© Provided by Healthcare Consulting Technology StackIf there's one thing IT entrepreneurs love, it's technology. The question is, what is the value of investing in a marketing technology stack versus wasting time and money?
There is no shortage of software solutions in the world of marketing automation. They all promise to enable and simplify content delivery and lead generation. I'm sure you 've seen many of these martech options when developing your marketing strategy .
Not too fast.
While martech may seem like a necessity for busy founders, it comes at a price. This is due to the license fees, as well as the time and effort required to configure, integrate and manage it. For very early-stage companies, these costs are likely to exceed the value earned.
In this blog, we'll discuss what healthcare IT founders should consider when deciding which software tool is right for them.
Where to start?
There are so many marketing automation tools out there that it would be impossible to list them all in one blog. However, here are some of the most common categories:
- CRM . Customer relationship management platforms (HubSpot, Salesforce) can help you track leads, manage the sales journey, and build lasting customer relationships.
- Management of social networks . In addition to individual platform tools, aggregation platforms like HootSuite can help plan, manage, and track social media activity across multiple platforms.
- Google Analytics . This tool offers several methods (free or paid) to track website traffic and performance and manage the effectiveness of your SEO and AdWords efforts .
- Email automation . Build and manage email contact lists, create and send company email newsletters, and measure engagement (clicks, etc.). Everything works to optimize email campaigns.
It is important to note that many of these tools, while industry independent, are designed to support consumer-facing sales and marketing activities. Healthcare IT is a different animal. You're not trying to drive customers to your site to buy something that will fill an immediate physical or emotional need. In contrast, health IT websites are like information repositories. They offer different clinical, operational or technical personalities. Buyers can find information about the problems it solves and test scores that describe how their products solve them.
This affects the technology required. This is especially true for early-stage companies that may be at the beginning of their product marketing efforts. Unfortunately, "What equipment do I need?" There is no final answer to the question. The best way to answer this question is to consider your company's strategic goals and focus on one or two tools that will help you achieve them.
Aligning goals, technology and people
Just as your business goals drive your sales and marketing activities, they should inform your marketing IT needs. For example, if you're a startup with beta customers acquired through direct relationships, you probably don't need a lot of technology right now. However, if you've reached the marketing stage and your goal is to start building awareness and growing your sales funnel, you'll need technology to support strategies like email marketing, tracking website traffic, or creating and promoting social media engagement.
Finally, it is important to realize that you cannot achieve business success based on the tools and technology you have. Instead, invest in the people who drive your marketing efforts. Use technology to be more effective, enabling you to effectively deploy the right marketing strategies, measure their impact, and identify opportunities to continuously learn and refine your target audience, people, messages, and approach.
Don't make it complicated
It is very valuable to keep things simple. It's often enough to use a standalone, low-cost (or free) tool that supports your organization's core strategic goals. For example, Google Analytics facilitates basic website traffic statistics. As a beginner, you don't need to track every traffic or link. Or a simple spreadsheet can be an effective starter CRM.
Some technologies are so complex that they require an expert to build and manage them in a way that works for your organization. This often requires (expensive) external resources or hiring in-house (e.g. WordPress or Salesforce experts). Take a step back and consider whether the current stage of your business and your strategic needs match the depth of this investment.
Also, remember that your needs will evolve over time. Keeping it simple in the beginning can make it easier to implement new technologies in the future as your business grows and your sales and marketing needs become more complex. This helps avoid getting "married" to a technology that won't be able to meet the long-term needs of the business.
find a balance
Finding effective and affordable marketing automation tools can be daunting, especially for early-stage healthcare IT companies. A good first step is to consider your business goals and determine what tools can help your team succeed. Need help getting started? Our product marketing experts help develop marketing programs at all stages of development and identify platforms for healthcare IT organizations that strike the perfect balance between functionality and value. Contact us to learn more .