Marketing Automation is having the ability to market on multiple channels — such as email, sms/txt msg, social media, your website — all based on user preferences, time, location, digital activity and actions.

Technically, a user filling out a form then receiving a series of emails is a very basic example of marketing automation, but that's only one marketing channel. A more robust example takes advantage of multiple marketing channels to help steer the user to a pre-defined goal — such as purchasing a specific item from your online store, filling out an application, or downloading a whitepaper.

Complete platforms are available that can bring vast marketing automation capabilities to individuals and companies, large and small.

A quick history...

The first marketing email blast was sent out in 1978. The internet became a thing of the masses in the ’90s and has just kept growing. Cellphones were in most American's pockets by 2002 — smartphones by 2010-ish. Unlike traditional marketing channels like Print, Radio, and TV, these newer marketing channels of email, web, apps, SMS, and Social Media offer marketers the ability to track user actions, and using marketin automation, predict intent and cater to each web visitor's needs a la carté.