Marketing software refers to tools that help businesses successfully execute campaigns, tap into their target markets and convert leads into sales. Companies, regardless of size, can benefit from marketing tools, allowing them to maximize their resources and get rid of repetitive tasks. They are also very useful in expanding businesses’ reach and allow companies to focus on more pressing matters.

1. Great Marketing Software

First, Yesware. Yesware is an email platform that makes it easier for salespeople to manage and track emails and thus close more deals. The platform tracks email opens, provides in-email analytics as well as data on user engagement. Yesware syncs seamlessly with CRMs like Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, and Oracle CRM saving time and increasing efficiency.

Second, Sailthru. Sailthru aims to increase user engagement and conversion through smart data which marketers can use to better understand and respond to users in real-time. This results in a personalized user experience in the form of targeted emails, for example, or a homepage tailored to an individual’s interests. Sailthru’s clients include Business Insider, AOL. Huffington Post and Newsweek among others. The startup recently raised $19 million.

Third, MailChimp. MailChimp makes it easy to customize emails to suit a particular marketing campaign. Other features include analytics, the option to A/B test and geo-target as well as spam filter diagnostics. MailChimp has more than 2 million users and is growing at the rate of about 6,000 users a day.  forbes.com

Marketing Software: MailChimp

Fourth, Google Analytics. As one of the top free tools from Google, Analytics should be part of your digital marketing strategy from the very start. It only takes a couple of minutes to add the Analytics code to your website Besides that, it also giving you the ability to track every action by every visitor. This is considered by many to be nothing more than a traffic tool. Thus, it can have a big impact on your marketing strategy if you know what you’re doing.

2. Advantage

First, it is saving money. Paying for one solution is usually cheaper than buying multiple products that do the same tasks less efficiently. To get all the features of the sales and marketing software platform offer, you need to invest in separate tools for email marketing, sales automation, customer relationship management, and analytics, to name a few. It all adds up, especially if you have a large team. It usually is paying for each user every month.

Second, it is freeing up time. Streamlining your tools into one growth team platform helps ensure that time is not lost working out incompatible integrations or doing busy work like updating clients flies. It is transferring data between platforms. In other words, using all-in-one sales and marketing tool allows users to spend more time on their highest ROI activities.

3. How to choose marketing software?

First, try to identify your goals. Why are you looking for a software solution in the first place? What numbers should this investment help improve? It’s a simple step, but by identifying this and tying numbers to software, you’ll have a better feel for which vendors can support those goals.

Second, try to identify who will use it. Which teams need access? How many total members of your team will need seats? How do their challenges differ? Considering the impact that any vendor will have on your team is a critical step toward making the right decision.

Third, try to identify who will own it. Who will own implementation? Management? Involve this person early on in the evaluation process to ensure onboarding and implementation go smoothly.

Fourth, try to demo the product. It’s always a good idea to get a demonstration of the software before investing money into it. Ideally, this won’t just be desktop sharing. You’ll want your team to get into the software and confirm it can do what’s needed.  databox.com

4. Benefits

First, it can make customer management easier. Developing relationships with potential clients at each phase of the sales process is crucial to helping your business thrive. However, this is not as simple as convincing prospects to purchase products or keeping them posted on your offers. Attracting and retaining clientele are extensive processes wherein you must pinpoint the people who will most likely need your services, listen to their concerns, and respond to them on time every time they contact you. By using a CRM software or lead nurturing system, you can effortlessly schedule email campaigns, reply to leads promptly, build a better online presence, and keep tabs on current customers.

Second, it can streamline marketing efforts. Marketing campaigns require the simultaneous use of multiple channels to communicate with your target audience. Marketing software solutions help you to coordinate various programs in a single, easy-to-manage platform. It means you no longer have to jump from system to system to execute your campaign seamlessly. Most of these applications also offer a full suite of tools that let you manage content, nurture leads, and measure your campaign efforts accurately, promptly, and efficiently.

Third, it helps to save time managing your social media campaigns. Most marketing software allows you to manage all of your social media campaigns from within one dashboard and post to multiple accounts in one go. While this has been easy to do with tools like Tweetdeck and Hootsuite for years, it’s powerful to have it connected to the same system that you use to track leads.

5. Free Marketing Software for Small Business

First, Marketing Automation Software. Example: Phantombuster.

Phantombuster provides over 200 code-free automation and data extraction tools for LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Zapier, Medium, Quora, and others. Each tool can be used individually or combined with others to create full workflows.

Second, Social Media Software. Example: MobileMonkey.

MobileMonkey is an omnichannel chatbot that enables companies to proactively engage with audiences across Facebook Messenger, live chat on your website, SMS text messaging, and other popular messaging apps.

Third, SEO Software. Example: Yoast SEO Plugin.

Yoast is the best free plugin for content marketers. Besides that, it is for content writers on WordPress sites. In my opinion, it’s an absolute must-have tool for any blogger. After installing the Yoast SEO plugin on your WordPress site, this free marketing software instantly analyzes the SEO of your content, the page, the URL, your headline, the meta description, your image alt-attributes, and more. Then, Yoast tells you what to do to improve your SEO score. Thus, you can make the improvements on the page. It instantly lets you know whether issues solve or if you can improve the page performance even more.

 

Yoast SEO Plugin.

Fourth, Graphic Design Software. Example: Canva.

Canva is a graphic design platform that allows users to create social media graphics, presentations, posters, and other visual content. The visual content creator integrates millions of images, fonts, templates, and illustrations for marketers with little to no design skills to build awesome looking images quickly. Even with unlimited resources, it can be challenging to design a presentation or create a great-looking image last minute. High-pressure design deadlines are stressful for both designers and marketers, yet in most workplaces, this is a common occurrence.

Marketing Software: Canva

6. Marketing Software Strategies

First, offer free demos. Most users like to try software programs before buying them. Offer free demos of your program whenever and wherever you market it. Submit a shareware version to software directories and offer a trial version on your website. The trial version can be for a limited time or provide access to limited features, as long as it shows users how they can benefit from buying the full version.

Second, create branded content. People prefer to buy from companies they trust, and one of the best ways to earn trust is by providing useful information to your potential customers. Create resources that include helpful tips and knowledge, even if they aren’t directly related to your product. Consumers can find this information via search engines, and will gradually start to think of your brand as a trustworthy source of information. Then, when it comes time to make a software purchase, you’ll be a natural choice.