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A Bad Marketer Blames the Tools: Moving Beyond the Martech Shuffle

Updated: 2 days ago


According to a recent Acxiom study, 99% of brands are planning martech changes next year.


With more than a third ditching current tools and others consolidating or enhancing their stacks, it’s clear that brands are eager to gain a competitive edge.


However, frequently upgrading martech may often be a reaction to the allure of shiny new tools rather than a response to strategic needs.


At Beyond, we argue that true marketing success depends not on tools but on the quality of data and clarity of strategy.

 

Data: The Backbone of Lasting Marketing Success

As tech advances, marketers can feel pressured to stay on top of each new development, leading to a constant “catch-up” cycle.


The Acxiom study shows that nearly two-thirds of businesses plan to increase their martech budgets by 5% to 20%.


However, with only 47% of companies using AI for complex tasks like customer segmentation, it’s clear that tech investments alone aren’t delivering transformative results.


This highlights the need to prioritise data integration over tool replacement.

 

Overcoming Fragmentation: The Real Martech Challenge

One key barrier to martech effectiveness is data silos.


According to the Acxiom report, 68% of marketing leaders identify fragmented data as a major obstacle to delivering personalised experiences.


Without unified customer insights, even the best tools can appear insufficient.


At Beyond, we regularly address this by helping clients integrate data across touchpoints, enhancing performance without the need for new tech.


For instance, a bespoke data integration solution allowed one client to unify their customer data, yielding significant engagement improvements.

 

Maximise Data, Not Tools: A Better Strategy for Long-Term Success

Instead of constantly upgrading, brands should invest in data quality and usability.


As we see with our clients, data integration and actionable insights trump

the latest tech.


By focusing on data—through better segmentation, attribution, and customer insights—brands can redefine their competitive landscape and deliver consistently better results.

 

A Strategic Path Forward

Before diving into the next martech overhaul, consider this: is your data integrated, and does it yield clear insights?


As Acxiom concludes, brands can navigate the complexities of martech by building a strategic approach, possibly with a dedicated internal team or an experienced partner.


Ultimately, however, we believe, true marketing excellence lies in leveraging data to create meaningful customer experiences—not in the endless pursuit of new tech tools.

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