, violates our Permission-Based Marketing Policy. Guessing email addresses risks damaging your email reputation due to hard bounces or spam complaints. Explicit permission from prospects eliminates the need to guess email addresses. Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 20, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce Managed Services, Salesforce Marketing Automation, Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement (Pardot)

18Apr

Summer 24 Release Flow Enhancements

Summer ’24 is approaching fast! Discover the latest enhancements in Flow Builder, such as the Automation App, Action Button (beta), and more. Dive into Be Release Ready for additional resources to help you prepare for Summer ’24. Curious to see these features in action? Join Salesforce product manager Sam Reynard and me as we showcase some of these capabilities live on the May 30 episode of “Automate This!” Summer 24 Release Flow Enhancements Screen Flows Summer ’24 introduces significant advancements in screen flow functionality, including the general availability (GA) of the Repeater component and the new Action Button, enabling dynamic and responsive screens. Create Multiple Records with Repeaters (GA) One of the most anticipated screen flow features is now generally available! With Repeaters, you can effortlessly create multiple records on a single screen. For instance, use a Repeater component to gather information about beneficiaries on an insurance policy. Users can add as many beneficiaries as needed during the flow execution. The Repeater component now supports most standard GA screen components as child components. Additionally, Repeaters offer features like conditional field visibility, input validation, and help text, providing enhanced flexibility and usability. Amplify Reactive Screens with Action Buttons (beta) Integrate an Action Button component into your screen to execute an autolaunched flow, fetching and making data available for other screen components. This empowers you to create truly dynamic single-page applications. The Action Button enables various use cases, such as generating data tables based on selected parent records, retrieving external data for user selection, creating dependent picklist fields, or summarizing record selections. Set Conditional Disabled and Read-Only States Conditionally disable or set components to read-only mode to protect users from interacting with specific fields based on business logic. This feature enhances form usability and ensures data integrity by preventing unwanted modifications. Address Component Improvements Enhancements to the Address component include Google Address Lookup, reactive options for field requirements and disabling, and proper support for State and Country picklists. Reactivity Improvements Reactive components like Collection Choice Sets and Display Text now offer enhanced capabilities, improving the responsiveness and usability of screen flows. Flow Builder Enhancements Transform Element (GA) Seamlessly map and optimize data with the Transform element, replacing loops and optimizing flow performance significantly. Update Existing Records with Matching Criteria When creating records, specify matching criteria to update existing records instead of creating duplicates, improving data quality. Is Blank and Is Empty Operators Easily check for Null or Empty values with the new Is Blank and Is Empty operators, simplifying logic and improving flow readability. Flow Management Automation App Manage flows efficiently through a dedicated Lightning app, offering advanced filtering, searching, and list view creation capabilities. Actions Enhancements include default values and placeholder text for Invocable Actions, and the new Lock/Unlock Record action. Improved User Experience Actions and Subflow configuration now reside in a side panel, featuring UX improvements like displaying full Apex class names. Schedule-Triggered Flows Debug scheduled flows with specific records, enhancing debugging capabilities and flexibility. Flow Orchestration Pause, resume, and recover failed orchestration runs, and create orchestration run dashboards for better visibility and management. The Summer ’24 release brings a wealth of new features to Flow Builder, empowering admins and developers to create powerful, responsive, and dynamic experiences for users. Stay tuned for more insights on these enhancements in upcoming blog posts and webinars! Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 18, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Optimization

