If you want to start automating your business, it's best to divide your strategy into manageable chunks. By focusing on the big picture, you can lose sight of what you're trying to accomplish. Automation doesn't have to be complicated. It can actually be simple if you focus on the little things you can do to get the ball rolling.

Read on to learn how.

1. WRITE IT DOWN
Sit down and write out your current manual processes. This should be your first step so that you can get a clear picture of what processes need to be automated. What are you spending too much time on when it comes to your business? Follow ups? Data input? Email marketing?

Don't try to sit and brainstorm your list all at once. Instead, write down your tasks as they happen. Do this over a few days, and see what you come up with. Then, go from there.

2. START SMALL
From your list, choose one or two of those manual processes to start with. Prioritize automating the tasks that are consuming the most time and resources. Then, write down a plan for how you can automate each. For example, when a customer service inquiry is made, how do you automatically route the inquiry to the right support person? What automatic follow up do you send? Another example would be with new leads when they click on a marketing email, view a page on your blog, click one of your ads, or fill out a form on your website.

The key thing to remember here is, don't try to automate everything at once. Successful automation takes careful planning and strategic decision-making.

3. LOOK AT THE DATA
Determine what kind of data is important to your business. Are you collecting that data from your contacts? Website visits? Location? Email clicks? Demographic data? Understanding what data you need and what data you don't need can make you a more effective data-driven organization. Plus, being familiar with relevant data about your contacts can help you make more informed decisions about the types of automatic follow ups to send. Data also helps you personalize the customer experience.

4. GET YOUR TEAM ON BOARD
Help your team understand the benefits of automation. Don't implement an automation strategy without input from your team. It's important that they understand the why, what, and how. Get your team trained before getting started with automation.

Here are some actionable ways to start building work process automation from the team level:

Clear the air. Explain to your team members exactly what automation is. Some members may think it's just a fancy way of saying that a computer will be doing their job. They might fear that they're going to be replaced. So let them know that automation is a positive change that will help streamline their processes and free up time for them to perform other tasks.
Ask your team members what they're tired of doing. Automation helps remove the burden of repetitive tasks from team members. For most people, these tasks are boring and unfulfilling. So start with the tasks that no one likes.
Look for tools that will work for everyone. To get everyone on your team on board with automation, make sure everyone will get some improvement or benefit from it. Get started with tools that anyone can implement without a single line of code, complex formulas, or help from IT.

Marketing automation is a crucial part of any marketing strategy, no matter the size of your business or the industry you're in. If you need help implementing an effective automation strategy, get in touch with us today.

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