7 Ecommerce marketing automation statistics agencies need to know

Ecommerce marketing automation allows local businesses with online stores to automation their email communications with customers. From welcome emails and automated shipping and delivery emails to promotional offers and out-of-stock notifications, ecommerce emails can have many purposes and provide a lot of value to customers. 

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Manually sending all these emails to customers along their purchasing journey, all at the right time, would be too time consuming for businesses. That’s where ecommerce marketing automation comes in—it enables businesses to automate these workflows, so customers get the information they need, when they need it, without delay.

These 7 statistics illustrate the benefits of ecommerce marketing automation for your local business clients and their customers.

1. 75 percent of businesses already use automation

A significant 75 percent of businesses have already added automation to their workflows (Social Media Today). What’s more, most say they plan to increase their budget for marketing technology. One of the leading categories for investment is automation.

When it comes to applying automation, social media and email are the most popular choices. Scheduling posts and automating emails with templates, audience segmentation, and triggers are common uses of automation in business.

If your clients haven’t already adopted automation, they're behind their competition. To help them compete, you should look at integrating automations into their workflows.

2. 72 percent of successful companies use ecommerce marketing automation

Marketers often think technology is effective, but is it, really? Researchers at the ZHAW School of Business have crunched the numbers. Their data proves AI marketing automation works.

They found that 72 percent of successful businesses use marketing automation in workflows. Only 18 percent of unsuccessful companies have made the leap to automation (Zumstein et al.).

While there are many factors involved in automation success (and business success in general), the picture is clear: Businesses that invest in automation are more likely to be successful. 

Less than 30 percent of successful companies haven't automated their marketing. Yet, the majority of unsuccessful companies—82 percent of them—don’t adopt automation at all.

3. Inefficiency costs your clients up to 30 percent of revenue

Inefficiency costs businesses around 20 to 30 percent of their revenue every year (Inc.). Depending on the size of your client’s business, that could be millions of dollars annually.

Ecommerce is already a tough sector to be in. Retail margins are slim. It can be difficult to get noticed in the competitive online space. Once consumers are on an ecommerce site, it's still an uphill battle to get them to make a purchase and then turn them into loyal repeat customers.

The sum of this equation is a razor-thin margin for success.

Now imagine you could help your clients recapture almost a third of their revenue. Ecommerce marketing automation can help you get there. It can increase efficiency and revenue by improving customer interactions.

4. Ecommerce marketing automation increases leads and conversion rates

Marketing automation for your ecommerce clients does much more than boost efficiency, though. It also connects them with more potential customers. Beyond that, it gets them in front of people who are actually interested in what they offer.

The stats paint a clear picture of how much automation can help in terms of lead generation and conversion: 77 percent of marketers generate more leads while 56 percent see higher conversion rates with marketing automation (EmailMonday). 

5. Automated emails generate sales

What exactly can automation do when it comes to increasing sales and revenue? Let’s take a look at the case of email.

People open automated emails more often than other types of messages. In fact, the open rate for automated emails is around 70 percent higher than emails sent manually. Automated emails also have a click-through rate over 150 percent higher (Neal Schaffer). That’s likely because automation allows ecommerce businesses to send the right information at the right time, making it more likely that the recipient will open the email.

Certain kinds of emails have higher success rates. This includes welcome chains and abandoned cart emails. Both these types of messages are more likely to be opened, and they’re also more likely to result in sales. Best of all, they’re great candidates for automation.

6. Increase ROI with automation

The stat above proves ecommerce marketing automation can increase sales. However, it can take time to see results. The good news is almost half of companies see a return on their investment in as little as six months. By the time the first year is in the books, over 75 percent of companies report increased ROI (Startup Bonsai).

This is important for your clients to note. Costs are often one of the biggest barriers to adopting marketing technology (martech). Many business leaders believe they can’t afford to spend money on automation tools. This is especially true for small and medium-sized local businesses.

The truth is local businesses can’t afford not to invest in marketing automation solutions. By adopting automation, they can increase efficiency, lead generation, conversion, and sales. This ultimately leads to higher revenue, making it a sound investment.

Help your clients get the most out of automation by offering them proven solutions and helping them set up their workflows for maximum success.

7. Customers want automation too

The above statistics illustrate how ecommerce marketing automation helps your clients succeed, but it’s important to note that customers prefer automation as well.

Take the case of chatbots as an example. Almost 75 percent of customers like interacting with a chatbot when they need answers (Chatbotslife). Talking to a chatbot is instant. It’s much faster than sending an email or waiting for business hours to call or walk to the store to ask someone.

It’s also easier than scrolling through blog posts. It's even simpler than digging through search results for details that aren’t in the FAQ.

What about automated emails? We already determined that people are more likely to open them. That, in turn, likely means they want to receive them. 

Automation can also play a role in personalization. Personalization is key to connecting with customers. Over 70 percent of people say they only interact with personalized messages (Forbes). Creating segments in an email list and personalizing your content based on interests is easier with automation.

Put growth on autopilot with the right tools for marketing automation

These 7 statistics show just how important ecommerce marketing automation is for local businesses with online stores. If your clients want to succeed in today's business environment, automation is a necessity.

Automating ecommerce marketing comes with many benefits. You want to help your clients reach their sales goals and improve efficiency. Offering them the right automation tools is a step toward achieving these goals and fast-tracking their growth.