When businesses utilize closed loop reporting, they are taking advantage of one of the most effective tools available through online marketing. It is the one tool that can be used to measure the success of your work and give you valuable insight into which direction your marketing efforts should go. Through the closed loop process, your business will gather valuable data that can be used in a number of ways to attract more customers.
What Is Closed Loop Reporting?
Simply put, closed loop reporting is a communication channel between your sales and you marketing departments. It provides the right environment for both teams to work towards a common goal, which enables them to more effectively communicate between each other. Through this type of communication, each team is held accountable to the other. Historically speaking, while the two departments appear to have very similar roles, there has often been a rift between them. Meanwhile, in companies where the two teams work together, statistics show that there has been a sizable jump in their overall profits. In the closed loop, the sales team responds to leads from various sources and then reports the results to the marketing team, which then uses the data to determine which sources produce the best leads so that they can concentrate their efforts on the ones that deliver the results they are looking for.
Why Is It Important?
In any business that concentrates their energies on inbound marketing, there are a number of different channels that can be used to drive people to their sites, but they are not all created equal. With closed loop marketing, one site can deliver a windfall of results and another site may only produce a few. Through careful analysis of the user data provided, you will be able to identify certain visitor patterns when on your site, customer behavior before they make a purchase, and how effective your marketing strategies have been. It also helps you to identify your ideal customer and where to find them. After identifying those areas that are the most beneficial for the business, the marketing team is then able to focus in on those areas.
Reduction of the Time It Takes From First Visit to Conversion
Closed loop reporting also allows you to reduce waste. Your revenues can be wasted through spending on an excessive amount of resources. When you are able to narrow down the number of channels that bring in new customers, you can save on both. Once you know which channels deliver the most promising results, you can eliminate those that are not producing. You may then redirect your efforts towards those that are and widen your scope in those promising areas; this can free up resources to explore new channels as well.
With the right closed loop reporting, a business owner is in a very enviable position. He knows exactly how long it would take from first visit to conversion and can set his goals accordingly. When businesses concentrate their efforts on this type of inbound marketing, they earn for themselves a reputable position in a place where everyone looks to for the resources they need. If you’ve taken advantage of closed loop marketing, you have keen insight into how your potential customers’ think, what they are looking for, and how they go through the decision making process before making a purchase. All of this information can be used to help you to build your customer base and improve your bottom line.