17Apr

Approvers and Approver Groups in Salesforce

Approvers and Approver Groups in Salesforce. An approver in Salesforce CPQ Advanced Approvals is a user who receives approval request emails and can either approve or reject the request. An approver record can represent an individual user or a group of users. Utilizing approver groups (like Salesforce queues) is beneficial when you need to route approvals to all members of a specific team. REQUIRED Salesforce CPQ EDITIONSAvailable in: Salesforce CPQ Summer ‘16 and later with Advanced Approvals 3.1 and later For instance, you can create an approver group that includes all managers in the accounting department. This group can then be associated with an approval rule triggered by a quote with a net total of $750,000 or more. Consequently, each accounting manager will receive an email notification regarding the request. Assign Approvers Dynamically Based on Criteria You can specify an approver dynamically based on a formula or specific criteria. For instance, you might want the approver to be the regional manager associated with a sales rep’s opportunity. If the regional manager changes, the approval will automatically reference the new manager. To set up a dynamic approver: Add a custom formula field to your quote or opportunity that references the ID of the approver’s user record.Include this formula field in your approval rule setup.Delegate Approvers Delegated approvers are designated users who receive approval requests on behalf of another user for a predefined period, typically during the original approver’s absence. To delegate approvers: Specify the user to whom you want to delegate in the “Delegated Approver” field.Set the start and end dates for the delegation period.Ensure that delegated approvers have the necessary permissions and access to the approval objects page layout, including the ability to approve or reject requests. Approver Fields Depending on page layouts and field-level security settings, not all approver fields may be visible or editable. Delegated Approver: This field designates the user receiving approval requests instead of the primary approver for a limited time. Delegation End: Specifies the date after which delegated approvers no longer receive requests.Delegation Start: Specifies the date from which delegated approvers start receiving requests.Group ID: If the approver represents a group, this field references the Group record’s ID.Unanimous: Indicates that approval from all group members is required for the request to be considered approved.User: If the approver is an individual user, this field references the User record. Approval Rules Approval rules dictate which users or groups receive approval requests and the email templates used for notifications upon approval or rejection. When a sales rep submits a record for approval, Salesforce CPQ evaluates all active approval rules associated with that record’s object. If the approval conditions are met, the corresponding rule triggers, and Salesforce CPQ sends an approval request email to the designated approver(s) as defined in the rule. Each approval rule can optionally include lookups to request templates, approval templates, and rejection templates, allowing for customized email notifications based on specific conditions. Interested in creating automated approvals or approver groups in your Salesforce org? Contact Tectonic today. Like1 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 17, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce CPQ, Salesforce Development Services

15Apr

Configure and Use Action Plans in Public Sector Solutions

Develop plans to accomplish tasks essential for business processes, such as application reviews and approvals. When you configure and use Action Plans in Public Sector you work from an Action Plan Template. Learn more. Action Plans consist of sets of tasks or checklist items designed for tracking and automating processes with repeatable steps. Assigning each task a priority, a deadline, and an owner facilitates collaboration among reviewers, inspectors, caseworkers, and other users of Public Sector Solutions. Generate Action Plan Templates containing tasks for recurring processes and customize plans as needed. Utilize action plans for application review steps, meeting preparation, and follow-up tasks related to engagements with constituents. Configure and Use Action Plans in Public Sector Employ them for defining and tracking tasks such as: Key Elements of Action Plans: Action plans typically include the “what,” “who,” and “when.” They outline the action steps (“what”) your program will take to achieve goals and objectives, identify the person(s) responsible (“who”), and set projected completion dates (“when”). Building an Action Plan: Steps to Write an Action Plan: Create an Action Plan for a Dynamic Assessment: Develop an action plan using an action plan template with omni assessment tasks for a specific inspection, investigation, or evaluation in Public Sector Solutions. For instance, use the safety check action plan template for a salon’s business license application inspection: Use Document Checklists: Route documents submitted by constituents through approval workflows by enabling document checklists: Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 15, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce Public Sector Solutions

05Apr

Einstein Engagement Frequency Model Card

Einstein Engagement Frequency Model Card Overview The Einstein Engagement Frequency Model Card in Marketing Cloud Engagement is designed to help marketers determine the optimal frequency for sending emails to individual contacts, thereby maximizing engagement and minimizing unsubscribes. Here’s an overview of the key aspects of this model: Model Details Intended Use Relevant Factors and Inputs Output Ethical Considerations Refresh Cadence Licensing and Access Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

April 5, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce Einstein, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement (Pardot)

