A Marketing Automation Evangelist and Change Management
Today we launched our latest eBook, Change Management – Staying Relevant, Predictive and Sane in the Changing Landscape of Demand Generation, a joint venture by Mathew Sweezey, author and Marketing Automation Evangelist for Salesforce.com and Carlos Hidalgo, CEO and Principal, ANNUITAS. I had the opportunity to ask Mathew a few questions about his role (one of the best job titles I have ever come across) at Salesforce.com and the inspiration behind the eBook. Take a look at some of the insightful answers Mathew shares and you’ll want to dig deeper into the aspect of change management as it relates to all we do in demand generation.
ANNUITAS: What does the Marketing Automation Evangelist at Salesforce.com do on a daily basis? What is your strategic focus?
Mathew Sweezey: My role at Salesforce.com entails spearheading primary research efforts, writing up the analysis, and then translating that back to our audience with what can be learned from it. Marketing automation is really now the back bone of any marketing strategy, so I try not to focus on things such as lead scoring, but rather how to better connect via automations. So I take a more macro view of marketing automation and what it means to a business, rather than a tactical. I did however, write a very tactical book, “Marketing Automation for Dummies” so I’ve covered that stuff too.
ANNUITAS: Why did you decide to write about change management? Why is this so critical today?
Mathew Sweezey: I decided to write about change management because it needs to be done. It’s the biggest elephant in the room, and nobody notices it yet. I’ve worked with hundreds of companies to adopt marketing automation, and it’s always the same. They purchase it and then have no clue what to do with it, so they do the same things they did before. It’s human nature to revert back to things you already know when faced with new problems. This is the same issue with new marketing techniques. They have to be grounded on a foundation of modern ideals, and strategy. If you get marketing automation and don’t change your strategy and tactics, you’ll just get to a bad result even faster. So having people understand the need for change management is the best thing I could think of to help people have more success.
ANNUITAS: How are marketers missing out on optimum results by not thinking about change management?
Mathew Sweezey: They are missing out in massive ways. To the tune of 300% kinda ways. I worked with a company who didn’t want to change their email strategy when they adopted lead nurturing. They sent the same emails, just automated the process. I taught them how to change their view of email, and the relationship they were forging with email. They then adopted this mindset and made some strategic changes, and their revenue from email marketing went up by 300%. Let me mention this company was not new to email marketing, and drove most of their revenue from email already. They were email pros, yet didn’t even know they needed to change. So the point is, even if things are good, the environment we market in has changed so much and will continue to for some time, if we don’t embrace a process for change we’ll be left behind.
ANNUITAS: What is the most important aspect to consider about change management?
Mathew Sweezey: There is only thing we need to remember. Change is constant, and so should your processes to manage it.
ANNUITAS: What advice can you give marketers looking to implement change management in their organizations?
Mathew Sweezey: It takes an outsider sometimes. I’m a firm believer that unless you are at the top of an organization, you can’t move the needle on change very much. However, that same person can bring in a respected outsider and the company is often very open to change. Just remember – sometimes you can’t do it on your own because people just need to hear things from outsiders.
Want to learn more about change management and Demand Generation Strategy? Download the eBook today. Follow Mathew on twitter to learn more about marketing automation and insights gained from his role at Salesforce.com.
Author: Erika Goldwater, CIPP/US @erikawg is Director, Marketing for ANNUITAS
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