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At Sojourn Solutions, we’re thrilled to congratulate Nicky Clarke, Head of Marketing Operations at Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) Business , on her recent shortlisting for B2B Marketer of the Year at the B2B Marketing Awards 2024 . This nomination is a testament to Nicky’s leadership, adaptability, and strategic vision-qualities that have driven success in the face of enormous change. Since the Virgin Media and O2 joint venture in 2021, VMO2 has merged two iconic UK brands, creating a telecommunications powerhouse in mobile and broadband services. This merger required not only a united brand identity but also a streamlined marketing operations strategy. Nicky Clarke has been at the forefront of this transformation, leading a newly merged Marketing Operations team and managing an extensive consolidation of MarTech platforms, processes and workflows. Throughout, Nicky has proven herself a steady, inspiring leader, bringing her team’s capabilities to new heights despite resource and budget challenges. A 25-Year Journey of Dedication and Growth Nicky’s journey with the company spans 25 years, starting in 1998 with O2 in a project management role within customer service. Over the years, she steadily rose through the ranks, moving into Marketing Operations in 2011, and later, in 2021, becoming the Senior Marketing Ops Programme Manager as the VMO2 joint venture was announced. Now leading VMO2’s Marketing Operations, Nicky is known for nurturing her team and pushing for excellence in everything from MQL strategies to CRM integrations. Her day-to-day responsibilities include overseeing VMO2’s marketing automation platforms, driving MQL performance, and ensuring smooth integrations across CRM, CDP, the digital landscape and data systems. She keeps her team at the cutting edge of marketing operations, embracing the latest technology, including AI-driven solutions, to continuously enhance VMO2’s marketing efforts. Recent Milestones and Achievements In the last 24 months, Nicky has spearheaded a series of transformational changes. Under her guidance, VMO2 has consolidated and relaunched its MarTech stack, a process that included migrating everyone to their existing Oracle Eloqua instance, saving £31,000 annually. Altogether, her efforts have saved VMO2 over £150,000 in MarTech consolidation costs alone. She’s also automated over 20 previously manual data processes, saving 208 days of resource time and an additional £15,000. One of Nicky’s notable accomplishments was reducing lead-to-sales time by moving from a bi-weekly update process to a 15-minute automated program through Eloqua and Salesforce. This shift has significantly enhanced VMO2’s responsiveness, allowing the team to engage with prospects at precisely the right moments, strengthening the sales pipeline and positively impacting revenue. A Collaborative and Compassionate Leader Nicky’s impact extends beyond numbers - she fosters strong relationships within her team and across departments. She presents quarterly business reviews to highlight her team’s initiatives, providing transparency, driving engagement and reinforcing Marketing Operations’ value to the wider business. Her unwavering focus on her team’s well-being and professional growth has been especially vital during times of major organisational change. Testimonials Reflect Nicky’s Leadership Excellence Nicky’s colleagues describe her as a nurturing, grounded leader who inspires her team to succeed. Jeeten Mistry, Marketing Operations Manager, praised Nicky’s goal-setting skills and approachability: “ Her understanding of people’s needs is outstanding, so much so that everyone in the Ops team feels comfortable giving their input during challenging times. ” From her long-time collaborator Rebecca Le Grange, Managing Partner at Sojourn Solutions, Nicky has earned high praise for her deep technical knowledge and integrity: “ Nicky possesses deep knowledge of her team’s intricacies, including data utilisation and processes down to the individual field level. Her integrity shines through in the strong relationships she’s fostered internally and externally, earning her respect across the board. ” A Well-Deserved Nomination Nicky Clarke’s nomination for B2B Marketer of the Year reflects her unwavering dedication, innovation, and leadership in one of the UK’s largest marketing transformations. Her success underscores the vital role that Marketing Operations plays in shaping and scaling complex, high-performing marketing ecosystems. For more than nine years, Sojourn Solutions has proudly partnered with VMO2, standing by their side through the many phases of transformation, growth, and change. From navigating the complexities of the Virgin Media and O2 joint venture, to adapting through organisational shifts and evolving market demands, Sojourn has provided steady support and expertise. Together, we have developed and implemented strategies to strengthen VMO2’s Marketing Operations, helping them maximise their MarTech investments, streamline processes, and empower their teams to achieve excellence. Congratulations, Nicky, from all of us at Sojourn Solutions. We’re proud to be your partner in this remarkable journey, and we look forward to many more milestones together!

As we look to the future, AI-driven marketing strategies, next-generation marketing operations, and the integration of AI with emerging technologies will shape the marketing landscape. By staying ahead of these trends and embracing ethical AI practices, businesses can ensure that their marketing operations remain effective, adaptable, and customer-centric.  But what trends are going to be at the forefront of this revolution? Here are our thoughts: AI-Driven Marketing Strategies As AI continues to evolve, businesses will increasingly rely on AI-driven marketing strategies. These strategies leverage advanced AI algorithms and models to optimize every aspect of marketing, from customer segmentation and targeting to content creation and campaign management. AI-driven marketing strategies enable businesses to achieve greater precision, efficiency, and effectiveness in their marketing efforts. Tip: Where are your biggest pain points? Discuss with your teams and prioritize to most effectively build AI-driven strategies into your marketing plans. Next-Generation Marketing Operations The future of marketing operations will be characterized by the integration of AI and other emerging technologies. Businesses will adopt advanced AI-powered tools and platforms that offer real-time insights, automated processes, and personalized customer interactions. These next-generation marketing operations will enable businesses to stay ahead of the competition and deliver exceptional customer experiences. Tip: Before making any new investments, identify and document the AI capabilitities within your existing tools and platforms. This will provide you with the insights to not only drive more value from your existing stack, but align new tools and platforms to gaps vs creating overlaps.  Continuous Innovation The pace of innovation in AI and marketing technologies will continue to accelerate. Businesses must stay abreast of the latest developments and be prepared to adopt new tools and techniques. By fostering a culture of continuous innovation, businesses can ensure that they remain at the forefront of marketing technology and maintain a competitive edge. Tip: To foster a culture of continuous innovation, consider introducing a Center of Excellence model where a team - or teams - is/are empowered to "move fast and break things." Trying to weave "continuous innovation" into daily operations tends to lead to confusion, frustration, and ultimately, lack of adoption.  Ethical AI and Responsible Marketing As AI becomes more pervasive in marketing operations, ethical considerations are gaining prominence. Businesses must ensure that their AI-driven marketing practices are transparent, fair, and respectful of customer privacy. Adopting ethical AI principles and promoting responsible marketing practices will be essential for building trust and maintaining a positive brand image. Tip: Clear, consistent communication within your employee experience is critical to success here. Integration of AI with Emerging Technologies The integration of AI with other emerging technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and augmented reality (AR), opens up new possibilities for marketing operations. These technologies will enable businesses to create immersive and interactive customer experiences, enhance data security, and optimize marketing processes. By exploring these synergies, businesses can unlock new opportunities and drive innovation in their marketing efforts. Tip: A "crawl, walk, run" approach tends to be the most successful here - in other words, assess your Marketing Operations maturity to ensure you have a solid foundation with which to proceed.    Final thought... AI is poised to revolutionize marketing operations, and businesses that invest in AI integration today will be well-positioned to lead in the future – speak to us today and find out how we can help your Marketing Operations prove the value of marketing!

