With more than 8,000 companies in the MarTech industry, it can be hard to determine which technologies are right for your team. Here are some tips to help:

Marketing, Account-Based Marketing

If I had to sum up 2020 in one word, I would probably say dumpster-fire (ok, technically two).

In all seriousness, though, 2020 was an extremely volatile year for the MarTech industry, and 2021 is shaping up to be another wild one. I’m sure we all remember those early panic inducing days when budgets seemed to freeze up overnight, and companies went into survival mode trying to figure out what was going to happen and where this pandemic was going to take us.

But the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines, the dropping number of cases in many parts of the country, and companies adapting to the new way of doing business are all cause for a little bit of cautious optimism about the future. As offices begin to reopen and things start to return to normal, and budgets start to loosen up again, it’s essential to look ahead and think about your team’s needs in the coming year. That’s why we’ve created a list of points that should be addressed when thinking about adopting a new technology within your organization.

The 2021 MarTech Landscape

It’s no secret that the pandemic wreaked havoc across the tech world. Many companies shut their doors for good, while others were acquired or, for those lucky few, saw exponential growth (I’m looking at you, Zoom).

However, despite all the ups and downs of the past year, the Martech Industry saw a 13% overall growth in new companies. Add that to the roughly 7,000 that already existed, and that puts today’s estimates around 8,000 companies operating in the MarTech landscape each offering a new technology that could be game changing.

As a result, it’s more important than ever to look past the lofty promises of these new technologies and evaluate the real impact they will have on your organization.

Key Questions to Ask Before Adopting New Tech

Who, what, why, when, how?

Who will be using this new technology? Is it a specific team, just a couple of people, or the whole company? How will your teams use it? Knowing exactly how teams will use it to achieve your organizational goals will give you a clear roadmap.

Be results driven

What specific benefits can you expect? Will it drive more inbound leads, faster sales cycles, better ROI, or operational efficiency?

Does it integrate?

Will the new tech integrate into your existing stack, or require a completely new interface or workflow? Fewer platforms to manage is generally better, but this depends on your goals.

Do you really need it?

Many companies jump on flashy new tech without evaluating what they already have. A study by Blissfully found that companies with 100 – 200 employees have three orphaned subscriptions and four duplicate ones on average. Review your stack before adding anything new.

Does the company support your success?

Assess the vendor’s implementation and customer success process. How good is their onboarding? Are similar companies using the product successfully?

Is the tech future proof?

No technology is truly future proof, but you can make smarter bets. For example, with third party cookies being phased out, avoid tech that depends on them. Look for solutions that are privacy compliant and vendor agnostic.

What to Do Once You’ve Made a Decision

Make sure everyone is ready

Get every team member aligned on how the tool will be used daily and how it fits into broader goals.

Account for setup and onboarding

Implementation times can vary drastically from minutes to weeks. Set expectations for when ROI will start to show, and track early wins.

Plan for the present, prepare for the future

Look at pricing tiers, usage limits, and growth potential. Don’t always default to the cheapest package make sure it will scale with your business.

Final Thoughts

Despite the wild year we just lived through, these are exciting times in the MarTech world. New tools are emerging every day that help reduce costs, improve analytics, generate leads, and empower your marketing and sales teams.

By evaluating solutions thoughtfully and preparing for seamless adoption, you’ll set your team up to thrive in a post pandemic digital ecosystem.