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Top 5 marketing automation tools

Top 5 marketing automation tools

Top 5 marketing automation tools

Tools and programs to automate marketing processes in the company

Would you like to increase your productivity and achieve better results in your marketing efforts? If so, you should reach for marketing automation tools! Let us show you how they can streamline your work, saving you valuable time and simplifying your daily tasks. They will allow you to focus on creative activities and strategic planning, leaving monotonous tasks in the hands of intelligent systems.

According to the "Marketing Automation Market" report, today more than half of companies are already using marketing automation solutions

Projections indicate that the entire marketing automation industry will reach $8.42 billion by 2027. This is a dynamic trend that is gaining momentum and deserves attention.

Choosing the right marketing automation tools is crucial to the growth of your business, enabling you to effectively manage and optimize your campaigns. In this article, we present the top 5 marketing automation tools for 2023, taking a closer look at their features, benefits and pricing model.

See also Sales advantage through structured processes

Table of Contents:

What is a CRM?

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, is a comprehensive set of tools that improves customer interactions within a company. It allows effective communication between company representatives and customers using the products or services offered. The CRM system provides the necessary functions, allowing you to build lasting and positive relationships with customers. In addition, it allows full control over sales processes and provides tools for analyzing key indicators. Thus, using CRM software, the company gains the opportunity to improve the efficiency of its business operations.

See also How to implement CRM in your company

How does CRM software work?

A CRM system is not only a tool for communicating with customers, but also a comprehensive solution that includes event monitoring and task planning. These elements can be effectively assigned to specific projects and campaigns, which benefits the overall organization of activities. CRM software centralizes relevant information related to the sales process and customer service, allowing you to effectively manage it in one place.

See also The best AI tools. Improve work efficiency

What is marketing automation?


Marketing automation is the use of various tools and technologies to automate marketing tasks. Its goal is to effectively manage advertising campaigns and customer communications. We can find it in areas such as email marketing, website content management, social media activities or data analysis.

The benefit of marketing automation is, first of all, the saving of time and resources, as many routine tasks can be performed automatically. In addition, with this tool, it is also possible to increase the effectiveness of marketing activities by delivering more personalized messages tailored to the needs of the audience. The use of marketing automation allows you to optimize your website, deliver personalized content, increase user engagement and more effectively guide users to desired conversions.

How to choose a marketing automation platform?


Choosing the right marketing automation tool is a key part of successful campaign and customer relationship management. To make a wise choice, it's worth following a few key steps:

  1. Determine budget and business needs: Set a realistic budget for a marketing automation tool. Then identify your company's main needs, whether for email automation, content personalization or social media management.
  2. Evaluate the ease of use of the software: Check whether the tool offers an intuitive interface that will make the team's work easier. Ease of use is important so that all team members can use the tool effectively.
  3. Explore analytics and reporting options: Make sure the tool you choose provides extensive and easy-to-read reports. It's worth it if you can track campaign effectiveness and make informed decisions based on the data you collect.
  4. Check for integration with other tools: Use a tool that allows integration with existing systems in the company, such as CRM or data analysis tools. Checking this compatibility will increase the efficiency of your entire ecosystem of tools.
  5. Take advantage of demos: Test the available tool demos to evaluate the interface, features and compatibility with expectations. This is a great way to get hands-on experience and get an idea of whether the tool fits the characteristics of your company and is compatible with your work style.

See what marketing automation is

See popular marketing automation tools for small and medium-sized businesses

Zapier - automation of processes in the company

Zapier Extension
Zapier - process automation - Interface


What is Zapier ?

Zapier is a widely used marketing automation tool, particularly popular in the United States.

With this tool, we can integrate many different applications into one cohesive system, acting as a gateway to many functions.

In Poland, tools of this type, including Zapier, are less well known due to little awareness of such capabilities in the market. Alternatives to Zapier are integromat and IFTTT.

The advantage of the Zapier application is the ability to combine different tools without requiring programming skills. This saves significant amounts of money that would previously have been spent on manual integrations by programmers.