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming marketing operations across industries. The ability to process vast amounts of data, predict buyer behavior, and automate tasks makes AI an invaluable tool for marketing teams. However, with the broad spectrum of AI applications available, it can be challenging to determine which ones will provide the quickest and most significant impact on your marketing operations.   This blog explores the AI applications that can deliver immediate results, enhance efficiency, and drive significant returns on investment (ROI) on marketing. Chatbots for Enhanced Customer Interaction One of the quickest ways AI can impact your marketing operations is through the implementation of AI-powered chatbots. These intelligent agents can handle customer inquiries 24/7, providing instant responses and solving problems without human intervention. Chatbots are especially effective in managing customer service, sales inquiries, and lead generation. Key Benefits: Instant Response Time: Customers no longer need to wait for human representatives. Chatbots provide immediate answers to common questions, improving customer satisfaction. Lead Qualification: Chatbots can engage with visitors, qualify leads, and even schedule meetings with sales teams, thereby streamlining the sales funnel. Cost Savings: By automating customer interactions, businesses can reduce the need for large customer service teams, saving costs while maintaining high levels of customer engagement. According to a report by Juniper Research, chatbots saved businesses $11 billion in 2023, demonstrating their potential for significant ROI​. AI-Powered Email Marketing Automation Email marketing remains one of the most effective channels for reaching and engaging customers. AI enhances email marketing by personalizing content, optimizing send times, and segmenting audiences based on behavior and preferences. Key Benefits: Personalization: AI can analyze user behavior to send personalized emails that resonate with individual recipients, increasing open and click-through rates. Automated Campaigns: AI tools can automatically trigger email campaigns based on user actions, such as abandoned cart reminders or post-purchase follow-ups. Optimized Send Times: AI algorithms can determine the best times to send emails, ensuring they reach recipients when they are most likely to engage. A study by McKinsey & Company found that businesses implementing AI in their email marketing saw a 41% increase in revenue and a 22% increase in email open rates, highlighting the significant impact AI can have on this channel. Predictive Analytics for Data-Driven Decision Making Predictive analytics is one of the most powerful AI applications for marketing, enabling businesses to forecast trends, understand customer behavior, and optimize marketing strategies. By analyzing historical data, predictive models can identify patterns and predict future outcomes, helping marketers make more informed decisions. Key Benefits: Customer Behavior Prediction: Predictive analytics can forecast customer actions, such as purchase likelihood, enabling marketers to tailor their strategies accordingly. Campaign Optimization: AI can predict which marketing campaigns will be most successful based on past performance, allowing for better allocation of resources. Churn Reduction: By identifying at-risk customers, predictive analytics can help marketers develop strategies to retain them, thereby reducing churn rates. Businesses that leverage predictive analytics report up to a 10% increase in sales and a 20% improvement in marketing ROI, according to a study by Forrester. AI-Driven Content Creation and Curation Content is the backbone of any successful marketing strategy. AI can assist in both creating and curating content, ensuring that it is not only high-quality but also relevant and timely. Key Benefits: Content Creation: AI tools like GPT-4 can generate blog posts, social media updates, and even video scripts, saving time and resources while maintaining a consistent content schedule. Content Curation: AI can curate content by analyzing trending topics and suggesting content ideas that are likely to engage your audience. SEO Optimization: AI-powered tools can optimize content for search engines by suggesting keywords, improving readability, and ensuring that content meets the latest SEO best practices. A survey by HubSpot found that companies using AI for content creation and curation saw a 35% increase in content engagement and a 15% improvement in SEO rankings. Final Thoughts Implementing AI in marketing operations can provide both quick wins and long-term benefits. From chatbots and email marketing automation to predictive analytics and programmatic advertising, AI applications can enhance efficiency, improve customer engagement, and drive significant ROI. However, the key to success lies in selecting the right AI tools that align with your business goals and integrating them effectively into your Marketing Operations -  and that’s where we can help! As AI technology continues to evolve, its impact on marketing operations is expected to grow, offering even more opportunities for businesses to gain a competitive edge. By leveraging AI in the areas outlined above, businesses can not only improve their marketing performance but also set the stage for sustainable growth in an increasingly digital world. Reach out to us today to learn more about implementing AI in your marketing operations to provide both quick wins and long-term benefits.

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, businesses are constantly seeking ways to optimize their marketing operations and enhance their return on investment (ROI). One of the most powerful tools at their disposal is Artificial Intelligence (AI). When integrated effectively into marketing operations, AI can significantly boost ROI by improving efficiency, enhancing customer experience, and enabling data-driven decision-making. This blog explores the potential ROI of implementing AI in marketing operations, focusing on key areas such as cost savings, customer engagement, personalized marketing, and campaign effectiveness. Cost Savings through Automation One of the most immediate and tangible benefits of incorporating AI into marketing operations is cost savings. AI-driven tools and platforms can automate repetitive tasks such as data entry, email marketing, and social media posting. By automating these time-consuming processes, businesses can reduce the need for human intervention, thereby lowering labor costs. For example, AI-powered chatbots can handle customer inquiries 24/7 without the need for a full-time support team. This not only reduces staffing costs but also enhances customer service by providing instant responses to queries.  According to a study by Juniper Research, chatbots now save businesses over $11 billion annually, compared to $20 million in 2017. Furthermore, AI can optimize ad spend through programmatic advertising, which uses algorithms to buy digital advertising space in real-time. This ensures that ads are displayed to the right audience at the right time, maximizing the efficiency of the ad spend. A study by McKinsey & Company found that companies implementing AI for marketing operations saw a 10-20% improvement in efficiency and cost savings. Enhanced Customer Engagement AI has the potential to significantly enhance customer engagement by providing personalized and timely interactions. By analyzing vast amounts of customer data, AI can segment audiences and tailor content to meet individual preferences. This leads to more relevant marketing messages that resonate with customers, increasing the likelihood of conversion. For instance, AI-driven recommendation engines, like those used by Amazon and Netflix, analyze user behavior to suggest products or content that customers are likely to be interested in. These personalized recommendations can increase sales and customer loyalty, as customers are more likely to engage with content that aligns with their interests. Moreover, AI can optimize customer journeys by predicting customer behavior and delivering personalized experiences across multiple touchpoints. This can include personalized emails, dynamic website content, and targeted ads that adapt in real-time based on user interactions. According to a report by Evergage, 88% of marketers reported seeing measurable improvements due to personalization, with more than half seeing a lift of over 10%. Data-Driven Decision Making In today’s data-driven world, the ability to make informed decisions is crucial for marketing success. AI enables marketers to analyze large datasets quickly and accurately, providing insights that drive strategic decisions. By leveraging AI for predictive analytics, businesses can forecast trends, customer behaviors, and campaign outcomes with a high degree of accuracy. For example, AI can analyze past campaign data to identify patterns and predict which strategies are likely to succeed in the future. This allows marketers to allocate resources more effectively and focus on high-impact activities that drive ROI. Additionally, AI can optimize pricing strategies by analyzing market demand, competitor pricing, and customer behavior in real-time, ensuring that prices are competitive while maximizing profitability. AI also plays a vital role in sentiment analysis, where it analyzes social media and other online platforms to gauge customer sentiment towards a brand or product. This allows businesses to adjust their strategies based on real-time feedback, enhancing their responsiveness to market changes. Improved Campaign Effectiveness Implementing AI in marketing operations can lead to more effective campaigns by enabling precise targeting, real-time optimization, and performance tracking. AI-powered tools can analyze customer data to create highly targeted campaigns that reach the right audience with the right message at the right time. Programmatic advertising, for example, uses AI to automate the buying of ad space, targeting specific demographics with precision. This reduces wasted ad spend and increases the likelihood of reaching potential customers. A report by Adthena found that companies using AI for programmatic advertising saw a 30% reduction in cost-per-acquisition (CPA) and a 20% increase in return on ad spend (ROAS). AI can also enhance campaign performance through real-time optimization. By continuously monitoring campaign metrics, AI can adjust targeting, bidding strategies, and creative elements on the fly to maximize effectiveness. This dynamic optimization ensures that campaigns deliver the best possible results, leading to a higher ROI. Furthermore, AI can provide detailed performance insights that help marketers understand what works and what doesn’t. By analyzing these insights, marketers can refine their strategies and improve future campaigns. This continuous learning and improvement cycle is key to maximizing ROI over