Salesforce Marketing Cloud Advertising Studio

27Mar

Connect Marketing Cloud Account Engagement and Salesforce Advertising Studio

Did you know that you can easily connect Marketing Cloud Account Engagement and Salesforce Advertising Studio, enabling the inclusion of prospects in your advertising campaigns? Connect Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement and Salesforce Advertising Studio. Advertising Studio is now called Marketing Cloud Advertising. During this transition, you may see references to Advertising Studio. Marketing Cloud’s Advertising Studio is an engagement tool that integrates with online advertising channels, allowing you to run targeted ad campaigns for contacts within your database. The possibility of connecting Account Engagement and Advertising Studio is available, whether you’re utilizing the full Marketing Cloud suite or using Account Engagement only and Advertising Studio as standalone products. Connect Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement and Salesforce Advertising Studio Without the connection between MCAE and Marketing Cloud Advertising, targeting Account Engagement prospects on digital ad platforms involves a manual process of uploading data. For instance, platforms like Meta Ads Manager (Facebook and Instagram) allow you to import contacts via a .csv file, requiring manual extraction from your marketing platform organizing data into a compatible spreadsheet template, and then uploading the list. Manual handling poses risks of data corruption, non-compliance, and potential GDPR breaches, in addition to being time-consuming and tedious. Simplification Marketing Cloud Advertising simplifies the process by allowing you to connect accounts and create audiences directly within the system. This ensures data safety within the CRM, with instant syncing of records. With inclusion of contacts in ad campaigns without manual refreshing. This real-time capability is beneficial for various campaigns, including re-engaging inactive subscribers, extending email marketing reach through advertising coordination, retargeting based on recent behavior, excluding certain contacts from ads, and capturing leads from Facebook Lead Ads into Sales Cloud instantly. Additionally, you can leverage first-party data to create ‘lookalikes’ for ad campaigns and seamlessly import new leads into Salesforce. Sales team can follow-up, ultimately improving the return on investment for online advertising. As well as configuration of accounts to enable data flow between Account Engagement, Salesforce, and Ad Studio is all that’s required. For Enterprise Users For Enterprise users, there’s the added ability to see and manage campaigns directly from Marketing Cloud Advertising. By eliminating the need to switch between multiple platforms. Keep in mind that each advertising platform has different criteria for matching contacts. Understanding your match rate upfront is crucial for an effective social ads strategy. By Tectonic Marketing Cloud and Account Engagement Solution Architect, Shannan Hearne Like2 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more Health Cloud Brings Healthcare Transformation Following swiftly after last week’s successful launch of Financial Services Cloud, Salesforce has announced the second installment in its series Read more Alphabet Soup of Cloud Terminology As with any technology, the cloud brings its own alphabet soup of terms. This insight will hopefully help you navigate Read more

March 27, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce Marketing Cloud Advertising, Salesforce Sales Cloud

01Mar

Optimism Among Marketers

In anticipation of challenging market conditions, numerous companies are tightening their financial reins, prompting marketers to carefully allocate strategic investments within finite budgets and resources. The task is further complicated by disruptions stemming from inflation and supply chain issues. Global marketing budgets predominantly allocate significant portions to advertising, as teams strive to enhance awareness in a landscape where customers are faced with abundant choices. And yet, Optimism Among Marketers remains. Optimism Among Marketers In response to a fluctuating job market, marketing organizations are directing investments towards their personnel to attract and retain employees. A notable 71% of marketers express that retaining employees has become more challenging compared to a year ago. B2B marketing entities are earmarking an average of 15% of their budget for account-based marketing (ABM), underscoring the growing emphasis on personalized messaging and engagement extending from B2C to B2B strategies. Marketers have undergone a transformation in their work dynamics, with enduring changes. Liberated from geographical and time constraints, many marketers are achieving success by exploring new customer segments, prioritizing digital-first experiences, and organizing virtual and hybrid events. The shift towards distributed marketing teams has spurred investments in collaboration technology, with 70% viewing such investments as permanent. Similarly, 70% of marketers who invested in process/workflow automation consider it a long-term strategic shift, highlighting the importance of enhancing productivity and efficiency. Like1 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

