The Perfect Blend of Art and Science
Digital marketing teams are the unsung superheroes of the modern ministry. Far beyond just conjuring up snazzy taglines and allocating budgets for ads, today's digital marketers find themselves at the unique crossroads of art and science.
Marketers can often be criticized for the number of tools they use to manage their responsibilities. However, to excel in this field, teams must create imaginative strategies to captivate the target persona while wielding data with an almost obsessive precision. This is where the martech stack comes in.
Software as a service (SaaS) has changed the way modern marketing is done. Below is a list of tools for the average media ministry team. These 12 examples don’t begin to explain the vast landscape of marketing technology. If you’re interested in seeing just how big and overwhelming this space is, we encourage you to check out this 2023 Marketing Technology Landscape by Scott Brinker. You’ll be blown away by the choices available to marketing teams today.
For the purposes of this list, we considered a martech stack for a digital ministry team of 2 to 5 people who are spending $500,000 a year or less on paid advertising for their digital ministry efforts. Here are some categories of tools that you’ll want to consider, and some examples from each category to help your team understand how it all fits together. You may be interested to know that many of these tools are used by the MII team to manage digital ministry and reporting.
1. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software: Essential for managing customer information and interactions, facilitating better customer relationships. Example: Salesforce – Known for its versatility and comprehensive features.
2. Email Marketing Tools: These tools help in creating, sending, and analyzing email campaigns to effectively communicate with your audience. Example: Mailchimp – Widely used for its user-friendly interface and robust email marketing capabilities.
3. Social Media Management Tools: Designed to manage and analyze interactions across various social platforms efficiently. Example: Hootsuite – Popular for its ability to manage multiple social media platforms and its detailed analytics.
4. Digital Advertising Tools: Vital for creating, managing, and optimizing online advertising campaigns. Example: Google Ads – The most used platform for search engine advertising.
5. SEO and Content Marketing Tools: These tools assist in improving online visibility through search engine optimization and content strategy. Example: SEMrush – Favored for its extensive features in SEO, content marketing, competitor analysis, and more.
6. Analytics and Data Visualization Tools: Key for analyzing website performance and user behavior, helping in making data-driven decisions. Example: Google Analytics – The go-to tool for website analytics, widely used for its depth of data and integration with other Google services.
7. Project Management and Collaboration Tools: These tools aid in organizing, tracking, and collaborating on various marketing projects. Example: Monday.com – Known for its ease of use, flexibility, and robust task management features.
8. Graphic Design and Video Editing Tools: Essential for creating visual content that is engaging and professional. Example: Adobe Creative Cloud – A comprehensive suite of professional-grade creative tools for graphic design, video editing, and more.
9. Landing Page and Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) Tools: Focus on creating effective landing pages and optimizing them for higher conversion rates. Example: Unbounce – Popular for its drag-and-drop builder and A/B testing capabilities.
10. Marketing Automation Tools: These tools automate repetitive marketing tasks, streamline workflows, and enhance customer engagement. Example: HubSpot – Renowned for its all-in-one marketing suite that includes automation, email marketing, CRM, and more.
11. Webinar and Virtual Event Platforms: Facilitate the hosting of webinars and virtual events, enhancing digital engagement and outreach. Example: Zoom – Highly popular for its reliability and ease of use for webinars and virtual meetings.
12. Customer Feedback and Survey Tools: Important for collecting and analyzing customer feedback to improve products and services. Example: SurveyMonkey – Known for its user-friendly survey creation and analytics features.