It does not require advanced technical knowledge or programming skills. Basic knowledge of English and following the recommended steps of the system are enough to use the tool effectively.

It is worth noting that the marketing market in Poland is at a different stage of development than in the United States. Every month in the U.S. there are many new valuable tools for optimizing marketing and sales processes.

The number of Zapier users in the Polish market is limited, which makes it a challenge to find a specialist with experience in this tool.

Wanting to realize the potential of Zapier, with this article I want to provide basic information about integration using this tool to streamline and automate business.

What can the Zapier tool do?

Zapier offers integrations with more than 2,000 popular applications, enabling a variety of tasks. With this tool we can:

  • Combine a form from a mailing platform (e.g. MailerLite, GetResponse, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign) with automated calling using Callpage or Livecall.
  • Integrate Facebook Lead Ads, which are ads that acquire contacts, with automated calling through Livecall or Callpage.
  • Combine the acquisition of phone numbers using chatbots in Messenger with various other applications.
  • Receive SMS notifications to your phone with information about new leads after completing the form.
  • Transfer customer data to Google Sheets, enabling transparent storage of information.
  • Integrate the online store with a sequence of SMS and e-mails, for example, sending automatic notification of the status of an order.
  • Create conditional scenarios, e.g., send an SMS to ship an order 48 hours after purchase.
  • Automatically send customer notifications to private Gmail.
  • Link the email system to the SMS API tool, sending reminders for live events such as webinars.

Zapier allows for creative and advanced integrations, enabling comprehensive automation of activities in various areas.

How much does Zapier cost?

Zapier offers a free version, whose limitations include 100 events per month, 5 integrations and no ability for more extensive multi-level connections. This is sufficient for small businesses and people in the early stages of using the tool.

The paid version allows for more advanced and extensive integrations. Costs depend on the plan, and Zapier offers different pricing packages to suit different user needs.

When is it a good idea to use Zapier?

Zapier is worth using when you want to reduce work time and automate repetitive processes in your company. It is ideal for increasing the level of automation in the areas of marketing, sales, customer service and many others.

Using Zapier saves time and resources that would previously have been spent on manual activities. It is especially useful for companies that want to automate marketing and sales processes and improve customer service.

It is a flexible and intuitive tool, which means that even people without deep technical knowledge can use its capabilities effectively.

In summary, Zapier is a valuable tool for process integration and automation that can bring real benefits to business growth.

The most common mistakes made when implementing CRM - at Hauerpower we help go through this process for our clients

Our offer:

Make - a must have in marketing automation

Make - Interface

Make, formerly known as Integromat, is a revolutionary tool for automating business processes. It effectively saves time and resources that would normally be spent on routine tasks. Make integrates a variety of applications and web services, enabling the creation of automated workflows without the need for complex code.

Business process automation with Make can cover a variety of tasks, from project management to customer service to data analysis. The tool offers a wide range of ready-made integrations with popular applications such as Google Sheets, Trello and Slack. What's more, thanks to Make's flexibility, it's also possible to create your own integrations and customize them to meet your company's individual needs.

It is worth noting that Make is not only a powerful tool for developers, but also for people without technical skills. Thanks to its intuitive interface and visual workflow design system, using the platform is easy even for novice users. As a result, each team member can focus on key tasks, leaving Make to automate business processes.

In summary, Make is a tool that significantly improves the efficiency of any company. The automation of business processes translates into time and resource savings, allowing you to focus on the important aspects of running your business. With a variety of integrations and ease of use, Make is an ideal solution for companies of all sizes and industries.

Make - comparison with competitors

Make vs. competing with other automation tools - Analysis of top solutionsThere are plenty of business process automation tools available on the market, but Make stands out from the competition. Compared to other popular solutions, such as Zapier or IFTTT, Make offers advanced features and an easy-to-use user interface. As a result, it can be used effectively by both beginners and advanced users.