March 1, 2024in Distributed Marketing, Marketing Automation

Salesforce CRM for AI driven transformation

29Feb

AI’s Impact on Email Marketing

On February 27, 2024, Salesforce queried a group of Trailblazers regarding AI’s impact on Email Marketing by Guilda Hilaire. Sharing the thoughts in this insight. Salesforce asked marketers in the Trailblazer Community for their predictions on generative AI in email marketing, how they plan to use it, and more. AI’s Impact on Email Marketing. It’s not a stretch to say generative AI in email marketing is a big-time topic. You’ve probably heard something about how the tool is transforming the field: “Say hello to generative AI, the game-changing technology redefining how brands connect with their audiences through email campaigns.” But what do marketers want to know about generative AI and email marketing? Salesforce asked the best and coolest experts we know: our Marketing Trailblazer Community. They shared how they plan to use generative AI for email marketing and the impact they believe the technology will have on efficiency and effectiveness, job security, and more. How will generative AI impact email marketing in the next 2-5 years? “Increased productivity and saving time are the two major values of generative AI. In the next two to five years, generative AI will help create content quickly — in the form of text, video, and images. It can also create multiple variations of this content and speed up A/B testing to target different customer groups. Email marketing is most impactful when we can deliver 1-on-1 personalized messages.” Buyan Thyagarajan, Principal, Eigen X Time savings and productivity aren’t the only things AI will impact. “In the next two to five years, the tool will help businesses make better decisions for their email marketing campaigns. I believe most of the campaign process, from lead generation to final customer message, will be led by generative AI.” Lumbet Bitini, Senior Marketing Cloud Consultant, Merkle DACH “I think generative AI is already having an impact on the ability to create content for A/B testing. In the next 2-5 years, I expect to see it go beyond generating first-draft copy and become a strategic tool for high-level campaign planning based on accumulated performance and industry data. But, there will always be a need for human creativity to cut through the noise.” Ed Gray, Delivery Team Manager & Marketing Practice Lead, Arkus, Inc. Generative AI increases both your reach and your breadth of content. “People who adapt and adopt generative AI can create content on many more topics. Even if the tool isn’t being used verbatim, the current versions do a good job. It can increase personalization at scale, improve engagement, reduce costs, and improve ROI. However, there could be consequences too if we aren’t careful. The fundamentals of email marketing may be less understood as we start to skip the sweat, tears, and hard learnings.” Mike Creuzer, Pardot Partnerships & API Integrations Lead, Sercante Are you already using generative AI? If so, how? Can you share some examples? “My A/B testing improved 10x using generative AI in my email marketing. Instead of testing only subject lines, I can also test user behavior, allowing me to be more strategic with every send. Along with content, I also use AI in the design process. It helps me select images and colors that best resonate with my target audience. Finally, AI also optimizes my send time, ensuring these audiences receive my messages at the time they are most likely to open.” Taylor Baker, Marketing Consultant/Owner, Resilient Innovation “I’ve used generative AI as an assistant, not as a copywriter. In practice, I use it to outline the message I want to write — then I add my personal touch to the content. It’s a great way to get a “second opinion” and ensure all key angles are covered. For example, I recently wrote an article about building a MarTech stack. I asked ChatGPT to give me a list of subcategories and their definitions. This gave me a good wireframe to write my content. I see this as an opportunity to drive marketers toward more empathetic and thoughtful content. In this sense, generative AI can help us be more efficient and drive us to become better at what we do.” Timo Kovala, Managing Marketing Architect, Capgemini Finland Whether using it or testing it or evaluating it, AI is in the email marketing arena. “Right now, we’re testing it in the background as it is too early to adopt it into our daily processes officially. We are actively building up use cases, examples, and studies on it so we can fully embrace it in the future.” Greg Gifford, Director, DM Engineering, Merkle “Our team tested a few tools.” We used it to write subject lines for email nurture paths. The results were okay, but I’m sure they’ve improved since then. I will say it was helpful to have those suggestions to lean on. We have also done some test pilots with social media using some tone options.” Shonica Mitchell, Global Marketing Automation & Community Manager, BrightDrop How can this technology improve your job as an email marketer? “Generative AI could help me move faster, create more personalization, and push out more content. Today, this process is lengthy and requires multiple layers of approval. I could see a decrease in our turnaround time. Accuracy and trust are imperative for email marketing to realize its full potential. Marketers need to be able to rely on AI’s accuracy of data, information, and content and trust that there is no bias in the data or content being served up by the tool.” Shonica Mitchell, Global Marketing Automation & Community Manager, BrightDrop “Using detailed prompts generated by AI that include the appropriate data about the lead or customer I am trying to target can positively impact my KPIs — including higher open rates, improved click-through rates, and increased conversion rates. Email marketers can create more engaging and impactful campaigns, ultimately driving better results, fostering stronger relationships, and sharing personal impact with stakeholders.” Sadaf Sabet, Marketing Automation Specialist, Gallagher What needs to happen for generative AI to achieve its full potential

February 29, 2024in Data, Generative AI, Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Einstein, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement (Pardot), Technology

25Feb

Proud to Be A Part of the Turtle Bay Salesforce Journey

Turtle Bay a featured Success story at Salesforce TralblazerDX and more. Proud to be part of the Turtle Bay Salesforce journey! Learn how Tectonic can help you increase bookings. Proud to be part of the Turtle Bay Salesforce journey Travel Transportation Salesforce Tectonic has helped hospitality clients create a real-time view of their guests to surprise and delight them with personalized service across every interaction. Salesforce provides tailored solutions for the hospitality, tourism, resort and travel industry, helping businesses in this sector deliver exceptional customer experiences, streamline operations, and drive growth. These solutions leverage the power of the Salesforce Customer 360 platform to centralize data, enhance communication, and provide a personalized experience for guests. Salesforce provides technologies that digitally transform travel, tourism, and hospitality businesses. About the Company Nestled on O‘ahu’s legendary North Shore, Turtle Bay Resort spans 1,300 pristine acres with 12 miles of nature trails, seven secluded beaches, 408 ocean-view rooms, 42 Ocean Bungalows, a 468-acre Kuilima Farm, championship golf course, and Nalu Spa, with activities including surfing, kayaking, horseback riding, biking, helicopter tours, and more. Turtle Bay Resort is a sustainable and completely self-sufficient resort, cultivating all of the ingredients for its restaurants directly from the property. “We are dedicated to delivering the most incredible experience for each and every single one of our guests, personalizing their stays to their needs and wants. The Salesforce Einstein platform makes it easy for us to achieve this.” Lynette EugenioDirector of Marketing, Turtle Bay Resort Like1 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

