Engagement programs 101: The benefits of Marketo engagement programs

Engagement Programs are arguably the most powerful feature in Marketo Engage. Whilst they can be quite challenging to build, we believe they’re worth every minute of your time. That’s why we’ve created a mini blog series: Marketo Engagement Programs 101, where we discuss everything from the benefits of using this feature (this post), to how to create engagement programs and the challenges you may face.

But first let’s dive into some of the basics:

What is a Marketo Engagement program?

Marketo Engage Engagement Programs allow marketers to create always-on campaigns that engage leads and customers through targeted and personalised content and experiences.

What are the elements needed to build a Marketo Engagement program?

• Stream: Each stream defines a pool of content which is associated to a stage of your Engagement Program, for example MQL.
• Stream cadence: This is the schedule on which the stream will distribute the content. Emails will typically send to members in the stream based on this frequency, for example daily, weekly, every month. 
• Transition rules: Similar to a Smart List, the transition rules define who is pulled into a given stream. 
• Embedded programs: An embedded program is a program that already exists in its own right, and has been added to a stream of your Engagement Program.

Benefits of Marketo Engagement Programs

We believe there are three key advantages to deploying Marketo engagement programs.

1. Powerful automation 

Firstly, engagement programs offer powerful automation capabilities. You can set up programs to trigger emails, social media posts, and other follow-up actions based on specific user behaviour, characteristics, preferences or actions. These segmentation possibilities allow for very targeted communications.

For example, you can set up an automated lead nurturing program, and create different streams with different content that targets leads at different stages in their buying cycle. So those at the top of the funnel, who are just discovering your brand, receive different messages to those at the bottom, who are much closer to a buying decision. This ensures that leads are receiving the right message at the right time, increasing the chances of conversion.

2. Personalisation

Engagement programs that use targeted segmentation and content, create personalised experiences for prospects and customers. A highly personalised approach allows you to connect with your audience on a deeper level, leading to increased engagement. 

With this comes higher conversion rates, customer loyalty and retention, loyalty, and ultimately, revenue.

3. Productivity

Marketo form visibility rules are a great way to personalise the form completion experience, based on the

A major benefit of an engagement program is that it lends itself towards always-on content. Once your programs are set-up, you can let them run, so leads automatically move from stream to stream, getting the most appropriate content, with no intervention. This takes a lot of time and pressure off your team in the long run around scheduling, sending, and creating (or copying) new programs.

Obviously we still recommend reviewing your programs’ performance and optimising them for continuous improvement. Marketo enables you to analyse data on user behaviour and engagement metrics, giving you valuable insights into what is working and what isn’t, to adjust your strategy accordingly.

Why use Marketo Engagement Programs?

In conclusion, Marketo engagement programs offer an automated and highly targeted approach to connecting with your audience and driving revenue. By setting goals effectively, identifying your target audience, and implementing automated campaigns, you can take full advantage of everything Marketo has to offer. And don’t forget to track your success along the way! Happy marketing!

Need help? Check out our Marketo Engagement Programs Troubleshooting Q&A or get in touch to find out how we can help you with Marketo Engagement Programs.