Unpacking Lifecycle Marketing: Insights from Latoya Bowlah's Expert Perspective
In a world constantly vying for the consumer's attention, businesses face the challenge of not just reaching the customer but also adding meaningful value. LaToya Bowlah, an authority in digital transformation and lifecycle marketing, recently shared her insights on this subject. As a leader who has developed go-to-market strategies at Nasdaq and Bloomberg Digital, among others, Bowlah understands the intricacies of customer engagement and the balance required to drive growth. On the latest episode of Growth@Scale, she dissects this multifaceted approach, offering strategies that can pivot a company towards success.
Key Takeaways:
- Lifecycle marketing sits at the intersection of content, automation, and personalization, and mastering it can significantly reduce customer acquisition costs.
- Knowing your audience is paramount. Targeting must be refined to avoid the "speaking to everyone, speaking to no one" pitfall.
- Technology investment should align with growth stages, ensuring integration complements capability needs and that the team can fully utilize its potential.
Finding Harmony Between Conversion and Value
Marketing is not just about getting the word out; it's about creating a resonant story that aligns with the consumer's journey. As Bowlah explains, there's an ongoing crisis where companies focus on driving conversions at the expense of providing true value—"so much garbage in, garbage out." For her, achieving the balance between converting customers and adding utility is critical. This balance ensures the customer not only makes a purchase but also enjoys a fulfilling brand experience.
"There needs to be this balance between converting and providing utility, providing usefulness to your customers."
This assertion is supported by the realization that customers may often be bombarded by promotions, causing them to lose sight of what they were initially looking for—whether it be an update on a recent purchase or relevant information about financial investment. To strike this balance effectively, marketers must understand where a customer is in their lifecycle and tailor communications to enhance the experience, not detract from it.
Audience-Centric Marketing: The Bedrock of Your Strategy
Bowlah emphasizes the significance of starting with the audience—understanding not just who they are, but where they are and what they need. By identifying the "watering holes" and honing in on the audiences' preferred platforms, businesses can refine their channel strategy with precision. This is not about being in all places at once but rather about choosing the right channels that lead to meaningful engagement.
"Really start with the audience. There were many points in my career where it was proven that we needed both that digital paid arm, we needed that lifecycle owned marketing content engagement arm, and we also needed that traditional marketing mix arm."
The lesson here extends beyond mere channel selection to understanding the essence of your customers’ needs. Identifying the different segments and customizing the approach accordingly can dissect a seemingly large audience into manageable, targeted groups that can be served more personally and effectively.
The Art of Investing in Technology and Growth at the Right Time
One of the most recurrent themes in the evolution of a successful marketing strategy is knowing when and how to invest in your tech stack. Bowlah warns against the allure of technology as a magic bullet for growth, noting that companies often rush to onboard new technologies without having the necessary structures or teams to maximize their potential.
"For the tech stacks you're bringing on, making sure that you are investing in the teams and partners to take that tech stack to market… that's also critical."
This brings us to the concept of growth alignment—ensuring that the timing and depth of tech stack investments are coherent with the company's stage and strategic goals. The key is to foster a marriage of capability and utility, where technology serves to propel forward an already coherent and audience-aligned marketing strategy.
As we engage with the implications of these insights, it is evident that the marketing landscape is one that demands agility, an in-depth understanding of the audience, and judicious tech stack investments. With these in mind, leaders can steer their companies through the tumultuous waters of growth and change, anchored firmly by a well-crafted lifecycle marketing strategy.
Bowlah and Widdoes' discussion culminates in a call to action for marketing professionals to keep learning, stay audience-focused, and build a marketing practice that grows in tandem with the company's needs. In navigating the dynamic world of marketing, it's clear that while there may be many tools at our disposal, nothing replaces the fundamental need for strategic insight and a customer-centered approach.
Your Company is Probably Underinvesting in Lifecycle Marketing
- Lifecycle marketing is essential for growth but often underinvested in.
- Neglecting lifecycle marketing can lead to lower customer acquisition, decreased engagement, increased churn rates, and missed upsell and cross-sell chances.
- To optimize lifecycle marketing, businesses should map the full customer journey, thoughtfully segment audiences, personalize marketing efforts based on actions/inaction, and continuously refine and optimize campaigns while informing the broader business of your learnings.
- Emphasizing lifecycle marketing enhances customer relationships, boosts brand loyalty, and sets a business up for long-term success through additional revenue and data.
Lifecycle marketing is a critical part of any successful growth strategy, yet many companies either underinvest in it, or neglect it completely. By failing to reach your target at different stages of their journey, you risk missing out on opportunities to acquire, engage, and retain your customers. Let’s explore the importance of lifecycle marketing and the potential negative consequences of underinvesting in a critical aspect of your company’s marketing arsenal.
Lifecycle Marketing: What is it?
Lifecycle marketing is the practice of targeting your customers with tailored messages and offers based on where they are in the customer journey. This can be through email, SMS messages, and even in-app push notifications. Every customer has different needs, considerations, and behaviors as they make their way through the sales funnel and by measuring and optimizing to these needs, businesses can create a more personalized experience, ultimately driving growth and long-term success.
What’s the worst that could happen?
Companies that fail to invest in their lifecycle efforts run the risk of leaving significant amounts of untapped revenue scattered across their marketing pipeline.
- Lower Customer Acquisition Rates – Businesses without effective lifecycle programs are leaving massive amounts of revenue on the table. People need time to make decisions and effective lifecycle programs help guide users down the sales path.
- Decreased Customer Engagement – A one-size-fits-all marketing approach likely won’t resonate with customers at different stages of the funnel, leading to lower engagement and reduced loyalty. Effective lifecycle programs meet customers where they’re from all points between first touch and first sale.
- Higher Churn Rates – Neglecting to nurture existing customers creates a host of potential risks for your business and client relationships.. Eventually, they’ll start looking elsewhere, and effective lifecycle campaigns paired with predictive analytics helps you stay ahead of churn.
- Missing Out on Upselling and Cross-Selling – Failing to capitalize on key upsell and cross-sell opportunities leads to lost revenue and missed growth potential. In many industries, lifecycle is capable of driving 20%+ of your total revenue.
Getting the most from your lifecycle strategy
To optimize your lifecycle efforts, there are a few simple steps you can take that will put you on the path towards knowing and engaging with your customers.
- Map the complete Customer Journey – Give yourself a clear understanding of the different stages of your customers’ journey and the unique needs, challenges, and preferences associated with each stage.
- Segment Your Audience – Not all customers are exactly the same. Divide your customer base into clearly defined segments based on their behaviors, preferences, and lifecycle stages to create targeted marketing efforts.
- Personalize Your Marketing – You’ve got customer data, so use it! Leverage your data and insights to create personalized marketing messages and offers that drive engagement and resonate with your audience.
- Always Be Optimizing – Can’t stop, won’t stop. Regularly analyze the performance of your lifecycle campaigns and adjust your approach based on any new learnings. Try something new, if it works, great! If not, that’s okay, you just learned something new.
You’re leaving money on the table when you underinvest in your lifecycle marketing. Even worse, you’re hindering your growth potential. When you recognize the importance of staying engaged with your customers at every step of their journey, you improve customer relationships, boost loyalty to your brand, and set yourself up for long-term success.
