As a franchise owner, product manufacturer or national brand leader, you know how critical it is that you enable your affiliates to effectively and efficiently generate demand at the local level. This white paper will help you equip your local affiliates with the tools they need to be successful.
Local Marketing Automation: Translating National Strategies into Local Execution
1. LOCAL MARKETING
AUTOMATION
Translating National Strategies
Into Local Execution
» AUTOMATION STRATEGY
» LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION PLATFORM AND
SOLUTION MODULES
PAPER INTENDED FOR
BUYING STAGE
» Education
AUDIENCE
» Responsible for Corporate Marketing of
National Brands
FOCUS
» Local Marketing Automation Strategy
& Education (what, how, why)
ROLE
» Decision Maker
» Influencer
L O C A L
2. CHALLENGE: THE EVOLVING MARKETING LANDSCAPE 1
THE SOLUTION: AUTOMATION 1
WHAT IS LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION? 2
COMPONENTS OF A LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION PLATFORM 4
BENEFITS OF A LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION SOLUTION 5
ABOUT BALIHOO 5
LOCAL MARKETING
AUTOMATION: TRANSLATING
NATIONAL STRATEGIES INTO
LOCAL EXECUTION
3. 1LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION: TRANSLATING NATIONAL STRATEGIES INTO LOCAL EXECUTION
The local marketing landscape is changing at an unprecedented rate. However, technological shifts
present exciting opportunities for national brands wanting to increase their reach. According to a recent
Gartner report,
“BY 2015, COMPANIES THAT FOCUS ON INTEGRATED PROCESSES FOR LOCAL
MARKETING ENABLEMENT WILL INCREASE REVENUE BY 15-20%.”
Therefore, the time is now for enterprise-level organizations to explore new marketing methods,
specifically Local Marketing Automation.
CHALLENGE: THE EVOLVING MARKETING LANDSCAPE
National brand marketers invest millions annually to build brand awareness, interest, consideration and
preference of the consumer, all while maintaining consistent messaging. However, brands selling through
local outlets (e.g. dealers, distributors, agents, franchisees, or retailers) often lose control over their
messaging and lose effectiveness of their marketing dollars because their local affiliates often lack the
marketing experience and bandwidth to properly execute the remainder of a campaign.
With the insurgence of digital media and constantly evolving technologies such as paid search (PPC),
marketing is becoming more complex with each passing day. It is therefore becoming more and more
difficult for resellers to stay well educated and execute efficiently.
To further complicate matters, consumers have changed the way they purchase. Consider the following
statistics:
• 70% of U.S. households now use the Internet when shopping locally for products and services ---
78% of adult Internet users in the U.S. look for information online about a service or product you
are thinking of buying. (Pew Research 2013)
• 54% of Americans have substituted the Internet and local search for phone books (comScore).
• Seven out of ten consumers are more likely to use a local business if it has information available on
a social media site (comScore Networks/TMP Directional Marketing).
To most effectively generate demand at the local level, national brands must leverage the power of local
marketing. Without automation, however, enabling local marketing often necessitates a high degree of
service delivery, not scalable without the use of specialized and fully integrated technology.
THE SOLUTION: AUTOMATION
The most efficient way for a national brand to address these challenges is to implement a Local Marketing
Automation platform to drive enterprise-level marketing strategy and implementation to local marketing
efforts.Abrandthatfailstodosoisatriskofbeingsurpassedbycompetitorsthathavealreadyconsidered
and implemented Local Marketing Automation. Consider the following statistics:
• According to the CMO Council’s study, Localize to Optimize Sales Channel Effectiveness, 30% of
marketers are using Local Marketing Automation platforms, resources and tools.
• Gleanster Research found that by 2013, 79% of top performing companies have been using
marketing automation for more than 2 years (Gleanster)
• According to Forrester, 88% of top performing national companies have adopted marketing
automation.
4. 2LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION: TRANSLATING NATIONAL STRATEGIES INTO LOCAL EXECUTION
WHAT IS LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION?
Local Marketing Automation is a cloud-based solution that enables national brands to activate effective
campaigns across hundreds or even thousands of local markets. By marrying technology and data, Local
Marketing Automation allows national brands to execute localized campaigns efficiently and precisely. A
cloud-based platform delivers solutions that help national brands increase demand and revenue at the
local level by launching sophisticated campaigns that capture the attention of local consumers through
personalized messages that are relevant to them.
Successful local marketing, especially when digital tactics are involved, often requires national brands
to empower their local affiliates to contribute their local intel in the best ways they can — but not ask
them to do too much — and combine that with what the national brand does best. When brands take on
this approach, they see high digital adoption in local campaigns from their affiliates, which leads to higher
customer engagement and an increase in top-line growth at the local level.
