As the saying goes, price is only an issue in the absence of value. This is a more pressing issue when we look at the current economic climate and the ever-increasing challenge of acquisition. Marketers are expected to do more, with less budget. So if you have Account Engagement, but you aren’t sure you are seeing the value from it, stick around to learn more…
Is your account set up for success?
Maybe you had an implementation that did not go as expected. Maybe the person in charge of Account Engagement has moved on. These are things we hear all too often when customers ask us to check their setup and ensure things are ‘working correctly’. There are a lot of settings available, so it’s easy to get confused if your implementation was not documented clearly or missed the crucial training aspect to equip your team with administration skills.
Don’t panic, there are some steps you can take to feel more confident about your situation:
- View the Account Optimizer and sync error queue to see if there are any crucial issues with your account.
- Check your edition by navigating to the Account Engagement Settings > Account page and checking the edition listed. You can then see what features are available to you here.
- Get an in-depth audit of your account
If you are not actually using Account Engagement, and no one else at your business is, then get in touch so we can support you with the onboarding process.
Salesforce Help, or blogs such as our Nebula Insights, Salesforce Ben, and The Spot are great resources to troubleshoot steps 1 & 2.
Reporting
I have spoken at a couple of community events about this topic as it is a passion of mine. Are you able to report on ROI? Can you visualise marketing attribution?
If you answered no, then I’ll ask this: are you reporting on your marketing KPIs or strategic objectives?
If you still answered no, or maybe a ‘meh, maybe?” then let’s address this. It might not be a simple or quick fix, but it’s certainly not a showstopper. Let’s take it back to the core of what you do.
- What are your business goals and how do these translate to SMART objectives for marketing and sales?
- Are your campaigns and activities aligned with these objectives?
- Can you use the out-of-the-box reporting features to understand which initiatives are contributing to these objectives?
Salesforce, Account Engagement and CRM Analytics each provide easy-to-use, out-of-the-box reporting. Learn more about reporting here.
Customer Journey
Do you have a view of your customer journeys, from start to end?
Create a customer journey map, get the team together (yep, ALL of them!) and collaborate on what it looks like to be one of your customers. Repeat for each type of customer you may have.
Collate the key touchpoints customers have with your brand, and think about where there is room for improvement. Where can Salesforce and Account Engagement, or other tech, support you with guiding customers through their journey? This will help you to understand challenges and successes within your practices.
Siloed or Smart?
Sales and Marketing alignment is critical for success, not just for your business as a whole but for seeing their value in the tech you are using. Remember, technology should be there to help you achieve your goals, not to hinder you!
Salesforce and Account Engagement are closely integrated to deliver a seamless experience for your users. Account Engagement data and Prospect engagement is visible within Salesforce so your Sales Users can reference this in conversations and ensure their engagement is bespoke, empathetic and relevant for each potential customer.
- Are you using these features?
- Do you meet as a whole team regularly?
- Do you receive and provide feedback across marketing and sales functions?
Maybe you need an alignment workshop to review how you are using lead qualification tools in Account Engagement and your Lead management process as a whole.
In Summary
Account Engagement is a powerful tool, and when used in the right way, can support your business goals and drive revenue. If you are unsure if your account is set up correctly, or you just want to bring in a squad to get your business excited about the tools available, get in touch.