time. Challenges and Considerations While the potential ROI of implementing AI in marketing operations is significant, it’s important to consider the challenges and risks involved: One of the primary challenges is the need for high-quality data. AI algorithms rely on large datasets to function effectively, and poor data quality can lead to inaccurate predictions and suboptimal outcomes. Additionally, implementing AI with your Marketing Operations requires a certain level of expertise and investment in technology. Businesses need to ensure they have the necessary infrastructure and skills to deploy AI effectively. This usually involves hiring specialists such as Sojourn Solutions, who understand the challenges involved. Finally, ethical considerations must be taken into account. AI-driven marketing practices, such as personalized targeting, can raise privacy concerns among consumers. Businesses must ensure they comply with data protection regulations and maintain transparency in their AI practices. Final Thoughts The potential ROI of implementing AI in marketing operations is substantial, with benefits ranging from cost savings and enhanced customer engagement to improved decision-making and campaign effectiveness. By leveraging AI, businesses can optimize their marketing strategies, deliver personalized experiences, and make data-driven decisions that drive growth. As AI technology continues to evolve, its impact on marketing operations is likely to grow, offering even greater opportunities for businesses to enhance their performance and achieve their goals. Reach out to us today to learn more about leveraging AI to help improve the ROI of your marketing operations.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has rapidly evolved from a futuristic concept to a practical tool that can transform business operations across industries. For most B2B companies, AI offers a powerful way to enhance marketing operations, providing insights, streamlining workflows, and boosting ROI. However, integrating AI effectively requires careful selection of use cases where it can make the most significant impact. Here’s a look at the best use cases for integrating AI into B2B marketing operations to unlock efficiency, drive better customer engagement, and support data-driven decision-making. Predictive Analytics for Lead Scoring and Qualification Predictive analytics, powered by AI, enables B2B companies to analyze historical and real-time data to predict which leads are most likely to convert. In B2B marketing, where sales cycles can be lengthy and complex, prioritizing the right leads can save time and increase conversion rates. AI can help by: Analyzing customer data  from previous interactions, behaviors, and demographics to assign scores to leads, indicating their likelihood to convert. Identifying patterns  that human analysis might miss, making lead scoring more accurate and data-driven. Improving efficiency in sales handoffs , so sales teams focus on leads with the highest potential. By using predictive lead scoring, B2B companies can improve pipeline efficiency, shorten sales cycles, and focus their resources on high-value prospects. Personalized Content and Messaging AI can enable personalized content experiences on a large scale, which is particularly valuable in B2B marketing, where personalized communication fosters stronger relationships. AI can analyze data from multiple sources to tailor content to each customer’s unique preferences and pain points. Key applications include: Customized email marketing  based on individual engagement history, industry, and past behaviors. Content recommendations  on websites and digital channels, guiding users to the most relevant resources for their needs. Dynamic landing pages  that adapt messaging and content based on visitor data, improving engagement and conversion rates. This level of personalization helps B2B brands nurture relationships, build trust, and increase engagement by delivering relevant and valuable content to each prospect. Chatbots and Automated Customer Support AI-powered chatbots can play a critical role in managing customer support and lead engagement. Unlike traditional chatbots, AI-driven bots can understand complex queries, interact in a human-like manner, and respond with relevant information. In B2B marketing, chatbots can: Provide instant responses  to frequently asked questions, offering value to prospects and customers without requiring human resources. Qualify leads on the website  by asking initial questions and directing qualified leads to sales representatives. Provide 24/7 support , ensuring prospects and customers get help at any time, which is especially useful for global enterprises. By automating these interactions, B2B companies can improve responsiveness, free up human resources, and provide a better experience for website visitors. Account-Based Marketing (ABM) Optimization Account-Based Marketing is a powerful strategy for B2B companies, targeting high-value accounts with personalized marketing efforts. AI enhances ABM by identifying which accounts are most likely to convert and offering insights into the most effective ways to engage them. AI can: Segment and prioritize accounts  based on data such as engagement history, purchase behavior, and fit score. Deliver personalized content  and ads to specific accounts, ensuring they see messaging tailored to their industry and pain points. Analyze ABM campaigns  in real-time, identifying which strategies resonate most with target accounts and making adjustments as needed. With AI-driven ABM, companies can improve their chances of closing high-value deals while maximizing the ROI of targeted marketing efforts. Predictive Content Creation and Optimization Creating relevant and engaging content is crucial for B2B marketing, but identifying what will resonate with a specific audience can be challenging. AI can analyze audience data, search trends, and engagement metrics to recommend topics, keywords, and formats that are most likely to perform well. For B2B companies, AI can: Generate content ideas  based on trending topics and commonly asked questions within the industry. Optimize existing content  by identifying gaps and suggesting keywords or format adjustments to improve SEO performance. A/B test different versions of content  to determine which resonates best with target audiences. Using AI to guide content strategy allows B2B companies to create more effective, targeted content that drives engagement and supports demand generation. Dynamic Pricing and Quoting In B2B markets, pricing can be complex, often based on factors like order volume, customer relationship, and competitive conditions. AI can streamline the process by analyzing relevant data to suggest optimal pricing for each customer. With AI-driven pricing and quoting, B2B companies can: Automate quote generation , speeding up the process and reducing manual errors. Suggest pricing adjustments  based on factors like industry trends, demand, and competitor pricing. Optimize discounts and offers  to balance profitability with customer acquisition goals. Dynamic pricing and quoting allow B2B companies to stay competitive and respond quickly to market changes, helping them close deals faster and with greater precision. Enhanced Customer Segmentation and Targeting AI can significantly improve customer segmentation, allowing B2B companies to identify highly specific customer groups based on data like industry, company size, purchase history, and engagement levels. With AI-enhanced segmentation, companies can: Create micro-segments  that capture unique customer needs and preferences. Target campaigns more accurately , sending the right message to the right segment. Adapt segments in real-time  as new data becomes available, ensuring marketing is always relevant. AI-driven segmentation helps B2B companies craft personalized messaging that resonates more deeply, which can improve conversion rates and campaign performance. Sales Forecasting and Pipeline Analysis Accurate sales forecasting is essential for resource allocation, budgeting, and goal setting. AI can analyze historical data, current pipeline status, and external factors to provide more accurate predictions of future revenue. For B2B marketing and sales teams, AI can: Predict revenue trends , helping teams set realistic targets and adjust strategies based on forecasted demand. Optimize pipeline management , identifying bottlenecks and prioritizing high-potential deals. Enhance cross-departmental alignment , as forecasting becomes more accurate and reliable, providing clarity for finance, operations, and marketing. AI-enhanced forecasting enables B2B companies to make more informed decisions, allocate resources effectively, and meet revenue goals with greater precision. Customer Retention and Churn Prediction Retaining customers is as critical as acquiring new ones, and AI can help B2B companies anticipate and prevent churn. By analyzing customer behavior, product usage, and engagement patterns, AI can identify customers who may be at risk of leaving. Key applications include: Churn prediction , enabling proactive retention strategies for customers at risk. Customer health scoring , providing insights into how well accounts are being served and where improvement is needed. Upsell and cross-sell recommendations  based on customer behavior and needs, helping to strengthen customer relationships and increase revenue. By anticipating churn and taking action, B2B companies can improve customer retention and maximize lifetime value. Fraud Detection and Security Monitoring With more B2B transactions occurring online, ensuring the security of customer data and transactions is critical. AI’s ability to detect anomalies and unusual patterns can help B2B companies identify potential fraud or security threats in real time. AI-driven fraud detection can: Monitor transactions and account activities  for signs of suspicious behavior. Prevent unauthorized access  by flagging unusual login patterns or usage anomalies. Safeguard sensitive customer data , helping to maintain customer trust and comply with security regulations. AI-powered security measures protect both companies and their customers, reducing risk and strengthening brand reputation. Setting Up AI for Success in B2B Marketing Operations For most companies, integrating AI into marketing operations offers a clear path to optimizing processes, personalizing engagement, and achieving higher ROI. By strategically selecting use cases - like predictive analytics, ABM optimization, and dynamic pricing - companies can unlock the transformative potential of AI while aligning with their specific business goals. The key to success lies in focusing on AI use cases that drive measurable results, continuously refining AI applications, and remaining adaptable to emerging AI capabilities. For companies ready to make the leap, AI in marketing operations isn’t just an opportunity - it’s a competitive advantage.

