Why No-Code Tools Are the Future of Marketing

No-code is on the rise, driven by the desire of entrepreneurs and employees to do specialized work on digital devices without having to become coding experts. That desire extends to marketing, where so much of the project work takes place online.

This article provides insights into the no-code movement, why it’s important for marketers, and how marketers can start using no-code tools to achieve their objectives.

What is no-code?

No-code essentially means that you’re building something interactive — such as a mobile app or online program — without using a programming language to do it.

Several companies now offer no-code tools to help you build all types of things. Examples include Zapier, Airtable, JotForm, and Shopify. These user-friendly no-code tools walk you through building integrations, apps, forms, tables, e-commerce sites, and the like with features such as drag-and-drop and click functionality.

For example, JotForm Tables provides efficient prebuilt table templates for all types of tasks, including budgeting, HR, project management, and marketing, as well as industry-specific table templates for segments like healthcare, nonprofits, and real estate.

Why are no-code tools important for marketers?

Marketers have many reasons to embrace no-code tools. First, coding and learning to code can take considerable time — time that you, as a marketer, don’t have, especially when you’re trying to build traction, create awareness, and beat the competition to market.

The speed you gain by using this more agile process means you’ll be able to pivot quickly and better respond to, and engage with, your target audience. For instance, the time you save by using a no-code automation tool like Buffer means you can get the word out on social media quickly while you work on messaging, strategy, or content for other channels.

Second, the versatility of no-code tools means that marketing professionals can create responsive content management sites, e-commerce shops, chatbots, web and mobile apps, newsletters, and more. In addition, no-code tools such as ClickUp can provide project management capabilities.

Third, marketers can put their creativity to work without worrying that a lack of technical expertise will hamper their efforts to create messages and visuals that resonate with the audience. This accessibility frees marketers from the limits they used to face when developing online or mobile campaigns. For example, Canva allows marketers to create visual content to use in presentations and as marketing assets.

Fourth, from a cost perspective, no-code tools free up valuable IT resources from being used to create marketing campaigns. Plus, you can optimize your investment in these tools by integrating them with each other, which doesn’t take much effort.

How can marketers get started with no-code tools?

A good place for marketers to start is to make a list of current marketing needs, objectives, and strategic direction. This will help determine what type of no-code tools you might need. For example, you may need to organize and schedule content for various channels, build email lists, optimize content for keywords, generate leads, and use analytics. Also, look for the pain points and issues that a particular type of tool might alleviate.

Once you’ve compiled your list, research available no-code tools. Numerous websites and online forums review these tools, providing a better understanding of the most effective ones for a marketing organization’s specific needs.

You can use many of these tools on a trial basis to see if they work with your capabilities and your team’s tasks. It’s a good idea to experiment with these tools for a while to see if they perform as advertised and if they can work for other areas of the business, like sales.

Also, see what you can develop with each of the tools you try and examine how they can help with specific aspects of the marketing funnel. This process may lead to solutions for other marketing objectives and processes.

No-code tools guidance

There’s a wealth of information online that discusses no-code solutions and how to incorporate them into your marketing department and throughout your organization. Reaching out through community forums can help you learn from the experts so you can get past any hurdles you experience when using no-code tools. Ultimately, these tools can help make your marketing efforts more effective and the process of creating them more efficient.