Note Make's flexibility in terms of integration with various applications and services. The platform supports more than 500 applications, making it possible to create complex automation scenarios. In addition, thanks to an extensive system of modules and filters, the data flow can be precisely tailored to the individual needs of each enterprise.

Unlike competing tools, which often impose restrictions on the number of actions or operations within a single task, Make imposes no such restrictions. This makes it possible to create more complex processes without having to split them into smaller parts. Moreover, Make offers competitive pricing, especially compared to other popular solutions on the market. Therefore, an investment in Make can prove to be profitable for your business.

All in all, Make is a tool worth considering when choosing a business process automation platform. With its advanced features, intuitive interface and extensive integration capabilities with other applications and services, Make is a competitive alternative to other solutions available on the market. By choosing Make, you have the chance to optimize your business operations and achieve better results in less time.

Make - a solution for everyone

Make, as a business process automation tool, is designed not only for developers, but also for people with no coding experience. With an intuitive interface and a wide range of ready-made templates and applications, Make allows you to create automated processes quickly and easily. This means that even if you don't have programming skills, you can use this tool and reap the benefits of automation in your business.

It's worth noting that Make supports various programming languages and offers integrations with popular services such as Google Sheets and Slack. This allows those with technical skills to create more advanced solutions and customize them to meet individual company needs. However, even without these skills, many automated processes can be set up using an intuitive drag-and-drop system.

Make is a user-friendly tool for both beginners and IT professionals. Available training and educational materials on the manufacturer's website allow you to quickly master the basics of using the platform and gain practical knowledge of automation capabilities. As a result, anyone, regardless of their professional or technical experience, can effectively use Make and innovate in their business.

In summary, Make is a tool available to everyone - not just programmers. Its ease of use and support for various programming languages make it accessible to people with no coding experience as well as IT professionals. Automating business processes with Make translates into saving time and resources, which in turn makes the company more efficient and competitive in the market.

Examples of applications - how Make works

Make, formerly known as Integromat, is a powerful tool for automating business processes. Its operation is based on combining various applications and web services in one place to create automated workflows. In practice, this means that Make can significantly improve business efficiency by automating many tasks. Let's take a look at some specific examples of the tool's applications.

One frequently used scenario is to automatically add new contacts to a mailing list. Assuming you run an online store and would like to collect email addresses of customers making purchases, Make can be used to create a workflow that automatically adds new contacts to the list after each successful order. All you need to do is connect your online store to your email marketing platform, using the appropriate modules available in Make.

Another fascinating example is the integration of Google Calendar with Trello. If you use both of these tools for project management and meeting scheduling, Make can automatically create new cards in Trello based on calendar events. Thus, when you add a new appointment to your calendar, Make automatically generates the corresponding card in Trello, making it easy to keep track of tasks and deadlines.

Of course, the above are just two of Make's many potential uses. However, it is important to note that each workflow can be customized to meet the individual needs and requirements of your business. Therefore, take the time to explore the various modules and features offered by this tool to find the optimal solutions for your business.

The most common mistakes made when working with Make

The most common challenges when working with Make and effective ways to avoid them

Users may encounter various challenges and errors while using Make. One common problem is the incorrect application of an action or function during the automation process. To avoid such situations, it is advisable to carefully read the tool's documentation and consult the available usage examples. In addition, it is important to test the automation before deploying it in production, which allows you to detect potential errors and irregularities.

Another common challenge is the lack of consideration for the API limits of the applications used. Many services impose limits on the number of requests or data transferred, and exceeding these limits can result in account lockouts or additional fees. Therefore, it is crucial to monitor API consumption and strategically plan automation to avoid generating excessive traffic. Make can take advantage of built-in API limit management features to avoid such hassles.

Security of processed data using Make is also an important challenge. Improper storage or sharing of sensitive information can lead to violations of user privacy or loss of important data. To prevent this, it is recommended that you follow your organization's security policies and use the encryption and authentication features available in Make. With these measures, you can ensure that your automation processes are not only effective, but also safe for your business.