BALIHOO PLATFORM
ENGINE
MEDIA CHANNELS
DATA INTAKE &
NORMALIZA TION
BRANDANDAFFILIATEUSERINTERFACES
EXECUTIONENGINE
WORKFLOW
ENGINE
CREATIVE ENGINE
& AD BUILDER
FINANCIAL
MANAGEMENT
(CO-OP)
PAID SEARCH
LOCA L SITES EMAI L
DIRECT MAI L SOCIAL
TRADITIONA L
LOCA L VIDEO &
MOBILE (2014 )
DISPL AY
DATA INPUT
BRAND
DATA
LOCA L
INTELLIGENCE
DATA
CREATIVE
TEMPLA TES
3RD
PART Y
DATA
BRAND
STRATEG Y
5. 3LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION: TRANSLATING NATIONAL STRATEGIES INTO LOCAL EXECUTION
Successful national brands, depending on their corporate objectives, use one or a combination of the
following three modes of marketing:
BY LOCAL
In the “By Local” mode, the lion’s share of decisions are made by the local marketer when executing a local
campaign,buttheydosowithintheguidelinessetupbythenationalbrandtoensurethatcampaignassets
are brand-compliant. The local marketer adds local intelligence to the effort and makes the decisions on
budget, timing, tactics, media channels, and frequency.
Example: Local affiliates access a web-based Local Marketing Automation system and customize a
newspaper ad for their local markets. They download the ad and place the media directly with the vendor
themselves.
WITH LOCAL
The “With Local” mode combines a shared execution between the brand and the local affiliate in which
the brand makes most of the sophisticated decisions and the affiliate makes some of the simpler, but
often extremely valuable decisions in terms of a given tactic.
Example: The national brand plans a paid search program at the local market level. Local affiliates access
a web-based Local Marketing Automation system one time to opt-in to the program. They can make
selections based on their marketing needs, things like monthly budget limits or target offers. The program
is then executed by the national brand and results are communicated back to each local affiliate.
FOR LOCAL
The “For Local” mode is used when brands have enough quality data and knowledge to act on behalf of
the local affiitates. This mode works particularly well for digital tactics where the local marketer likely
does not have the skill, resources, or time to properly plan and execute the campaign.
Example: Local websites are published by the national brand for every local affiliate using known data.
Affiliates have the option to access the web-based Local Marketing Automation system to modify certain
areas of the website, but it’s not required.
6. 4LOCAL MARKETING AUTOMATION: TRANSLATING NATIONAL STRATEGIES INTO LOCAL EXECUTION
COMPONENTS OF A LOCAL MARKETING
AUTOMATION PLATFORM
A comprehensive Local Marketing Automation solution should seamlessly
integrate the following key elements:
Local Websites. A national brand’s number one marketing tool is local
websites. They are the most effective way to drive relevant leads at the
local level and to make sure customers can find your product or category
easily. Local website templates should be optimized for local search;
helping national brands capitalize on search traffic and generate leads
through online forms and trackable local phone calls.
Local Paid Search. The closer consumers get to making a transaction, the
closer to home they look. Local paid search captures the attention of local
customers who are looking for your product or category.
Local Email. Data shows that triggered email campaigns capture the
consumer’s attention and generate results. A great local email solution
should be centered around easy-to-use, customizable email templates
that allow local affiliates to easily launch email campaigns without risk.
Local Direct Mail. Direct mail isn’t dead. This tried-and-true media is
powerfulweaponfornationalbrandslaunchinglocalmarketingcampaigns.
Direct mail efforts engage customers and drive leads through event-based
mailings and triggered sends that local partners can easily manage.
Social Media. The power of social media should be in the hands of national
brands -- at both the national and local level. A local marketing automation
platform should provide a technology that allows your national brand
to augment your national presence with targeted local content. Local
partners can be empowered to create custom status updates and schedule
posts, while the national brand retains the option to review and approve
updates before they’re posted. Customer will see national content with a
local message all in one streamlined social media presence.
Ad Builder. Gives local marketers the power to create compelling
advertising that ensures brand consistency and reduces cost. It is
equipped with a media customizer that uses your pre-approved templates
to distribute messages instantly across a wide range of media – TV, radio,
print, online display, search engine advertising and more. The result is
local, highly targeted ad messages and campaigns that reaches consumers
and saves money in the long run.
Co-op. A major challenge facing national marketers is how to more
effectively distribute marketing dollars, whether engaging in co-op
management, allocating funds to company owned stores or requiring
franchisee spend. A local marketing automation platform can simplify
the whole process by saving your national brand time, money and hassle
with a co-op solution that allows for easy management of fund transfers
between national brands, local affiliates and media outlets.
LOCAL WEBSITES
» Increased local brand visibility through local
SEO
» Credibility through dominant online
presence
» ROI through captured consumer demand
LOCAL PAID SEARCH
» Cut cost with portfolio managed approach
» Increased traffic to local websites
» Simplified process through consolidated/
automated reporting
LOCAL EMAIL
» Increased engagement with local
consumers
» Customization options with variety of
templates
LOCAL DIRECT MAIL
» Tried-and-true medium remastered
» Consumer outreach is more efficient and
effective
AD BUILDER
» Vendor agnostic
» Creative traffic
» Includes all media channels
CO-OP
» Seamless allocation of marketing dollars
» Consolidated invoicing
» Real-time visibility into local spend and ROI
SOCIAL MEDIA
» Local relevance through local content on a
national channel
» Brand control of social messages back in the
hands of the national brand
» Customer engagement handled by the
national brand ensuring accurate, timely
messages to consumers