Six critical questions: how to cut through the martech noise

It’s hard to believe, but back in 2011 there were just 150 technology platforms and apps to support marketing-related activities, according to The State of Martech 2024 report from chiefmartech. By May 2024, the number had blossomed to more than 14,000, with more than 3,000 new platforms added to the ecosystem in the past year alone.

The staggering 9,304% growth in marketing technology (martech) tools over the past 13 years is a sign of just how central technology has become in every brand’s marketing efforts. While strategy and creativity remain important, it’s also clear that every marketer needs to be able to use a wide spread of tech tools to measure and optimise marketing performance.

Data and automation are at the heart of today’s marketing successes, with tools to support marketers in every leg of the customer journey. Today’s platforms encompass social, data content, advertising, e-commerce aspects and more. Without chatbots, customer relationship management (CRM), content marketing, business intelligence, automation, and management collaboration, marketers can no longer be effective — or do their jobs at all. 

Our agency works with 37 different technology platforms to optimise campaigns by better understanding who our clients’ customers are, how they behave and what will help to drive conversions, using a mix of first-party data and third-party tools and platforms to help clients reach customers and drive sales. The patchwork can become complex and elaborate.

Tools at the start of the sales funnel include Shopify, Google Merchant Centre, WhatsApp for Business and Amazon Marketplace. We link data from these platforms to clients’ CRM systems with the help of tools such as Zapier. Then, we use software such as Google Tag Manager, GA4, AppsFlyer, Adobe, and attribution modelling tools such as Adinton, to understand the customer.

The first-party data, in turn, feeds into programmatic ad platforms such as the Google and Meta Conversion APIs. To make real-time decisions we need live reporting dashboards such as Looker Studio or Power BI, which require Porter Metrics to link data correctly. With this in place, we can optimise targeting with end-customer data as well as customers and overall sentiment with tools like Meltwater.

Balancing a rationalised tech stack with emerging tools

Deciding which tools to use is complex for brands and agencies alike. On the one hand, we want to use a streamlined and rationalised tech stack; on the other, we also want to tap into the innovative software-as-a-service tools coming to market from a range of startups, especially as AI breaks boundaries.

With the explosion of AI and cloud data layers, we are moving into an era of composable software and exponential growth in technology. It’s easier than ever for vendors to build something new quickly. The downside is that this clutters the space with lots of shiny new things that seem cool but don’t necessarily deliver real value for brands.

Not every one of the 3,000 tools launched in the past year will have value, yet among them will be ones that shouldn’t be ignored. We know that technology is the biggest business disrupter, as the ex-CEOs of companies like Kodak, BlackBerry and Blockbuster can attest, and we realise that digital agencies and brands aren’t immune to change. The key is to stay grounded and focused on clear use cases.

If you’re considering whether a new tool is worth a punt, these are the questions to help guide you to a helpful decision. Score your answers from one (for a strong no) to five (for an absolute yes). If a tool gets a high combined score across all six questions, it’s worth investigating further.

1. Does it help to drive revenue and customer lifetime value? Does it help to

• lower customer acquisition costs?
• create a positive customer experience?
• enable better customer engagement?

2. Can it enable new marketing capabilities?

3. Is it easy to deploy and use?

4. Does it integrate with other products in the stack?

5. Does it satisfy the use case for which it was acquired?

6. Is it data compliant, automated, versatile, scalable, responsive, adaptive, efficient and autonomous?

While many people think that working in marketing is about creativity, those of us who are more comfortable with technology and data are being recognised for the integral value we add to an effective and successful brand, and for helping marketing teams to better navigate the veritable “martech swamp”.

 With the rise of AI and the cloud accelerating tech innovation, marketing is no longer just about the creative aspect but also about using tools and data to drive the best possible return on investment.

Grant Lapping is digital executive and Rafael Rodriguez is managing partner of midnight, the innovation agency of iqbusiness. Together they lead midnight’s ‘digital collective’, providing aligned creative, martech & digital media to clients.

The big take-out: Marketing is no longer just about the creative aspect but also about using tools and data to drive the best possible return on investment.