In the ever-evolving landscape of marketing technology, staying ahead requires not only embracing innovation but also ensuring that your martech stack is optimized for efficiency and effectiveness. A martech stack audit is a powerful tool that can unlock a myriad of benefits for marketers , ranging from cost savings to enhanced performance. In this blog post, we'll delve into the top benefits of conducting a martech stack audit and how it can propel your marketing efforts to new heights. 1. Cost Savings One of the most compelling reasons to audit your martech stack is the potential for significant cost savings. Our research has shown that marketers can reduce their technology spend by an average of 20% within just 12 months.  A comprehensive analysis of your technology infrastructure, expenses, and strategy helps to identify areas of inefficiency and recommendations tailored cost-saving measures. By optimizing your tech stack, you not only save on unnecessary expenses but also allocate resources more effectively. 2. Centralized Oversight In the complex realm of marketing technology, centralized oversight is paramount. A martech stack audit empowers marketing operations teams with the tools and expertise needed to gain full visibility and control over technology spend, utilization, performance, strategy, and skills. Centralized oversight ensures that every component of your tech stack aligns with your overarching business goals, supports your key use cases, and fosters a cohesive and efficient marketing ecosystem. 3. Streamlined Integration Efficient data flow is crucial for marketing success. What does this mean? Mapping your products and integrations to customer journeys, ensuring a seamless flow of data and functionality across your marketing ecosystem. By identifying and eliminating redundant products, functions, and contracts, you're able to optimize your martech stack for maximum efficiency and effectiveness.  A streamlined integration not only enhances workflow but also contributes to a more agile and responsive marketing strategy. 4. Performance Assessment Understanding how well your technology is performing is essential for driving successful marketing campaigns. A martech stack audit assesses technology performance, identifies critical gaps, and provides actionable recommendations to enhance performance, plug gaps, and align technology with your business objectives. This proactive approach ensures that your martech stack is always aligned with your marketing goals and adapts to changes in the market landscape. 5. Skill Alignment The best technology is only as good as the team using it . Lack of skills can lead to underutilization of technology and hinder your return on investment. A martech stack audit addresses this challenge by aligning your team's technology proficiency with your overall technology strategy. We also recommend training and support to ensure your team can fully leverage the potential of your marketing technology stack, maximizing the impact of your marketing efforts. 6. Contract and Vendor Management Clear insights into your contracts and vendor relationships are crucial for making informed decisions. A martech stack audit captures and documents all relevant information, providing a comprehensive view that helps you optimize vendor relationships and make strategic decisions about your technology partnerships. This transparency ensures that you are getting the most value from your technology investments. 7. Governance and Compliance In an era where data compliance and security are paramount, a martech stack audit should include tracking and monitoring governance information. It enables you to establish robust governance protocols and ensure that your marketing technology stack adheres to industry regulations and best practices. This not only protects your brand and customer data but also builds trust with your audience. 8. Understanding Your Ecosystem The martech ecosystem is vast, complex, and ever-evolving. We recommend a single source of truth, acting as a repository for storing information and details on your full stack. A discovery exercise within your martech stack audit helps you identify legacy technology still in operation, as well as your known technologies. By understanding your ecosystem, you can make informed decisions about updates, upgrades, and strategic investments, ensuring that your martech stack evolves alongside your business. Bottom-line? A martech stack audit is not just a one-time task; it's a strategic investment that continuously pays dividends.  From substantial cost savings to enhanced performance and compliance, the benefits are undeniable. By conducting regular audits, marketers can ensure that their martech stack remains a dynamic and powerful asset, driving success in an increasingly competitive digital landscape. Interested in learning more about how a martech stack audit can help you? Check out our Martech Stack Audit services , or simply contact us  today. Update: In late 2023, Thomson Reuters (TR) and Sojourn Solutions (Sojourn) began an ambitious project to optimize the Thomson Reuters marketing technology stack, seeking to create an effective, efficient, and centralized operating model for long-term stack management. The project concluded in 2024 with great success - learn more: A StackTastic Project: How Thomson Reuters Transformed Its Martech Management and Performance.

There are a handful of marketing operations leaders who are at the top of their games, driving themselves, their teams, and seed by their businesses beyond the status quo to achieve leading-edge MOPs performance. They’re the people who are motivating and empowering others, while transforming new ideas into better ways of working.  One such exemplary MOPs leader is Atanas Vasilev , Senior Director, Marketing Operations at Progress Software . Progress is the leading platform for developing and deploying strategic business applications. Progress also enables organizations to effectively manage their data platforms, cloud and IT infrastructure. Vasilev and the Progress MOPs team have partnered with Sojourn Solutions for well over a decade to drive the continuous improvement of their marketing operations.  We spoke recently with Vasilev about how he approaches being a MOPs leader. How do you define success for yourself and the MOPs team you lead? Vasilev: My team and I work to ensure that Progress has 24/7 lead processing. We also make sure we’re the center of excellence for Progress when it comes to marketing technologies, lead management, and supporting the overall demand generation efforts within Progress.  We have pre-defined KPIs that we constantly track and use to measure our success. So our top KPI is not losing one lead, which means that all leads that Progress generates, regardless of the channel, should get processed and stored in Salesforce. Sometimes we might have delays in processing, but we never lose a lead.  We also work to generate valuable insights for the marketing organization that can unlock value and inform how we do campaigns, helping us drive better customer engagement and higher conversion rates.   How did you first come into marketing operations? Vasilev: I spent almost 15 years in digital marketing, so my background is mostly in technology. Now that I’m in marketing operations, I still work in technology to some extent. But I find that marketing operations is a much broader and more mission-critical function for the organization than, say, digital marketing. What skills and experiences are important in your MOPs leadership role? Vasilev: The three pillars of what I and my team do are (1) systems (2) data and (3) process. By process I mean knowing how marketing and sales work, and having very good project management skills to drive operational excellence. Data is so important: a successful marketing operations professional should have a background in, and be comfortable learning about, how data informs what marketing does. People management skills are also crucial, because the work of marketing operations is sometimes stressful. The team is often working on solving challenging problems and are under time pressure. Being a good manager of people helps set the right culture and expectations, so people can be productive and handle the pressure well. How do you approach your professional development?   Vasilev: I approach professional development internally and externally. When it comes to internally, the best way to learn is talking with people in other functions. I might meet with a sales rep and ask them to please walk me through how they closed a deal. What exactly did they do from when they received the lead until they closed it?   I also learn externally from outside partners such as Sojourn Solutions. Our partnership has provided me and my team with a lot of know-how based on Sojourn’s experience gained from working with other companies who might have similar use cases as we do. I also use Forrester to keep track of trends and best practices in marketing operations.   And of course, I receive a lot of input and knowledge from the three big vendors for marketing automation platforms: Oracle, Adobe, and Salesforce. How do you develop your team and give them the resources, skills, and support to be successful?  Vasilev: All of my team members have to become certified experts, in the platforms we use. They take courses around being an Eloqua Implementation Specialist, for instance, or learn project management skills. Learning on the job is important here.  Whenever I hire talent, I look for someone with at least some experience with marketing automation platforms. If you hire someone who has zero experience and knowledge on MAPs, it'll probably take them two years to be effective. The second best hiring criteria is past experience in a marketing role, if you're coming from a demand gen function, for instance, that helps you understand the processes we use. What's been your biggest challenge and your biggest accomplishment as a MOPs leader?  Vasilev: My biggest challenge is that all eyes are on us. Let's say Progress sees a drop in lead volume or lead conversion for a certain product line. Everyone will start asking us what's wrong. Many times nothing is wrong when it comes to, say, Eloqua or the demand gen process itself, but maybe the overall business cycle is slowing down and buyers are losing confidence or budget.   Sometimes, of course, the problem may be with our processes or system or our data. We then have to analyze the situation and come up with good solutions, and quickly.   Our biggest accomplishment is that we never lose a lead. It's 24/7 open running here. We do our job every single day and we help keep the marketing team and overall business running. We provide a platform that’s stable and that works reliably for our people. That’s a source of pride.  How do you use external partners like Sojourn?  Vasilev: There are two main use cases. First, when we need extra hands and we need it now. Unfortunately, things can happen unexpectedly and there might be too many ongoing projects for our team. That’s when we go outside for more hands.  The second and bigger use case is when we don't know something and so need “strategic consulting” because we don't know what we don't know. In such situations, we ask Sojourn to provide us with new ideas for navigating situations that maybe we don't know how to navigate.  Outside consultants have typically seen multiple use cases from different companies and know how to approach building and implementing the right solution for the right use case. Our internal team hasn’t seen all those use cases, nor have we developed and customized different solutions to address them. That’s when we call upon an experienced strategic consultant like Sojourn. Any final thoughts for MOPs professionals? Vasilev: If you are a person who feels fulfillment from the fact that what you've built works and it's mission-critical for the business, then you’ll be right for marketing operations. It’s not a great profession for people who need constant external validation. When I was in digital marketing, the fulfillment came from rebranding or redesigning the whole company website. You built a splashy presentation and showed everyone the cool things you created. You got a lot of attention and maybe some awards. But if you're in marketing ops and doing a really good job, nobody will chat about how great you’re doing. People outside your team maybe don’t even understand what you’re doing.  If you’re not doing a great job and something is going wrong, everyone will want to reach out and tell you. The reward for marketing operations is intrinsic and intangible: no news is good news. As a mentor once told me, the best thing you can do as a manager is to make it so you are no longer needed by your team. You build a solid organization and grow your people so they can do everything without you. If you’d like to improve your Marketing Operations team and maximize the ROI of your marketing operations, we can help. Learn more about us or feel free to reach out directly today!

