The landscape of MarTech has only continued its massive momentum of growth – and Scott Brinker’s 2020 Landscape Supergraphic confirms this by the numbers, citing an impressive 13.6% spike from 2019…and that’s including the 615 companies that went away for various reasons, including consolidation. And, low and behold – we’re a part of that spike. Our own Marketo campaign solution Jeto.io is represented on under the content marketing category.
Fortunately, the landscape is available as an interactive portal, much easier to read and sort: www.martech5000.com.
Of course, with this continued growth, the level of complexity of this landscape only deepens. As more vendors come on the scene, the sheer number of possibilities for solutions can begin to feel a bit dizzying. However, by taking notice of the year-over-year trends, we can begin to decipher where demand and emphasis with the MarTech landscape is trending. These are some of the most important take-aways that we gleaned.
The MarTech Plot Thickens…for Data in Particular
As we dive into the current landscape, data owns the fastest-growing MarTech solution category, with a 25.5% increase from 2019 – 2020. Perhaps unsurprisingly, along with the slew of data available, has come immense innovation in the space, with MarTech entrepreneurs swiftly creating solutions for this niche. Referencing this steep uptick, Scott Brinker pointed out in his Day 2 Discover MarTech keynote that, “We’re completely awash with data at this point in time, and the challenge is increasingly shifting to: ‘How do we harness that data effectively to deliver results?’”
This statistic surrounding the growth in data solutions suggests that companies may increasingly place emphasis on the importance of data, and the power it can wield with the right tools in place – or at least, that’s what those behind the creation of these new softwares are banking on. If this trend holds up, it bodes well for the demand of marketing operations, automation, and marketing technology management work overall.
The landscape is segmented into six different MarTech “continents,” if you will: Advertising & Promotion, Content & Experience, Social & Relationships, Commerce & Sales, Data, and Management. Besides the exponential growth from data, within the six MarTech categories presented, the social and relationships category tops out with the most solutions, followed closely by content and experience. And, diving even deeper into the sub-categories, conversational marketing and chat exploded, with a 70% increase from 2019 – 2020. Governance and compliance solutions followed closely behind, experiencing a 68% increase, indicative of emerging data compliance regulations needed, such as CCPA and GDPR.
A Whole Lot of Tech
8,000 MarTech solutions – that’s an astounding 5,233% growth from 2011. In terms of more immediate growth, Scott points out that “1 in 5 of the solutions on this year’s MarTech landscape weren’t there last year.” The “shiny object syndrome” of new tech has certainly made its rounds in the past, and with an exponentially growing landscape year-over-year, it’s easy to see why. Many B2B enterprises have fallen trap to jumping at new technology in the past, only to realize after the fact that they may not have the knowledgeable talent on hand to fully take advantage of the solution…rendering the “solution” an expensive and underutilized tool.
However, Scott actually brings to light a different phenomenon in the relationship between these software vendors and marketers this year.
“MarTech entrepreneurs chase marketers,” he said in his Day 2 Keynote address. “They are listening to what marketers are interested in, where market trends are headed, and they are trying to create solutions for them.”
Companies will still need to make educated decisions when pulling the trigger on introducing new technologies to their organizations, but these software entrepreneurs are listening and catering more closely toward the needs of marketers. It should also be noted that while integration is still important when considering new solutions, this year’s survey indicated the top-rated challenge is now ease of use. Marketers want faster adoptions by their teams and greater utilization; software engineers who are able to meet these needs will be in greater demand.
Trending Now: Digital
The typical enterprise company uses over 1200 cloud services, and that’s just the tip of the digital iceberg. The digital shift continues to become more pronounced, and MarTech certainly has made its contributions toward it.
“The world is becoming more digital. There is more and more software out there because there aren’t any barriers to people creating software at this point,” Scott pointed out in his keynote. “We’re seeing more and more no-code platforms that allow people to build all sorts of additional software– some of it more packaged than others. And marketers are continually looking for an edge. They’re continually looking to differentiate. All these things are long-term forces behind the MarTech industry as a whole.”
All told, the landscape of MarTech continues to grow both in sheer size and nuance. As marketers continue on the forefront of the continued shift to digital, the number of solutions available can be exciting, albeit a bit overwhelming.