10 Ways Technology is Making Marketing Easier

The last couple of decades has seen a digital revolution.

Gone are the days of ads on the back page of newspapers, peeling billboards by the sides of freeways (although they are still trying), and leaflets in your letterbox.

 Instead, we’re living in an age of advanced artificial intelligence, digital signage, complex software, and social media platforms — technology that has been godsent for marketers and businesses alike.

In this article, we will dive into how these forms of technology are making business’ marketing efforts easier.

Chatbots Provide 24/7 Customer Service

As AI technology has improved, so has the prevalence of chatbots on digital platforms.

Chatbots built with advanced AI technology can now interact with hundreds of customers simultaneously. They often provide support that is of such high-quality, it is indeterminable from that of a human worker. In fact, up to 85% of customer interactions today online are with a non-human worker.

This can have massively positive effects on customer relationship management (CRM) — some studies reporting CRM software can increase sales by up to 29%. In today’s market, customers span multiple time zones, so it is helpful for businesses to have technology that can keep up with this demand.

Every marketer knows that once you have a lead, it is important to do everything you can to turn them into a conversion. Chatbots make this possible by servicing customers the moment they enter your online store, only escalating more difficult inquiries to human workers when necessary.

Human employees, who now have more time, can approach these leads with refreshed enthusiasm and focus, leading to a higher chance of a conversion.

AI Marketing Automation

Automating your marketing can be one of the most beneficial things you can do for your business. As legendary SEO specialist and digital marketer Neil Patel says, don’t delegate, automate.

Automating marketing and sales processes such as lead generation, nurturing, scoring, customer retention, and ROI measurement will free up your marketing team’s time.

This isn’t about putting your human employees out of work, it’s about making your business more efficient. After all, money and time are businesses’ most valuable resources.

Human workers can now spend their time approaching high-quality leads that have been identified by your AI marketing automation. This will result in higher conversions and higher employee satisfaction.

Digital Signage Offers Dynamic Marketing Alternatives

Companies are waking up to the benefits of digital signage. One of digital signages’ most attractive features is that it can be changed at a moment’s notice. It also engagingly displays information. This has made it increasingly popular in the last decade.

The movement to adopt has been especially noticeable in brick-and-mortar businesses, which are having to adapt to the expectations of their consumers. Businesses that use digital signage are shown to have captured up to 400% more views than static signs and have had greater recall and retention rates.

Your Followers Market For You

Affiliate marketing isn’t an entirely new concept, but it has certainly exploded in popularity since the advent of social media.

In some instances, effective affiliate marketing can result in zero-cost acquisitions of sales and sign-ups. If an affiliate doesn’t make any sales from their marketing efforts, it doesn’t cost you anything if you were operating on a commission basis.

To see how successful this form of marketing is, you need only look to Instagram. It isn’t unusual for successful affiliates – also known as influencers on social media platforms – to make upwards of $3000 per day via their socials.

Affiliates with active communities will advertise your products or services to their fanbase in exchange for a percentage of profits or a flat fee per post. Through useful affiliate marketing tracking tools, it is easy to see which of your affiliates made which sales.

An affiliate with a highly-engaged following can generate thousands of dollars in revenue, and effectively generate their income from sales you otherwise would not have made. This makes this form of marketing extremely attractive for both parties.

You Can Market To Anyone, Anywhere

Technology has made it able for your marketing teams to reach out to anyone, anywhere. Gone are the days of brick-and-mortar businesses with limited opening times and fixed space for customers. Being able to, in theory, have an infinite amount of people browsing your products at one time has helped companies like Amazon and Apple skyrocket their profits.

Through the use of technology, businesses no longer see borders and state lines as a barrier. If you have identified leads through analysis of data, it is no longer relevant if that lead is in Chile or Australia — as long as they have an internet connection, they can be marketed to.

This has perhaps been the single biggest impact technology has had on the world of marketing. Every marketer’s core purpose is to get their product or service in front of people, and now thanks to technology, they have the entire world to sell to.

You Can Employ Anyone, Anywhere

Now that you have been able to expand the community you sell to, you’ll need to hire people for the job. Technology has made it possible for some companies to operate 100% remotely, giving businesses access to global talent.

Being able to build your marketing team with talented people from around the world has been incredibly profitable for online businesses. Having a more diverse workforce leads to differing perspectives, which has been shown to increase productivity and creativity.

Having customers around the world calls for having workers who understand the nuances and differences of the cultures these people operate within.

Get Your Products & Services In Front Of the Right People

The possibilities digital marketing provides makes more traditional forms of marketing feel irrelevant and outdated.

This can be seen clearest when we look at more traditional forms of media. Without the financial support advertising provides, magazines and newspapers have been dying out or transitioning to online models.

No longer having to place an ad within a magazine in the hope that a customer pauses to read it has been a blessing for marketing teams.

Now, by employing the data and platforms technology provides, you can get your ad into the pockets of those more likely to buy your products. The positive effect this can have on your marketing team’s conversion rates can be monumental.

Reach Out To Those Customers Instantly

Now that you have used technology to identify high-quality leads, you don’t have to wait to market to them. Machine learning services can predict what customers are looking to buy based on their previous behavior, and recommend them your products.

Marketing tools can even decide what time of the day or week your customers stumble across your ads. Recognizing patterns in your target demographics, your marketing campaigns can become scarily efficient.

Have you ever been thinking about buying a new pair of shoes, only to be shown an advertisement for a pair of shoes the next day?

Chances are, your search history and browsing behavior have informed that brand you will be a good lead to market to. Some people think this is invasive, others think it’s helpful. Don’t stress, technology has a solution for this problem too — upselling natively and non-intrusively.

Upsell Natively & Non-Intrusively

Everyone has a memory they can look back on — the awkward and pushy salesperson that tried to upsell you on your way out of the clothing store, or the relentless gas-station attendant wanting you to buy chocolate at the till.

Technology has removed the need for these interactions. Expertly-written copy, chatbots, and well-structured user-journeys now upsell in a more natural way. As a customer displays exit intent or goes to buy a product at checkout, a well-built store will subtly offer discounts or recommend products suited to their style and tastes.

Engaging follow-up emails that bring customers back into the store with the promise of personalized discounts and deals are also very effective. These forms of marketing are a less intense experience for the lead than traditional forms of upselling. This can often result in higher conversion rates.

AI Can Write Custom Copy That Sells

AI has also infiltrated creative industries. Previously thought to be lacking in that aspect of intelligence, AI bots have proved the doubters wrong.

JP Morgan Chase, one of the world’s largest banks, has enlisted the help of AI when it comes to writing their ads. In a pilot study, AI redrafted copy originally written by a human marketer.

The results?

Some of the copy rewritten by AI saw up to a 450% increase in CTR