The Best Tools for Digital Marketers: Marketing automation guide

 

Digital marketing has come of age and it is important to use the right tools in order to automate and manage them. 

Here's a detailed guide to some of the best tools for digital marketers, focusing on marketing automation: 

#1 HubSpot: 

Overview: HubSpot has a complete package of tools for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service. 

It is easy to use and can automate a lot of processes, which make it ideal for large organizations. 

Key Features: 

• Email marketing automation 
• Lead nurturing and scoring 
• CRM integration 
• Social media scheduling 
• Analytics and reporting 

Why It’s Useful: HubSpot is very useful to business organizations that want to integrate all their marketing functions in one place to help them handle client relations and analyze the effectiveness of promotions. 

#2 Mailchimp: 

Overview: Originally an email marketing software, Mailchimp has evolved into a marketing automation software ideal for SMBs. 

Key Features: 

• Email marketing and automation 
• Audience segmentation 
• Social media advertising 
• Landing page creation 
• Reporting and analytics 

Why It’s Useful: One of the most popular and easy to use is Mailchimp; it is especially suitable for newcomers to the sphere of marketing automation. 

#3 Marketo: 

Overview: Marketo (acquired by Adobe) is one of the most popular marketing automation solutions that targets large enterprises with complicated marketing strategies. 

Key Features: 

• Advanced email marketing 
• Lead management 
• Account-based marketing 
• Analytics and ROI tracking 
• Linkages with other CRM solutions such as Salesforce 

Why It’s Useful: Marketo is perfect for large companies, which require complex automation to control vast marketing initiatives and intricate customer paths. 

#4 Pardot: 

Overview: Pardot is a B2B marketing automation tool that is created to help businesses make better connections, drive more pipelines and enable sales to convert more deals. 

Key Features: 

• Lead scoring and grading 
• CRM integration 
• ROI reporting 
• Automated email marketing 
• Social media marketing 

Why It’s Useful: Thus, Pardot is an ideal tool for sales and marketing synchronization, which will be especially valuable for businesses using Salesforce CRM. 

#5 ActiveCampaign: 

Overview: ActiveCampaign provides solutions in email marketing, marketing automation, sales automation and CRM designed for businesses of all sizes. 

Key Features: 

• Email automation 
• Lead scoring 
• SMS marketing 
• Site tracking and segmentation 
• Advanced analytics 

Why It’s Useful: ActiveCampaign’s main selling point is its capacity to automate marketing with an approach that is personal and can be used for large audiences, which makes it ideal for businesses that need to cultivate leads and customers. 

#6 Zapier: 

Overview: Zapier enables marketers to integrate between several apps and automate their tasks, which results in simplification of the processes in various platforms. 

Key Features: 

• Compatibility with over a thousand applications 
• Workflow automation (Zaps) 
• Multi-step Zaps when you have a number of actions to complete 
• No coding required 

Why It’s Useful: Zapier is great for marketers who wish to save time and avoid wasting it on mundane tasks and for those who wish to connect different tools without any coding. 

#7 Hootsuite: 

Overview: Hootsuite is an application that enables the marketer to post and schedule updates for social media accounts, measure the performance of social media and even handle multiple accounts. 

Key Features: 

• Scheduling and automation of social media accounts 
• Analytics and reporting 
• Team collaboration tools 
• Connection with more than 20 social networks 

Why It’s Useful: Hootsuite enables efficient management of social media hence enabling organizations to post frequently and at the right time. 

#8 Google Analytics: 

Overview: Google Analytics is a tool for Internet site traffic analysis and tracking, which is free of charge and is used for analyzing users’ behavior and the effectiveness of campaigns. 

Key Features: 

• Real-time tracking 
• Customizable dashboards 
• Audience segmentation 
• Conversion tracking 
• Incorporation with Google Adwords and other related tools 

Why It’s Useful: Google Analytics is a must-have tool for analyzing the visitors’ behavior on your site and making data-driven marketing strategies. 

#9 SEMrush: 

Overview: SEMrush is a versatile tool for digital marketing that includes such functions as SEO, content marketing, competitor analysis, PPC, and social media marketing. 

Key Features: 

• Keyword research and tracking 
• Competitor analysis 
• SEO audits 
• Content marketing tools 
• Advertising research 

Why It’s Useful: In my opinion, SEMrush is a powerful tool that gives detailed information about your online presence and that of your competitors, thus allowing you to make the right changes. 

#10 Buffer: 

Overview: There is also Buffer that enables the management of social media accounts as well as scheduling and analyzing the performance of posts. 

Key Features: 

• Scheduling and automation of the social media platforms 
• Analytics and insights 
• Team collaboration tools 
• Linking to the leading social networks 

Why It’s Useful: Buffer is quite simple and efficient and that is why it is quite popular among small businesses and one-man bands who need an easy tool to manage their social media presence. 

Such tools address many digital marketing needs which include, email marketing automation, lead nurturing, social media management and analysis. 

Thus, choosing the right set of these tools, digital marketers can optimize the process, ensure efficient work and the increase of the campaign success rate.