February 25, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Hospitality Travel and Transportation, Salesforce Implementation Services, Salesforce Personalization, Salesforce Sales Cloud

23Feb

Virtual Event Management Plan

Have You Recently Attended an Information-Packed Webinar? Think back to your experience: from how you first learned about the event to its promotion and eventual execution. It might seem like organizing a webinar is straightforward, but… Virtual event management requires meticulous planning, from the initial concept and promotion to post-event tasks. Read on to discover how you can plan your online events in Salesforce with ease and what you’ll need for success. What is Virtual Event Management Plan in Salesforce? Virtual event management encompasses all the activities needed to ensure your online event runs smoothly. It’s how you prepare to share your insights—or those of other experts—virtually. Why plan your events in Salesforce? All your data stays integrated within your CRM, allowing you to manage every aspect of your event, from registration and ticketing to marketing and attendee engagement, without the hassle of multiple tools or disorganized planning. Types of Virtual Event Management Plans in Salesforce Choosing the right virtual event format can be overwhelming, but here are some common options: How to Plan Virtual Events in Salesforce: A 4-Step Guide 1. Create a Virtual Event Concept When planning a virtual event, don’t treat it like an in-person one. Virtual events require their own set of strategies. Start by answering these questions: Remember, seasonal holidays or other events can impact attendance. Avoid scheduling events during low-attendance periods, like the summer or late December. 2. Select an Event Management Tool You need the right technology to manage online events effectively. Salesforce offers robust functionality for this. When selecting a tool for Salesforce event management, look for these features: 3. Outline Content and Strategy Crafting a virtual event that resonates with your audience requires more than just setting a date and topic. You need a compelling content strategy. Here’s how to make it work: 4. Design an Event Microsite Like in-person events, virtual ones benefit from a dedicated event page or microsite. On your Salesforce Experience Cloud site, you can: The Ultimate Virtual Events Checklist Final Thoughts Virtual event management isn’t daunting if approached wisely. With a clear plan, engaging content, and the right tools, success is within reach. Follow these steps, and your next virtual event will be a breeze. Like Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

February 23, 2024in Data, Enterprise, Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Experience Cloud, Technology

20Feb

Marketing Growth Channels in 2022

In their quest for multichannel engagement, marketers are integrating push and mobile messaging alongside email campaigns. Despite these additions, email marketing remains the predominant player. According to Salesforce Marketing Cloud product data, which draws from trillions of message sends, email usage has seen a year-over-year increase, comprising 80% of all outbound messaging. Additionally, the volume of outbound emails has surged by 15% in the past year. Customers affirm the enduring effectiveness of email, ranking it among their preferred channels to interact with brands, second only to the phone. Email maintains an 84% usage share, surpassing push and SMS marketing. Marketing Growth Channels in 2022. Amidst evolving customer expectations, marketers face increased challenges, with 71% expressing that meeting these expectations is more difficult than a year ago. For marketers, personalization extends beyond targeted messaging to encompass a hyper-personal understanding of individual needs. Recent research reveals that 73% of customers expect companies to comprehend their unique needs and expectations. In response, 83% of marketers leverage dynamic customer insights to tailor their strategies and enhance the impact of each interaction. Regardless of their approach to a multichannel strategy, marketers are dedicated to delivering exceptional customer experiences, with high-performing marketers taking this commitment seriously. A notable 82% of high-performing marketers identify customer experience as a key competitive differentiator, expressing confidence in their progress towards deciphering the code. Furthermore, 86% of high-performing marketers engage with customers in real time across multiple channels, showcasing their proficiency in unlocking actionable data. Marketing Growth Channels in 2022. Like1 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more Health Cloud Brings Healthcare Transformation Following swiftly after last week’s successful launch of Financial Services Cloud, Salesforce has announced the second installment in its series Read more Alphabet Soup of Cloud Terminology As with any technology, the cloud brings its own alphabet soup of terms. This insight will hopefully help you navigate Read more

