If you are selling a product or service, you have a huge commitment to your existing and potential customers. You have to deliver.

If you are selling Marketing Automation services, you have a big commitment to your existing and potential customers. You have to lead by example.

Over the last couple of weeks we have been conducting a review of marketing automation software for ourselves and also a couple of our clients.

I’m left especially disappointed with three of those marketing automation providers (which will remain anonymous) and the way in which they have managed my journey through their “lead nurturing programme”.

This is why:

Marketing Automation company 1:

I think this organisation creates amazing content, which I sacredly read and download by filling in their form again and again. I have now entered the next stage in their buying cycle (I think) and have filled in a couple of other forms to “enquire”, “request a demo” and to “become a partner”.

Did I receive a call or an email thanking me for the enquiry and details of next steps? No.

I then send a direct message to a generic email address from one of their email newsletters (sent from and signed by an individual), stating that I am interested in speaking to someone about their software. Did I receive a response? Nothing.

As a last resort I dig very deep in my inbox to search for a named individual sales exec that contacted me about 6 months ago – probably when I reached a good score in their system. I sent a direct email to the person, stating my interest and my frustration. Did I receive a response? Not until 2 days have passed.

Marketing Automation company 2:

I visited their site, hit the “view a demo” button and I am presented with 4 promotional videos (not demos). BTW they play faster than my laptop can download. Then I hit the “ready to learn more” link and filled the form (had to press the submit button twice as the java script on the site doesn’t work with my browser!) and I get no acknowledgement that the form has been sent successfully.

Have I received a response? No.

I then decide to click the button “Have a live chat now” someone promptly answers my questions and tells me that they will pass on my details to the relevant person to contact me. Has someone done that? Nope!

Marketing Automation company 3:

I enquired about their software and since spoken to one individual who said he will send me a link to two of their scheduled webinars and that we will talk again if this is something I want to pursue. I only received one notification, and for various reasons I can’t attend the webinar. I email the sales guy for a resend of the webinar invitations and to this day I have heard NOTHING from them.

Oh sorry… today I received an email from them and another widely recognised “online marketing community”. It was addressed to my email with ” Dear Sir/Madam”.

Personalisation is the golden rule in email marketing, especially if you want to increase your conversion rate. Have they forgotten their very own claim that “personalisation and relevancy is key to successful lead nurturing”.

I’m sorry but if this is how the beginning of my customer journey or that of my clients is going to be, I am very scared.

I wonder what might have gone wrong in the “Marketing Funnel” of three of the major key players in marketing automation software.

• Is it because I download all the great content that they send me?
• Is it because we are a small agency with less than 10 employees?
• Is it because I enquired once and I was not ready to buy at the time?
• Is it because this industry is booming and they can’t cope with the demand?
• Or is it because their own marketing automation is simply failing them?! (which begs the question of how good is their system)

Again, I am left very confused and disappointed – it’s like knocking at someone’s door with a bag full of money and no one’s letting you in! Criminal.

Well I hope this post (and personal rant) prepares you for what you might encounter on a journey like this.