This is a nagging topic on the minds of a lot of marketers this year; in addition to making marketing automation work like a mad SQL (sales qualified lead) generating tool. With respect to direct, email, or online marketing, what seems commonplace to me as a marketer might not be apparent to others who have had mixed results with their campaigns. Let's start with a basic approach: email marketing.
Batch and blast works well for generalized content or for product announcements. But, for that personal touch, as in do it with customer service like you really care... try sending your customers a personalized, non-sales oriented email about a birthday, anniversary, or a special gift just for them.
Ask customers to engage with you in online conversations, participate on polls or surveys, or get feedback on their experiences. It doesn't hurt to ask for their input. What do you think about the new features we put into ___. How does your website redesign look?
When I ask other marketers how many touches they send out to their prospects and active customers, I get a variety of answers. The most I've heard of (including autoresponders from newsletter signups or web form submissions) on the B2B side is 15-20 touches per prospect per month. Ouch, I don't think I'd want to be on the receiving end without an unlimited data plan for my connected devices. This is when planning out content and using a scheduling calendar really helps when releasing time-delayed content. Some premium features of marketing platforms even offer limiters on how many times a lead or contact can be contacted within a set period of time. And, you can also manage frequency when setting up a demand automation funnel as well for handling MQLs and recycled SQLs.
And last of all, your prospects and customers are just like you and me. We have a finite amount of time to devote to activities like reading email; especially promotional or content that adds some richness to our daily lives. Be mindful of how (often) you send out content.
/stepping off the soapbox/