February 20, 2024in Marketing Automation

20Feb

Marketing Cloud Growth Extends The Platform

Marketing Cloud Growth extends the platform capabilities to enhance your team’s marketing endeavors. It allows you to integrate multiple data sources with Data Cloud, create content using Digital Experiences, orchestrate complex customer journeys with Flow Builder, and optimize campaigns with Einstein AI. Required Editions: Available in Salesforce Enterprise and Unlimited Editions with Marketing Cloud Growth Edition. Marketing Cloud Growth Extends The Platform Today, Salesforce unveiled Marketing Cloud Growth, a new edition tailored for small businesses to drive efficient growth through CRM, AI, and data integration. Marketing Cloud Growth integrates marketing automation with sales, service, and commerce functionalities on Salesforce’s trusted customer platform, Einstein. Furthermore, Salesforce announced that marketers can leverage Data Cloud at no cost, enabling them to access trusted first-party data crucial for AI-driven, personalized customer experiences. Why it matters: Studies show that 51% of marketers use generative AI to streamline tasks like content creation, copywriting, and market data analysis. However, without high-quality first-party data, AI-generated content lacks the accuracy necessary for businesses to trust and utilize it effectively. AI has significant potential to benefit small businesses, which spend nearly 11 hours per week drafting emails—time that could be saved through AI-driven automation for content creation, personalization, and optimized customer communication timing. By consolidating CRM, AI, and data within a unified platform, these innovations empower businesses to deliver compelling, interconnected customer experiences. Steve Hammond, EVP and GM, Marketing Cloud, Salesforce perspective: “Marketers want to leverage AI to fuel creativity, drive efficiency, and grow their business, but often lack the necessary data for accurate, trustworthy results. By consolidating CRM, AI, and data within a single platform, these innovations empower businesses to deliver the compelling connected experiences customers expect.” With Marketing Cloud Growth, small businesses gain access to Data Cloud and generative AI directly within their workflow, integrating multi-channel marketing with sales, service, and commerce on a single platform. New customers can easily start leveraging data and generative AI to: Additionally, Data Cloud, available at no cost to Salesforce customers, enables: Go deeper: Data Cloud enables companies to consolidate trapped data into Salesforce, creating a comprehensive 360-degree view of customers across products, services, and interactions. Einstein 1 seamlessly integrates with Data Cloud to unlock organizational data for superior customer experiences, AI-driven employee augmentation, and enhanced profitability. Manage Your Marketing App: Salesforce admins, Data Cloud admins, and marketing admins configure and manage Marketing Cloud Growth. Determine whether these roles are consolidated or managed by multiple individuals. Increase Productivity with AI: Predictive and generative AI tools from Einstein in Marketing Cloud Growth enhance work outcomes and day-to-day productivity. Comply with Privacy Regulations: Stay compliant with privacy and consent regulations using Marketing Cloud Growth’s consent management tools, including default marketing communication subscriptions and a built-in email preference page. Target Audiences with Marketing Cloud Growth: Utilize Data Cloud data to filter segments, ensuring your campaigns reach the right audience. Manage Marketing Efforts with Campaigns: Design and automate campaigns in a centralized hub with templated options for content creation. Manage Content in Marketing Cloud Growth: Organize and create various content types within the Content tab powered by Salesforce CMS. Measure Success in Marketing Cloud Growth: Monitor performance and campaign success with Data Cloud reports available in the Analytics tab. Marketing Cloud Growth will initially launch in the United States and Canada, with plans to expand to EMEA by year-end and additional regions thereafter. Salesforce customers with Sales or Service Enterprise Edition (EE) or above can access Data Cloud at no cost. Like1 Related Posts Salesforce OEM AppExchange Expanding its reach beyond CRM, Salesforce.com has launched a new service called AppExchange OEM Edition, aimed at non-CRM service providers. Read more The Salesforce Story In Marc Benioff’s own words How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world’s Read more Salesforce Jigsaw Salesforce.com, a prominent figure in cloud computing, has finalized a deal to acquire Jigsaw, a wiki-style business contact database, for Read more Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Salesforce Enhances Service Cloud with AI-Driven Intelligence Engine Data science and analytics are rapidly becoming standard features in enterprise applications, Read more

February 20, 2024in Marketing Automation, Salesforce, Salesforce Data Cloud, Salesforce Einstein

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