Citeline , the world’s leading provider of business intelligence in the pharmaceutical and medtech industry, had to set up a completely new Martech infrastructure/Tech stack which involved a new Eloqua marketing automation platform (MAP). What catalyzed the change was Citeline’s being sold by its parent company Informa in 2022. Citeline, formerly Pharma Intelligence, was ultimately acquired by business intelligence giant Norstella, forming a $5 billion global firm. Citeline had to rebrand, becoming one of five brands under the Norstella umbrella. Citeline needed to rapidly de-couple its infrastructure away from Informa. During the transition phase, the Citeline team quickly understood that if it moved forward with both Eloqua and Salesforce Marketing Cloud (SFMC), its legacy platforms, it would incur substantial implementation and maintenance costs, hindering the firm’s progress moving forward. The Big Question The big question Citeline confronted, and which Sojourn helped them answer in the affirmative, was: “Could Citeline manage its operations and continue to effectively run its business without the license costs and complexity associated with SFMC, by leveraging Eloqua alone?” Citeline decided to sunset its SFMC license and migrate to a single instance of Eloqua, migrating all its data, assets, configurations, processes, etc. to the new instance. With new tech being implemented across the Citeline corporate structure and across Citeline’s customer/CX journey, the pressure for Marketing to rapidly launch a new Eloqua instance and seamlessly migrate from its existing/legacy systems was high. Citeline wanted the entire Eloqua migration project completed within an aggressive timeline of 6 months, with the overarching goal of ensuring minimal business impact/revenue disruption. Timing was also important because Citeline faced contractual penalties that would get triggered if it continued to depend upon its legacy infrastructure from Informa. Challenges to Project Success This Eloqua migration initiative marked a significant shift in Citeline's tech architecture, encompassing a new Sales CRM, MAP instance (Eloqua), and Website.  Some challenges Citeline faced in migrating to the new Eloqua instance included: No flexibility on program milestones due to the entire Citeline technology stack being switched at the same time. Failure to switch on time would have resulted in massive costs. Implementing new technology, including a single instance of Eloqua, involved extensive data migration and integration of third-party apps/platforms. All legacy processes and workflows needed to be brought into alignment with the capabilities of the new Eloqua instance. Complex (highly scripted) email campaigns needed to run without disruption to either customers/subscribers or business revenues. Removing SFMC meant replacing workflows and processes, and connecting a new App (Instant Marketing) to Eloqua. Ensuring that all agencies/partners worked well together in order to minimize internal disruption for the Citeline team, which needed to: (1) continue performing their day jobs and (2) prove to their new Norstella investors that they could still generate revenue as this massive transformation was happening. The Citeline team needed to be rapidly trained and enabled to work in the new Eloqua framework, ensuring seamless operational continuity. First Steps: Designing a Customized Eloqua/MAP Solution Citeline brought in Sojourn Solutions as a project partner. In collaboration with the Citeline team, Sojourn swiftly organized and facilitated discovery sessions to create a streamlined blueprint/project framework for an Eloqua roll-out, crafting related timelines and project priorities. High among the project priorities was ensuring flexibility within any planned martech solution in order to accommodate potential new requirements in a fast-moving, rapidly-evolving program. Sojourn, for example, provided deep technical expertise around architecting new ways of delivering Citeline campaigns and integrating with the new CRM and website.   Implementing the Solution The Citeline-Sojourn partnership successfully implemented the new Eloqua instance. In order to minimize disruption to Citeline’s revenue-generating Insights email product, the project team worked successfully to eliminate email deliverability challenges. This ensured email reach and customer engagement, not to mention business/revenue continuity for the critically-important Insights email product.  Citeline’s Insight email was driven by customized content preferences pre-defined by email subscribers. So, the project team collaborated with a development agency to ensure Salesforce Marketing Cloud emails could be created and run within the new Eloqua instance using RSS-type functionality. This would now be delivered through the Instant Marketing app/add-on. Sojourn also provided additional development support to standardize data and support field value updates. Project Deliverables Project deliverables were focused on data migration, asset migration, app/platform integration, new processes and templates launched, as well as user enablement. Here’s a brief summary: 1. All relevant data was migrated from Citeline’s legacy systems into the new Eloqua instance in a timely and accurate fashion.  2. The following Citeline assets were migrated into a new Eloqua framework: 8 ‘always on’ forms including Landing Pages 14 ‘always on’ Campaign Canvases and approximately 35 inflight Campaign Canvases 100 ‘always on’ Emails and approximately 95 inflight Emails 3. The following processes were built: Forms and Lead Score to Salesforce Bi-directional syncs Cleansing processes 4. The following templates were created: 4 key Form templates 12 Campaign Canvas templates 50 Email templates 5. Other deliverables: Users were trained and enabled (see details below) IP warming was completed to ensure quality and business continuity + Preference Center for email subscribers to personalize content Documentation was provided Enabling People and Processes In order to ensure project success and maintain the new platform after its go-live date, Sojourn trained the internal Citeline team on new processes and workflows. It also supported Citeline’s Product Marketing and Campaign teams after go-live by providing hypercare. This included daily platform monitoring to proactively manage any potential problems/issues that might arise and potentially disrupt business continuity. Hypercare also involved daily calls with the project team, including Citeline’s internal people as well as relevant external agencies. Even after the go-live date and in order to support Citeline’s full operational continuity, Sojourn helped support ongoing Eloqua technical and integration requirements. It also delivered hands-on campaign reporting and analysis to Citeline as a way to ease the pressure on Marketing during go-live. KPIs of Project Success: Outcomes The success of the Eloqua migration project was indicated by the following: 1. A single instance of Eloqua was successfully put in place by early July 2023, less than 6 months after the March project kick-off and well within Citeline’s desired timeline. Significant costs (related to licenses and development needs) related to continuing with the legacy SFMC platform were avoided, including an 88% savings on licensing-related costs, as SFMC was sunsetted. 2. Existing SFMC data, journeys and campaigns were successfully migrated and running 'as is’ in Eloqua by June 28, 2023, including 1.6 million emails per month with up to 20 pieces of content each (dynamic content where each recipient can receive different news articles direct from the website). 3.The project developed a Citeline-owned Eloqua instance and migrated it from Informa business systems so Citeline could transition its corporate structure from Informa to Norstella. 4. The project team coordinated the migration with Salesforce workstreams to successfully minimize disruption for Citeline’s commercial team and customers. 5. Because of the low code and no code nature of the solution, software complexity was reduced and Citeline no longer needed a dedicated developer. Marketers saved about half of their time and were able to manage the work with user-friendly functions such as “drag-and-drop.” A Word from Citeline Chris Fowles, Citeline’s Sr Director Technology, Sales & Marketing Business Partner, explained the benefits of the Eloqua migration project this way:   The project goals were achieved, which included getting Citeline away from Informa as well as having us be in control of our own infrastructure and destiny. The initiative was about keeping our business up and running at a time of rapid change. We wanted to avoid having any operational downtime, keeping leads and revenue flowing. We were also hoping not to take a hit to our revenues as we moved our infrastructure away from Informa. Delays would have cost us. Commercially, we actually grew our revenues last year as the project happened, and our number of leads generated have only continued to grow. Regarding the process of working with Sojourn, Fowles said:  Where Sojourn stands above the rest of our partners is in their flexibility. When the project requirements and timelines shifted, Sojourn never made managing these new requirements seem inconvenient to them, although we knew it was indeed inconvenient. At the end of the day, I still don’t know how we managed to do it all in time and within budget, but Sojourn was a big part of that success.  Learn more about how Sojourn Solutions can help improve your Marketing Automation - as well as your Marketing Operations - or feel free to reach out to us today.

