How to sidestep 3 subtle—yet crucial—marketing blunders

Marketing automation is powerful, but it’s far from foolproof. You need a robust strategy to guide it.

Here are three common marketing automation mistakes, along with tips to avoid those costly blunders:

1. Personalizing content based on superficial details.

Most automated emails start off the same way. At the very top, there’s a little field before the content that says something like, “Hi [firstname, fallback=there].”

That’s where many marketers’ personalization efforts begin and end. Unfortunately, that’s not good enough today.

True content personalization focuses on more meaningful messaging elements, such as customized body text or tailored offers based on actions a recipient has (or has not) taken.

Personalization should also consider how many emails prospects should receive. For example, you can be more aggressive in sending follow-up emails to people who almost purchased your product than you can with those who haven’t even considered buying just yet.

2. Setting triggers that are too generic. 

Marketing automation excels when it can automatically make smart, strategic decisions for you. It should be like an extension of someone’s brain, taking in each lead’s feedback and reacting appropriately.