Marketing Automation Platforms (MAPs) have quickly become an important piece of any marketing technology stack. They’ve emerged on the heels of CRMs to serve as the base of operations for all of Marketing’s activities. With a MAP, Marketing can launch automated campaigns, score leads, and capture important demographic information about potential buyers.
Solutions like Marketo, Eloqua, and Hubspot offer robust platforms that allow marketing teams, both small and large, to increase the number and quality of their engagements. With these technologies Marketing is now able to understand who their buyers are and serve content that speaks directly to their needs.
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Integrations with other platforms like CRMs and Sales Enablement platforms only make MAPs more powerful. Those integrations ensure that information begins flowing in both directions. The Sales Enablement technology serves as the bridge between Marketing and Sales. It makes sure that Marketing no longer loses sight of a lead after hand off and can tie their work back to actual revenue. On the other hand, when Sales is handed a lead, it comes with important information about the content that resonates with them and illuminates their particular pain points.
The benefits of a MAP are clear, and every organization would do well to implement one. However, Seismic recently conducted a wide-ranging survey about marketing technology stacks at industry leading organizations. The goal of the survey was to see which technologies organizations are currently leveraging and how they interact with one another.
One of the most surprising results came in the MAP category. Our survey found that 44% of respondents are not currently using a MAP. While these are similar results to other research, it does reveal that there are still many organizations that have a huge opportunity in front of them. Installing a MAP at an organization is a great way to take both Marketing and Sales to the next level.
These survey results are not just important for organizations that do not currently employ a MAP, however. These results have broader implications for everyone. They reveal that there may be missing holes in any marketing technology stack. With the number of technologies and platforms on the market nowadays it can be easy to let one slip through the cracks. But the one that got away could be the platform that changes the game.
It’s important to semi-regularly review your marketing technology stack. And not just a cursory glance every once in a while. Talk to your teams about the technologies they regularly use and how those platforms help them do their jobs. Ask them what gaps there are and how a solution might be able to help solve that problem. Technology may be replacing many human tasks, but at the heart of the matter it’s still all about helping people do their jobs in a more efficient manner.