Make - why does it pay off?

When choosing to implement Make (formerly Integromat) in your business, it is worth considering the potential benefits of this investment decision. Automating business processes significantly increases work efficiency, which translates directly into savings of both time and money. Make allows you to focus on key aspects of your business, while eliminating monotonous tasks that often take up much of your time.

The flexibility of the Make tool is another advantage, allowing integration with a variety of applications and web services. Thanks to this feature, it is possible to create custom solutions tailored to a company's specific needs. In addition, the wealth of ready-made templates and the availability of user support make it possible for even those without programming skills to use the tool effectively.

In summary, an investment in Make can bring significant benefits to the growth of your business. Business process automation is a key part of modern business management, and Make, tailored to different skill levels, can play an important role in achieving success. Consider implementing Make in your company and reap the benefits of business process automation.


Sample Automation Schemes from WordPress.

  1. Notification of New Post on WordPress on Slack: The system regularly checks whether a new post has appeared on WordPress. If so, it automatically sends a notification of this event to the Slack platform.
  2. Adding MailChimp Subscribers from New WordPress Users: Every time a new user is added to WordPress, the system automatically creates them as a subscriber on the MailChimp platform.
  3. Create Posts on WordPress Based on Responses from Google Forms: The system takes responses from Google forms and automatically creates new posts on WordPress based on them.
  4. Create WordPress Users from New Responses from Google Forms: Google Forms responses are used to automatically create new users on WordPress.
  5. Import Posts from WordPress to Shopify as Articles: Any new post on WordPress automatically becomes an article on the Shopify platform.
  6. Adding Posts from WordPress to Notion: Publishing a new post on WordPress automatically creates a corresponding item in the database in Notion.
  7. Create a Post on WordPress from a New Event in Calendly: When a new event is created in Calendly, the system automatically generates a new post on WordPress.
  8. Adding New WordPress Users to Salesforce as Contacts: Every new WordPress user is automatically created as a contact in Salesforce.
  9. Adding New Comments from WordPress to Salesforce as Notes: When a new comment appears on WordPress, the system automatically creates a note in Salesforce.
  10. Notification of New Posts on WordPress on Salesforce Discussion Channel: the system publishes a message on the Salesforce discussion channel, notifying you of each new post on WordPress.
  11. Import Posts from WordPress to Shopify with Attached Media: Any new post on WordPress automatically becomes an article on Shopify, preserving the attached media.
  12. Creating a Row in a PostgreSQL Table from a New Media Element in WordPress: Adding a new media element in WordPress results in the automatic addition of a row to a PostgreSQL table.
  13. Creating a Row in a PostgreSQL Table from a New Post on WordPress: Every new post on WordPress automatically adds a corresponding row to the PostgreSQL table.
  14. Creating a Row in a PostgreSQL Table from a New Comment from WordPress: A new comment on WordPress results in the automatic addition of a row to a PostgreSQL table.
  15. Create Posts on WordPress from New Conversations in FreeScout: Each new conversation in FreeScout is used to automatically create a new post on WordPress related to that conversation.

Sample Automation Schemes from WooCommerce.