By Chuck Leddy, B2B Brand Storyteller, and Charlotte Currie, Global Head of Customer Success at Sojourn Solutions Sojourn Solutions collaborates not only with our customers and their Marketing Operations teams to unlock business value, but we also work closely with leading martech vendors to enhance that value even further. Our team of experienced consultants, whom we proudly call Sojourners, bring deep expertise to every engagement. While we may not claim to have all the answers, our strong partnerships and continuous learning ensure we deliver the best possible outcomes for our customers .  When and who we partner with largely depends upon the specific needs of our customers, in terms of the use cases and needs they have, as well as on the capabilities of the martech vendors we partner with. “We collaborate with our partners to help our customers,” says Kristin Connell,  Global Head of Strategy & Innovation at Sojourn Solutions.   “We partner with Instant Marketing   because they help address and solve some important Eloqua use cases our customers have that Eloqua doesn’t support 'out-of-the-box.' IM has, for example, helped our customers save on licensing fees for other systems used for one-off edge cases. They've also help our customers deliver more personalized and timely engagement through Eloqua, with SMS for example. These benefit - saving money, improving customer experience, and driving more measurable business value - are top reasons why we've invested in our partnership ecosystem with companies like IM." Why We Partner: To Help Customers When our customers need help, they call on us. When we need help, we call on our partner ecosystem to bring in specialized martech or expertise. One of these partners is UK-based Instant Marketing  (IM, hereafter), a technology vendor that offers “instant extensions” for Oracle Eloqua, enabling Eloqua users to easily customize Eloqua features to support their campaigns.  Eloqua users can  decide to build new features and IM can instantly build them for the user. If a customer's Eloqua and/or MOPs team already has JavaScript skills, IM can support them with training, support and consultancy . We partner with Instant Marketing because they allow our MOPs customers to easily customize and build Eloqua apps and extensions that create business value. For example, IM allows Eloqua users to leverage things like: Direct Mail App & Web Push  Personalized Content and Emails Create Custom Apps Directly within Eloqua The synergy between Sojourn Solutions and Instant Marketing is simple. Sojourn is brought in to help MOPs teams work more efficiently, and Instant Marketing helps Eloqua users and MOPs teams by extending Eloqua and building customized solutions that drive business value.  “We tend to work best with people who are experts in the Eloqua space,” says Sam Smith, Director of Instant Marketing. “For example, Sojourn’s team is wonderful at high-level, strategic, and hands-on implementation. But there's only so far that they can go, because there's only so far that Eloqua can go “out-of-the-box.” So Sojourn might handle 75% of their customer's implementation and then they'll reach out and tag us in when it comes to delivering new capabilities that might need custom development.” Partnership in Action Let’s look at specific examples of partnership creating value for our customers. Instant Marketing provides a product called Advanced Email for Eloqua  that enables users to send personalized email messages from personal accounts while including cc, bcc, and attachments, all direct from the Eloqua canvas. When Sojourn worked with Citeline - the world’s leading provider of business intelligence in the pharmaceutical and medtech industry - the customer needed to quickly migrate its Salesforce Marketing Cloud to Eloqua. Citeline generated subscriber revenue by sending highly-customized emails to medical professionals looking for the latest trends and news within the fast-evolving pharmaceutical industry. Citeline, working with Sojourn, had to rapidly sunset its SFMC license and migrate to a single instance of Eloqua, migrating all its data, assets, configurations, processes, etc. to the new Eloqua instance. With new tech being implemented across the Citeline corporate structure (in the middle of a restructuring) and across Citeline’s customer journey, the pressure to maintain the quality and continuity of Citeline’s “Insights Email product” (and the business revenues associated with this flagship product) was enormous.  We knew Instant Marketing could help, so we brought them in. The Challenge  Citeline’s complex and highly-scripted email campaigns needed to run without disruption to either customers/subscribers or business revenues. Removing SFMC from the equation required replacing workflows and processes, and connecting a new App, i.e., Instant Marketing’s Advanced Email for Eloqua, that would allow Citeline to customize high-quality emails at scale. The Sojourn-Citeline project team collaborated with a development agency to ensure Salesforce Marketing Cloud emails could be created and run within the new Eloqua instance using RSS-type functionality, which would be delivered through IM’s Advanced Email for Eloqua. Project Success  The partnership worked: the use of IM’s Advanced Email for Eloqua was central to the success of the Eloqua migration project, and it delivered the following results for Citeline: 1. A single instance of Eloqua, with the ability to customize emails as enabled by Instant Marketing, was successfully put in place less than 6 months after the March project kick-off and well within Citeline’s desired timeline. 2. Significant costs (associated with licenses and development needs) related to continuing with the legacy SFMC platform were avoided, including an 88% savings on licensing-related costs, as SFMC was sunset and the new customized Eloqua solution (with Advanced Email for Eloqua) was brought online. 3. Existing SFMC data, journeys and campaigns were successfully migrated and running 'as is’ in Eloqua using IM’s Advanced Email for Eloqua, including 1.6 million emails per month with up to 20 pieces of content each (dynamic content where each recipient can receive different news articles direct from the website).  4. Because of the low code and no code nature of the Instant Marketing solution, software complexity was reduced and Citeline no longer needed a dedicated developer. Marketers saved about half of their time and were able to manage the work with user-friendly functions such as “drag-and-drop.” Again, the convenience of having an Eloqua email customization at scale made possible by Instant Marketing and their Advanced Email for Eloqua helped with the speed and effectiveness of the solution. Because Sojourn already had an existing relationship with Instant Marketing, it knew precisely what business value IM could bring to the table for the benefit of Citeline.  Other Customer Use Cases for IM Sojourn and Instant Marketing have partnered to help other customers as well: A telecommunications customer of Sojourn is considering using Instant Marketing plug-ins to support omni-channel communication with their customers, including the use of SMS/text messaging with customers from Eloqua.  That same telecomm customer is considering using the Instant Messaging API to send out service communications based on billings and product data, without having to bring the data into Eloqua. Again, IM is supporting convenience and expanding customer capabilities within Eloqua. A healthcare customer of Sojourn is considering leveraging Instant Marketing’s SMS plug-in to increase communication and attendance at their live events. As these customer use cases show, our partnerships are ultimately about doing whatever it takes to help customers succeed. Learn more about how Sojourn Solutions and its vendor partnerships can help improve your Marketing Operations . Feel free to reach out  to us today.

