What is MA implementation support service?
Generally speaking, MA implementation refers to the initial setup of MA so that it is ready to be used by the employees of the company that has implemented it. For those who do not know, MA is not something that can be used immediately after purchase. After implementation, there are minimum settings that are required, such as email settings, creating forms and installing them on the website, and so on. And these settings are surprisingly difficult.
In addition to requiring a certain amount of expertise in web-related knowledge such as HTML/CSS and server settings, it is normal to need several months to incorporate MA into current business operations, automatically categorize people who respond to regular mailings, and automatically follow up with further follow-ups.
For this reason, there are several companies that offer MA implementation support that will do the initial setup in this area. Many of these companies are accredited by MA vendors, and they will instruct clients who have received orders from MA vendors on what to set up first and how to use it in a rough manner. Since they are in charge of various companies, they know what kind of settings many companies are using, and they will tell you the standard settings. Although the number of companies that do the initial setup on their own has been increasing recently, the reality is that it is quite difficult for ordinary companies to bring their systems to a state where they can be used on their own, so this is a business that some of our client companies find very useful.
However, this MA implementation business does not have much added value. As one would normally expect, cloud tools are designed on the premise that they can be used without IT knowledge, so if you can do it, you don’t need the support of a support company. The demand for MA implementation support is such that it is difficult for in-house personnel to implement the initial system, and they do not know how to use it, nor do they have the time to learn on their own. However, the demand is for a quick turnaround from contracting to the start of operation.
Now and in the past, the challenges for companies implementing MA are the same.
However, you may have read MA-related articles and know that the following issues are common.
- MA has been implemented, but it is mostly used only as an e-mail distribution tool.
- It is too difficult to use.
- In fact, we need contents to make the best use of it.
- We don’t have the contents in our company.
- We can’t create contents continuously.
- Actually, MA could not solve the problem.
- It was difficult to utilize data with MA alone.
- We could do what we wanted to do, but it was meaningless.
These are just a few examples.
The translation of these issues is “I understand the specific functions of the tool, but what should I do with these functions? Or, “I found out later that MA alone is not enough to solve my marketing problems using these functions. These issues are not so much about the tools themselves, but rather about the software: “How do we use the tools to achieve results? This is a software issue.
It is also a problem for vendors who do not tell their clients in advance that without content, MA can only do so much. However, here I would like to write about the point that the support contents of the implementation support company are insufficient to solve the client’s problems.
There is a discrepancy between the services provided by implementation support companies and the demand.
As mentioned above, implementation support companies are companies that do the initial setup of MA. Therefore, they basically end when MA is ready for use. How should we operate it to get the best results? They basically do not answer the question, “How should we operate it to get the best results? Even if they do, they provide only template answers. For example, one company tells any company that they should make a list of people who have viewed a particular page for their clients. This is because many implementation support companies often provide implementation support services as part of their system development-related business. Because they are a systems company, they cannot provide consulting services from a marketing perspective.
But from the point of view of MA implementation companies, the biggest problem is to solve marketing issues. To be honest, it is enough to be able to solve marketing problems by using some of the MA functions without being able to fully utilize them; what MA implementation companies really want is to solve marketing problems. You can see here that there is a gap between the services provided by implementation support companies and the services expected by implementation companies.
Initial implementation support services will eventually disappear.
As mentioned above, the services currently provided by many implementation support companies are simply to make MA usable, and it is up to the company to decide how to use it. However, as users become more IT literate and the initial setup of tools is expected to become easier, it will not be surprising if the time comes soon when it will no longer be necessary to spend money on implementation support services. In other words, many companies cannot even do the initial setup now, but that initial setup service itself will not be around forever.
Under such circumstances, companies that support the introduction of MA will sooner or later be forced to change their business model.
MA-based marketing strategies and system development will become mainstream.
I have explained above that the implementation business will not continue as it is, so what should companies that provide implementation support do? I would like to share my personal opinion.
Commit to marketing results
One answer is to “develop a business that is more committed to results,” which is currently a challenge for many MA implementation companies.
Currently, the initial setup is “yes, it’s done,” but instead of that, what should be done in terms of marketing strategy, taking into consideration the resources of the client company? We will also make proposals on how MA should be utilized to implement the measures, and carry them through to execution.
As those who have implemented MA can tell you, content is necessary to make good use of MA. Without the ability to create content on an ongoing basis, the scope of MA use will be much narrower. However, most of the MA support services that exist today do not commit much to content creation. Not only does content creation require a lot of effort, but it also requires a very broad range of knowledge when SEO and other factors are taken into consideration, so even if you wanted to get involved, you probably wouldn’t be able to. However, the ability to create good content has a big impact on marketing, and clients are especially looking for companies that can help them with this part of the process.
Another important aspect of using MA is creative creation; by implementing MA, you will be able to measure which banners in your emails are clicked on, how many people clicked on them, and who clicked on them, but whether or not they are clicked on is greatly influenced by the creative. Marketing is also affected by whether or not you can research your customers and create creative that gets people to click.
Other ways to improve the website are through web access analysis. Without email address registration, there is almost nothing that can be done with MA, so how to improve the website is also an essential element. Therefore, knowledge of GA4 is also an essential skill. In some cases, web advertising may also be necessary, and in order to commit to marketing results, nothing can be done with support that is not limited to MA.
Therefore, in order to commit to marketing results, it is necessary to provide a wide range of services. However, it is fair to say that there are almost no companies that can provide a wide range of marketing support based on MA, with the exception of large companies. However, marketing support from now on cannot survive on expertise alone; it is not possible to effectively utilize MA alone, advertising alone, or design alone, unless there are very talented marketers in the business company.
Provide support for the utilization of systems and a wide range of tools.
Another possible direction is to shift the focus to overall system development. As more and more companies utilize data to conduct marketing in the future, it will inevitably become necessary to link not only MA but also various other systems. Knowledge and experience related to these systems will be in even greater demand in the future, and there will be demand for knowledge of a wide range of tools and systems, such as how to utilize different systems and what data to acquire when implementing marketing initiatives using MA. In the future, it will no longer be sufficient to be an expert in a single tool. Companies that can provide advice on how to manage data by combining multiple tools will be strong.
How to respond to changes in customer demand is important.
As with any company, it is necessary to constantly change to meet the demands of customers, and MA implementation support companies are at a crossroads. Today’s implementation support companies may even find it impossible to provide such a broad range of expertise due to the skill set of their personnel. However, I have no doubt that the companies that overcome this challenge will be the ones that grow even more in the future. In a sense, I believe that the growth advantage of this industry will lie in human resource development.