  1. Save New WooCommerce Orders to Google Sheets: Automatically add each new WooCommerce order to a new row in Google Sheets, allowing you to track orders efficiently.
  2. Update WooCommerce Order Status from Google Sheets Row Data: Automation retrieves updated order data from Google Sheets and automatically updates the status of the corresponding order in WooCommerce.
  3. Verify Email Addresses with MailerCheck and Create New Customers in WooCommerce: When you add a new row in Google Sheets, Make automatically verifies the email address with MailerCheck and creates a new customer in WooCommerce.
  4. Add New WooCommerce Customers to Google Sheets and Save them to AWeber: Automatically track new WooCommerce customers, save them to Google Sheets, and add them to AWeber's email list for more effective marketing campaigns.
  5. Download New WooCommerce Coupons and Send them to Customer List: Automatically download new WooCommerce coupons and send them to your customer email list saved in Google Sheets.
  6. Create Revolut Business Payment Project and Send Slack Notification from New WooCommerce Order: Automatically create Revolut payment project to courier and send notification to Slack when new WooCommerce order appears.
  7. Update Inventory Values in QuickBooks & Google Sheets for New WooCommerce Orders: When you create a new WooCommerce order, Make automatically updates inventory values in both QuickBooks and Google Sheets.
  8. Create FreshBooks Invoice and Send Gmail Notification from New WooCommerce Order: Automatically create FreshBooks Invoice and (if it doesn't exist) FreshBooks customer from new WooCommerce order, and send email notification via Gmail.
  9. Update WooCommerce Customer Email Address after Changing Mailchimp Subscriber Email Address: When you change Mailchimp subscriber email address, Make automatically updates the email address of the corresponding WooCommerce customer.
  10. Add (or Update) Mailchimp Subscriber from New WooCommerce Subscriber: Automatically add or update Mailchimp subscriber when you create a new WooCommerce subscriber.
  11. Create New Customers in WooCommerce from New Customers in Shopify: Automatically add new WooCommerce customers once they are created in Shopify.
  12. Create Mailchimp Campaign from New WooCommerce Product: Automatically create Mailchimp campaign when you create a new WooCommerce product.
  13. Create or Update Contacts in HubSpot CRM from New Orders in WooCommerce: When you create a new order in WooCommerce, Make automatically creates or updates a contact in HubSpot CRM.

Make - Evolution of Business Process Automation.

In today's dynamic business environment, Make is emerging as a key player driving the future of business process automation. In the era of digitization, where competition continues to grow, companies are looking for solutions to optimize operations and increase productivity. Make responds perfectly to these expectations, enabling advanced integration of various applications and services to construct complex task chains without engaging in programming processes.

One of the key aspects of the future of business process automation is the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Make is already opening the door to using these advanced technologies through integration with dedicated tools and services. In the next few years, we expect to see even wider use of AI and ML within the Make platform, which will contribute to even more advanced automation scenarios and better customization.

Equally important is expanding the number of available integrations within Make. Currently, the platform works with hundreds of popular applications and services, but the rapidly growing list of integrations means that users will be able to create increasingly complex and personalized automation processes, which will contribute to better results in their daily work. In addition, Make plans to simplify the user interface and introduce new features to further improve the use of the tool.

In conclusion, the future of Make as a business process automation tool looks extremely promising. Developments in technology, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, combined with the continued expansion of the list of available integrations, are making Make an increasingly sophisticated and versatile tool. An investment in this platform can already bring efficiency benefits to business process automation.

See also:

HubSpot

HubSpot - Interface

HubSpot, founded in 2006, is a comprehensive all-in-one platform designed to effectively conduct inbound marketing, sales and customer service activities. Over the years of development, HubSpot has evolved into a full-fledged suite of tools, flexibly adapting to the diverse needs of companies' marketing strategies. With extensive features and a special emphasis on the concept of inbound marketing, HubSpot has gained recognition as a leading tool for marketing automation, especially among small and medium-sized businesses.

HubSpot's main features:

  1. Inbound Marketing: HubSpot stands out for its advanced inbound marketing tools, including content creation, SEO optimization and social media management. With HubSpot's blogging platform, users are able to not only create, but also optimize and promote content, which translates into generating organic traffic to their websites.
  2. CRM integration: HubSpot's built-in CRM system works perfectly with its marketing automation platform, enabling companies to comprehensively manage contacts, track customer interactions and personalize marketing campaigns based on customer data.
  3. Lead Management: HubSpot's lead management features help companies effectively collect, evaluate potential and build relationships with potential customers. By scoring leads, companies can assign priorities to high-potential leads, allowing them to construct targeted lead nurturing campaigns designed to move them down the sales funnel.
  4. Marketing automation: HubSpot's visual task sequence builder allows companies to create automated marketing campaigns based on specific triggers, such as form submissions or email opens. Workflow processes can effectively streamline lead nurturing, customer onboarding and follow-up processes.
  5. Analytics and reporting: HubSpot's comprehensive analytics and reporting features enable companies to monitor the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, identify trends and make data-driven decisions to optimize marketing strategy.