By Chuck Leddy, B2B Brand Storyteller Sojourn partners with multiple martech vendors in order to expand our capacity to help our customers. We recently had a conversation with one of our partners, UK-based Instant Marketing, about when and why we partner.  Participants in this conversation included Sam Smith, Director of Instant Marketing, Carl Cooke, Customer Success Manager of Instant Marketing, and Charlotte Currie, Global Head of Customer Success at Sojourn Solutions. The following is an edited transcript of the discussion. What should people know about Instant Marketing? Smith:  We help our customers extend Eloqua out-of-the-box, Eloqua might cover half of a particular customer’s use cases. Of the remaining half, maybe 25% are use cases for which we have connectors for out of the box. Eloqua is great, but I wish it did more channels and ad targeting. The remaining 25% of use cases might call for custom solutions. An Eloqua user might have a requirement that's so unique that no one else has ever had it before. So we address two categories of requirements: (1) either the need for Eloqua extensions or (2) a unique need where we can build a customized Eloqua solution. Cooke:  We've seen numerous cases where Eloqua users come to us with an “impossible task” and are looking at Eloqua alternatives. The customer doesn't recognize that the “impossible” use case can actually be done within Eloqua. That's where we step in and help. How does Instant Marketing deliver value through partnering with Sojourn?  Smith:  We tend to work well with experts in the Eloqua space. Sojourn’s team is wonderful at both defining the vision for the project and for high-level, strategic, and hands-on implementation. But there's only so far that they can go because there's only so far that Eloqua can go “out-of-the-box.” So Sojourn might handle 75% of the client's implementation and then they’ll reach out to us when it comes to delivering new capabilities that may need custom development. Currie:  For us at Sojourn, the partnership is about having the shared goal of extending what our customers think is achievable within Eloqua. We're very much about understanding what the goals of our customers are, and then helping them achieve what they’re trying to achieve. Sam, Carl, and the Instant Marketing team work in exactly the same way. Our collaboration works because we’ve forged a partnership based upon going above and beyond for our customers. What’s the process of working with Sojourn on customer use cases? Smith: Our working relationship is founded on mutual respect and mutual competence. Sojourn is very good at what they do and we're quite good at what we do, which is the development of add-ons. It all comes down to the client making an ask to Sojourn, who will try to figure out if they can achieve the ask within Eloqua “as is.” If not, the next step would be requesting some kind of customization – and that’s where Instant Marketing excels. Cooke: The trust and transparency between us and Sojourn are key. We all communicate really well to understand and deliver on customer needs. Again, there's nobody passing the buck or avoiding accountability. We all own the challenges and take responsibility for developing the solutions for customers. Currie:  From Sojourn’s perspective, we know what we can do and we know what we cannot do, but we also know what we can do together, which is a more expansive approach to serving customer needs. Instant Marketing is an extension of our team and vice versa. We're not crossing over in terms of capabilities, and we know there are experts within both entities and in multiple subject areas who can come together and deliver significant and sometimes-unexpected business value for our customers.  What are the various use cases that Instant Marketing can address for customers? Smith:  A quick win would be adding new channels. So we let you orchestrate across more channels, including SMS, WhatsApp, push notifications, web push app, push ad targeting, Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, etc. Direct mail postcards. A quick win might be to take your investment and leverage it in more channels.  A more complex win is achieving a weird, unique, but necessary requirement. That might mean a custom integration, it might mean some kind of custom logic. It might be calling out to AI, or using AI to generate unique content for each individual. So the simple use cases are around adding campaign channels, and the more complex ones are around unique customizations. Can you offer a specific example where partnership with Sojourn helped a customer resolve a challenging use case?   Smith:  One customer, a specialized publisher, wanted to take their vast amount of content published each day and let their users provide topic preferences. These content preferences were so granular that each user gets their own unique content subset based on pre-determined keywords or categories. So these were highly-personalized emails, but it would not have been possible to send this personalized content without the client’s use of our Advanced Email for Eloqua.  The impact was simply that Eloqua became viable because the customer needed to find a way to make it happen, and fast. If they couldn’t do the customized emails inside of Eloqua, then they just didn’t have a good plan B. It would've meant building some staggeringly complex tool from the ground up or migrating to a completely different marketing automation platform. What that looks like to a C-suite executive is a succession of rapid and potentially-costly migrations to different marketing tools because you just can't make it work within Eloqua. That would have been a massive headache on so many levels, which we helped them avoid. Any other customer use cases you want to highlight? Smith:  One of the most sophisticated customer use cases we’ve addressed was a home service client that used SMS to dispatch third-party service providers. The service client’s customer would get an SMS message saying, hey, we're sending the service engineer to your house at a specific time. And the service provider would text their customers just after the appointment to see if the service technician had showed up. So this customer was using the SMS channel operationally to hold their army of 3rd-party contractors to account. If you have a second channel, for instance, you can double or increase by a third the impact on revenues, while you're only increasing costs by 3 to 5%. You're also fostering better relationships with your customers. You're getting seen more. You're diversifying your portfolio of communications methods.  Any final thoughts on partnering with Sojourn? Smith:  Sojourn is   highly-competent and very organized, and they know what they're talking about. Their consultants are excellent. It's a team effort, but people like Charlotte have worked to develop the customer relationship in order to make us feel like we’re a seamless part of the team when we come in. We really do go beyond simply referrals – we actually work closely together with Sojourn on behalf of customers so they can achieve their business goals. Our combined approach can achieve a level of success that the customer just wouldn't have expected otherwise. When you're vetting your consultancies, you can go to Sojourn and say, “what does ‘good’ look like to you? You’ll be pleasantly surprised at just how good good can actually be with a combined approach to achieving customer success. Note:  Our partnerships are ultimately about doing whatever it takes to help our clients succeed. Learn more about how Sojourn Solutions and its vendor partnerships can help optimize your Marketing Operations . Feel free to reach out  to us today.

