Why Marketing Automation is Floundering + 5 Fixes to Fuel It
Charlie Chaplin in Modern Times (1936).
By Jeff Pedowitz, President & CEO of The Pedowitz Group and a Software Advisory Board member at Marketing Automation Software Guide. Read the original article here.
The Marketing Automation Industry is approaching its 13th year. Originally pioneered by Epiphany and Pivotal in the late 1990’s as an On-Premise Module added on to key CRM functions, it took off when SAAS entered the scene in the early 2000’s. Today there are many vendors in this space competing for wallet share.
There are 5 primary reasons why this industry is underperforming:
- Wrong Executive Target
- Failure to Broaden Vertical Expansion
- Too Much Competition, Not Enough Education
- Too Complicated
- Economic Pricing Model
To successfully grow the market, maximize adoption and grow vendor shareholder value, we recommend the following course of action:
- Expand target focus beyond the marketing department
- Expand vertical offerings
- Work collaboratively to educate but still compete aggressively
- Simplify the concepts and simplify how the software works
- Change the positioning of the pricing model
We live in a customer-driven economy and there is plenty of room for multiple vendors in this space. In fact, competition is good. It is the mother of invention, which ultimately benefits the customer.
The Pedowitz Group believes cooperation, focus on these 5 areas, and continued expansion of the partner ecosystem will successfully drive industry adoption and grow the market beyond the $1B mark by 2015.
If you are looking for more information about Marketing Automation we can help. OnPath is a certifed partner and reseller of HubSpot and Marketo. Call Us: 613.842.4174