MailChimp

What is Mailchimp and how to use it - IFTTT
MailChimp - Interface


MailChimp, a respected provider of email marketing services, has evolved into a comprehensive platform to support the planning and execution of marketing activities. In recent years, it has expanded its offerings, adding tools for creating landing pages, purchasing social ads, implementing automation and optimizing content. It's an excellent solution especially for small businesses and start-ups, characterized by its ease of implementation and lack of a large financial investment.

Prices start with a free plan, available for businesses with a mailing list of up to 500 contacts. Higher packages, starting at $13 per month, offer additional features and capabilities, adapting to the growing needs of businesses.

MailChimp's main features:

  1. E-mail marketing: MailChimp stands out for its easy-to-use e-mail marketing tools, allowing users to create and send professional e-mails. Ready-made templates are available, as well as a drag-and-drop editor for designing your own content.
  2. Automations: The platform offers predefined automations, such as welcome messages, abandoned cart reminders and post-purchase follow-ups. This makes it easier for companies to engage audiences and improve retention without manual management.
  3. Landing pages and pop-up forms: MailChimp allows you to create responsive landing pages and pop-up forms that allow businesses to collect leads and promote special offers. These tools combine seamlessly with MailChimp's email marketing and automation features.
  4. Analytics and reporting: MailChimp provides detailed analytics and reports, making it easy to monitor the effectiveness of email campaigns, track subscriber activity, and optimize actions based on the collected data.
  5. Integrations: MailChimp offers a wide range of integrations with popular third-party applications, including CRM systems, e-commerce platforms and content management systems, making it easy to customize the platform to meet different user needs.

Salesforce

Salesforce - Interface


Salesforce, founded in 1999, is a pioneering cloud-based CRM (customer relationship management) service provider with a leading position in the market. Like MailChimp and HubSpot, Salesforce is steadily expanding its offerings, adding new features such as marketing automation, sales process management, customer service and advanced analytics tools.

Price: Individually tailored to the client's needs.

Key features of Salesforce:

  1. Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Salesforce offers comprehensive customer relationship management capabilities to monitor customer interactions, track sales processes and marketing campaigns, giving you full visibility into lead and customer activity.
  2. Marketing automation: As part of the Marketing Cloud tool, Salesforce provides marketing automation features such as Journey Builder. This tool enables companies to create personalized customer paths based on current data, providing real-time information.
  3. Sales Management: Salesforce Sales Cloud provides tools to effectively manage leads, track sales opportunities and forecast sales performance. This supports sales teams in prioritizing leads and speeds up the deal-closing process.
  4. Customer Service: Salesforce Service Cloud is a comprehensive set of customer service tools, including ticket management, a knowledge base and a live chat option. This enables companies to provide excellent customer service.
  5. Analytics: Salesforce Einstein Analytics uses artificial intelligence to deliver insights and predictive analytics. This enables companies to make data-driven decisions and optimize marketing, sales and customer service operations.

The Salesforce platform is distinguished by its high degree of customization and scalability, making it suitable for a variety of businesses - both small businesses and large corporations. With the ability to adapt to specific needs, Salesforce becomes a versatile tool, ready to handle a variety of business requirements.

Frequently asked questions - FAQ

What are the real benefits to the business of using marketing automation tools?

The use of marketing automation tools brings a number of benefits to the company, including the elimination of repetitive and routine tasks, allowing the marketing team to work more efficiently. As a result, cooperation with business partners becomes more profitable, and building relationships with audiences becomes smoother and more personalized. These innovative tools help improve the efficiency of marketing activities, while increasing the potential to generate profits for the company.