In the world of B2B marketing, data is everything. But not just any data - clean, accurate, and well-managed data. As organizations lean on increasingly complex marketing technology stacks to drive revenue, the health of your marketing database can be the silent factor that determines the success or failure of your entire marketing strategy. If you’ve been wondering whether your marketing database could be holding your team back, now is the time to evaluate its health. Poor data quality leads to wasted resources, missed opportunities, and even damage to your brand’s reputation. In contrast, healthy marketing data ensures more personalized and effective campaigns, higher conversion rates, and stronger relationships with prospects and customers. Why Database Health is the Foundation of B2B Marketing Success Your marketing database is more than just a collection of names and emails - it’s the backbone of your entire demand generation strategy. Each data point feeds into critical marketing operations, from segmentation and audience targeting to reporting and automation. Here’s how a healthy database directly impacts key areas of B2B marketing: Targeting & Personalization: When your data is accurate, you can better segment your audience and deliver personalized content. Healthy data allows for more precise targeting, meaning your messaging hits the mark every time, resulting in better engagement and conversion rates. Email Deliverability: Poor data quality can wreak havoc on your email deliverability. Invalid email addresses, outdated contacts, or even simple errors like typos can cause your emails to bounce or be marked as spam. A clean, healthy database means your emails reach more inboxes, improving your deliverability score and the overall success of your email marketing campaigns. Compliance & Trust: With increasing data privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA, a poorly managed database can lead to serious compliance issues. By maintaining a healthy database, you’ll ensure that your organization meets all regulatory requirements while fostering trust with your audience. Operational Efficiency: A healthy database reduces the friction caused by errors and inconsistencies in data, which can slow down marketing operations. By prioritizing database health, your team will spend less time troubleshooting and more time focusing on strategic initiatives that drive growth. Guidelines for Managing Marketing Database Health To ensure your marketing database remains a strategic asset and not a liability, follow these proven guidelines for maintaining and improving its health: Regular Data Audits:  Schedule regular audits of your database to identify and clean outdated, incomplete, or duplicate records. This ensures that you’re working with up-to-date and accurate information, helping you avoid costly mistakes and ineffective campaigns. Standardize Data Entry:  Implement standardized data entry protocols to ensure consistency across your entire database. This could involve using uniform naming conventions, required fields for contact information, and automated tools that flag data entry errors in real-time. Invest in Data Enrichment:  Use third-party services to enrich your existing database with additional information, such as company size, industry, and job roles. This allows you to create more personalized and targeted marketing campaigns. The key is to fill in any gaps in your data while enhancing the overall value of your database. Monitor and Improve Email Deliverability:  Poor deliverability rates can signal issues within your database. Ensure email addresses are validated at regular intervals, remove hard bounces, and pay attention to soft bounces and unsubscribes to maintain a strong sender reputation. Implement Data Hygiene Tools:  Consider leveraging automated data hygiene tools that can continually clean and deduplicate your database. Tools like BriteVerify  can help you validate emails and reduce the risk of bounces, ensuring your campaigns reach the right people. Align Data with Business Processes:  Your marketing database should align with the broader business processes across sales, marketing, and customer service teams. Ensure that data is shared effectively across departments and that any insights are communicated clearly, helping to maintain consistency and drive alignment across all functions. Comply with Data Privacy Regulations:  Stay on top of global data privacy regulations, such as GDPR and CCPA, by maintaining clear records of consent and opt-ins for all your contacts. Make sure your database management includes processes for handling consent and responding to data requests, ensuring your organization remains compliant. Segmentation and Targeting:  Build and maintain accurate segments within your database for more personalized and relevant marketing. Use clean data to create specific groups based on demographics, behavioral insights, or firmographics, which can dramatically improve your engagement and conversion rates. By following these tried-and-tested guidelines, you can keep your marketing database in top shape and ensure that it consistently drives results. Database health isn’t just a one-time effort - it’s an ongoing process that requires dedication and the right tools to maintain. Assessing Your Database Health: Are You Ready So now we know why marketing database is important - and how to get on track to achieve it - but before you can fix any issues, it’s essential to assess the current state of your database. Is it outdated, incomplete, or inconsistent? Does it align with the marketing and business processes you’ve implemented? A comprehensive database health assessment will give you a clear picture of where you stand and what steps to take next. To get started, try our Database Health Quiz , a quick and easy way to uncover hidden issues in your database and get tailored recommendations for improvement. The quiz covers all the key areas of database health, from data accuracy to deliverability and business process alignment. Your results will help you prioritize the most critical improvements and set your team on a path to better performance. Take the quiz and see how your database measures up. Invest in Your Database, Invest in Your Success The best marketing technology and the most sophisticated strategies are only as effective as the data that powers them. Don’t let poor database health hold your B2B marketing organization back. By investing in a healthy, well-managed database, you can unlock new levels of efficiency, improve your campaign outcomes, and ensure long-term success for your business. Ready to take the next step? Start by assessing your database health today with our Database Health Quiz . It could be the most important step you take toward driving real results in your marketing efforts. That being said, if you've got questions, feel free to contact us to get a conversation started.

In today’s digital-first world, webinars are a powerful tool for marketers to engage audiences, generate leads, and establish thought leadership. But simply hosting a webinar isn't enough - effective webinars require seamless execution, audience engagement, and detailed insights to optimize performance. This is where Marketo’s Interactive Webinars, a feature of Adobe Marketo Engage, excels. Marketo offers an all-in-one solution for planning, executing, and analyzing webinars, helping businesses unlock the true potential of this format. If you are considering enhancing your virtual events, here’s why Marketo’s Interactive Webinars might just be the game-changer you need. Seamless Integration with Adobe Connect One of the standout features of Marketo’s Interactive Webinars is its integration with Adobe Connect , a robust platform that makes running virtual events smoother. This direct integration means you don’t have to manage multiple tools or switch between platforms to host a webinar. From within the Marketo interface, users can plan, promote, and execute webinars with ease. This seamless integration also reduces friction when preparing for an event, ensuring that everything, from registration to post-event follow-ups, flows naturally. Having an integrated system helps businesses save time and resources by centralizing their webinar efforts on one platform, making the whole process more efficient and reducing the risk of technical issues. Customizable Webinar Experiences Personalization is crucial in today’s marketing landscape, and Marketo’s Interactive Webinars allow marketers to create highly customizable events. Whether you want your event to reflect your brand’s aesthetic or tailor the experience based on the audience segment, Marketo provides customizable templates that allow you to design each aspect of the webinar. These templates give your webinars a professional look and feel while aligning with your brand guidelines. This level of customization not only enhances the user experience but also helps convey a more cohesive brand message to your audience. Real-Time Audience Engagement Engagement is one of the biggest challenges during webinars. It’s easy for attendees to become passive listeners rather than active participants, which can limit the effectiveness of your message. However, Marketo’s Interactive Webinars come packed with a suite of tools designed to maximize attendee engagement in real time. These features include: Live Q&A Sessions : Engage attendees by answering their questions during the webinar, creating a two-way dialogue. Polls and Surveys : Gather insights from your audience on the spot with live polls and surveys, which also help keep them involved. Interactive Chat : Foster interaction among attendees and between them and the presenters through a chat function that encourages real-time communication. These features ensure that your webinars aren’t just one-way presentations but interactive events where audience participation is encouraged and valued. Lead Generation and Qualification Webinars are not just for delivering content—they’re powerful lead generation tools. One of the greatest advantages of Marketo’s Interactive Webinars is the platform’s ability to track detailed engagement data from each attendee. Every interaction, from chat participation to poll responses, can be monitored and recorded, providing valuable insights into how engaged an attendee is with your content. Marketo’s platform automatically captures and scores leads based on their level of engagement during the event. This allows your marketing and sales teams to follow up more effectively with highly interested prospects, targeting them with personalized post-event content. With Marketo’s automation, you can easily set up workflows that send targeted emails based on attendee behavior, helping nurture leads more efficiently. Comprehensive Analytics and Reporting Post-webinar analysis is essential for understanding the success of your event and making improvements for future webinars. Marketo provides comprehensive analytics and reporting  that go beyond simple metrics like registration numbers or attendee lists. The platform tracks key performance indicators (KPIs) such as: Attendance and Drop-off Rates : See who stayed for the entire webinar and who left early, helping you assess the quality of your content or timing. Engagement Metrics : Track how actively participants engaged through questions, polls, and other interactions. Conversion Data : Monitor how many attendees converted into leads or customers, providing a clear ROI for your efforts. These analytics not only help you measure success but also offer actionable insights that can inform your future marketing strategy. The more data you collect, the better you can optimize your content and approach for future webinars. Streamlined Automation for Efficiency Managing a webinar, especially at scale, requires efficient processes. Marketo’s automation features handle many of the repetitive tasks that can bog down your team. From sending automated registration reminders to follow-up emails, Marketo helps automate key aspects of webinar management, so your team can focus on delivering great content rather than administrative work. By automating the workflow surrounding your webinars, you ensure that nothing falls through the cracks, and attendees are nurtured throughout the entire process—from registration to post-event engagement. This allows marketers to focus on strategy and content while Marketo handles the backend tasks that can take up valuable time. Scalable and Flexible Solution Whether you're hosting small niche webinars or large-scale global events, Marketo's Interactive Webinars can scale to meet your needs. The platform’s flexibility means you can run multiple webinars simultaneously, target different audience segments, and personalize content at scale. This scalability makes it an ideal solution for businesses of all sizes looking to use webinars as part of their larger demand generation strategies. Marketo’s Interactive Webinars provide an all-encompassing solution for businesses looking to create engaging, data-driven, and scalable virtual events. The combination of seamless integration with Adobe Connect, real-time audience engagement tools, and powerful lead generation and analytics capabilities makes it a standout platform in the world of digital marketing. By leveraging these tools, marketers can not only deliver impactful content but also gain valuable insights to refine their future strategies. If you’re ready to take your webinar game to the next level, Marketo’s Interactive Webinars offer the ideal platform to engage audiences, drive demand, and generate leads efficiently. For more information, visit Marketo's Interactive Webinars Overview . Or contact us to see how we can help get you started!