This 5 min read highlights situations that require adjusting your automated marketing and provides 9 steps to prepare and execute a response strategy.
I’m a big fan of CRM and
its ability to automate personalized engagement tactics at scale. Leveraging advanced marketing tactics
and technology,
B2C and B2B organizations leverage CRM to deliver massive returns. With careful construction and ongoing test
and improvement, automated campaigns deliver thoughtful and personalized engagement
across the customer lifecycle at scale.
Until it doesn’t. The
current coronavirus pandemic one of three scenarios when the
beloved drip campaign turns into water torture, risking experience and loyalty
in the process.
3 Times to Review Your CRM Automated Campaigns
1. Operational Issues
The most common yet often poorly coordinated scenario,
operational challenges include things like the website is down, support centers
are understaffed, payments or other required processes are impacted. For example, while at MetLife, we sent a
major email campaign driving inbound calls on the same morning the call center
staff was in all-day training.
D’oh! Sonds simple but CRM
campaigns designed to generate traffic should coordinate with impacted teams to
ensure resources are available and have the best chance to engage and
convert.
2. Current events
Let’s face it, things move pretty fast. What sounded like a great subject line last
month might now belong in cards against humanity. Current events run the gambit of social,
celebrity, political, natural and economic disasters. The severity of an incident varies significantly
in this scenario, ranging from being considered tone deaf to offensive all the
way to criminal negligence. When public meaning shifts because of social
movements like me too, new popular phrases and even emojis, your automated
campaigns could be impacted.
For example, I
recently joined a professional networking group called lunchbreak. Their email #2 was built to encourage me to
set a time to meet another professional I don’t know for coffee or lunch. Perfect for a new customer on any normal
day. Of course, on this day I was busy
losing a % of my stockmarket value and stocking up on canned goods in a
facemask.
I like this example because the team recovered quickly,
sending out the same email with a revised subject line: “now supporting video”
Here’s an additional link for more on managing coronavirus
impacts on your loyalty program.
3. Company Failures
The third scenario is different than a natural disaster
because it’s entirely focused on the company, its people and products. Product recalls, management changes, and
bankruptcy are all examples and brings a new set of requirements for sensitivity
and brand stewardship. When Samsung’s
Galaxy Note7 lithium battery started exploding and were banned from commercial
flights, its time to rethink the CRM campaign encouraging recent browsers. When Carlos Ghosn filmed his own spy escape
movie, its probably good for Nissan to dial down verbiage like escape, steal,
or brand values.
So what do I do now?
Who can forget the wise words of tactical preparedness from the back of
the A Team van, “the best offence is a good defense.” You don’t have to be a fool to recognize the
importance of preparation in addition to execution in managing a crisis.
Event
Preparation:
1.
Build a good connection with your communications
& PR teams. Know the key players and
ask to understand and be included in their emergency protocol.
2.
Inventory your communication themes and assets
for easy reference. This can be a big
undertaking, so start by inventorying every new campaign, and then capture
existing campaigns on a priority based.
3.
Stop the line: Like the lean
manufacturing concept, it’s important to know who on the team has the ability
to stop a campaign if necessary. Make
sure you have coverage so you can stop a campaign no matter who is on vacation.
4.
Assign “owners”: Whether by campaign or
by stage, it’s helpful to have a resident expert who knows enough about the
campaigns to quickly find and manage any issues that arise and feels
responsible for their resolution.
Event Execution: OK, so something just happened.
5.
Set priority: Convene the team and align
on the immediate priority to protect the customer experience & brand.
6.
Triage: Discuss what’s known, the root
cause, and define immediate steps & owners to reduce risk (change subject
line, reroute clickflow/CTA, pause specific campaigns, )
7.
Notify: other process owners of the
impacts to their process flows based on the changes you made as soon as
possible (ideally before you make the change).
8.
Apologize if needed: It’s painful but sometimes
it’s also the right thing to do.
9. Question "business as usual" assumptions: while not an immediate concern, after a crises its a good idea to reconsider core preferences like message density, contact time and frequency. While Tuesday am used to be the best time to reach a B2B prospect, current prospects may be busy home-schooling and respond better in the evening
While we may have recognized the challenges that Lucy and
Ethel would face at a high speed chocolate factory,
marketing automation challenges aren’t as easy to spot. Of course stuff happens
and will continue to happen. How well you can recognize and quickly address
your automated communications can make the difference if you can protect the
customer experience and brand.
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