As marketers are increasingly given more accountability for revenue, there is a greater need to provide more robust funnel reporting capabilities within marketing automation technology.
New funnel reports were among the features discussed at Act-On Software‘s recent I Heart Marketing user event in New York. “Our mission is to delight marketing teams at small and mid-size companies with big ambitions,” said Atri Chatterjee, Act-On’s CMO. “Our key themes for product innovation are improving the user experience, content management, process and automation, reporting and analytics and platform integration.”
Act-On CEO Raghu Raghavan pointed to the company’s recent $42 million in funding and a strong Q1 2014 in which the customer total reached 2,200. He said the company plans to use the investment to expand on a number of fronts, including product development.
Chatterjee noted that the new funnel reports will help marketers track prospects through important conversion points. In addition, the reports are designed to help measure overall lead flow and velocity across the funnel, including marketing- and sales-qualified leads. He also noted that the improved reporting features will enable multiple funnel reports to be run simultaneously.
In terms of content management, new product features being rolled out include integration with Gmail to provide the ability to send trackable email through Gmail. A new email editor will incorporate drag and drop design features and incorporate responsive design to support multiple devices.
On the CRM front, Act-On is incorporating hot prospects and reports in SugarCRM and an Act-On sales seat in NetSuite.
Developing A Customer-Centric Focus
Following on the theme of delighting customers, enterprise strategist and blogger Michael Krigsman discussed the need to close the gap between advocacy and brand promise. “As marketers, the obligation and commitment of brand promise belongs to us.”
Krigsman said that all brands, including B2B brands, “want to be loved, but love is not automatic.” He pointed to companies such as Zappos that have a “customer-centric DNA.”
Regular feedback from customers is essential, Krigsman noted, but don’t overwhelm the customer. To demonstrate, he showed a printed four-page survey he recently received from an airline. “Keep it short— two or three questions periodically in the lifecycle — and you’ll get more rapid feedback that will allow you to stay more focused on the customer without burdening them.”
