I really am not a big fan of the "fill out this form and then we'll let you see this next page" types of hurdles that a lot of websites put up, with dozens of mandatory fields to fill out. So, I try to meet them half way by filling in things like "please don't call" for name, phone #, etc. Don't want them to waste their time reaching out to me when it's not a worthwhile investment of their resources.
Of course, the reason that organizations choose to require all that information is so that they can try to roboticize as much of the "relationship" process as possible, which is a fool's errand. Relationships can't be automated.
That said, many continue to try. Hence the email I just received that addressed me as Mr. Please-Don't-Call. That cracked me up.
Related: The $300mil Web Form
We have received email addressed to “Fill In Blogger’s Name”
ha!
You raise a good point about automating relationships — human interaction’s can’t be automated, but general follow-up marketing and customer segmentation can be.
I don’t take much offense when company use my first name in emails, but the sincerity is lost when they include the last name.
Marketing automation is only as successful as the data that is acquired, the expectations when acquiring it and the strategy in the campaign.
Ideally, most companies should leverage a multimedia campaign using both email, phone and direct mail to follow up and exceed the expectations of their users.
I give credit to the companies out there who try to engage with me. I usually never hear from other businesses after I make a purchase — which is funny because I’d be more likely to buy again.
Clearly, marketing automation has its perils, but I contend that it’s a valuable way to provide value to prospects and customers when they expect it. 🙂
~Joseph