Marketers keep replacing major martech apps, integration #1 factor for replacements

My pals at MarTech.org lately produced their hottest Martech Replacement Survey 2022, wherever entrepreneurs shared which applications they’ve replaced in excess of the earlier 18 months, what their most important inspiration was in carrying out so, and what ended up their most vital components in selecting the substitution alternative.

Marketing and advertising automation (24%), CRM (23%), Web optimization (23%), e-mail promoting (22%), and do the job/undertaking management (19%) applications have been the most often changed.

As I highlighted in blue in the chart over, the #1 most usually cited variable in picking out their substitution solution was integration capabilities/open up API — selected by 56% respondents, up 13% points from the very same survey in 2021.

It is a top rated 5 concept of this decade in martech: platforms, networks & marketplaces.

Of course, this isn’t to say that the other components — charge, aid, protection, and so forth. — weren’t significant too. But the component that most marketers agreed on was integration. If it will not combine with the relaxation of the tech stack, almost everything else is moot. It’s the tree that falls in the forest devoid of everyone around to hear it.

The second most common component was details centralization/information abilities (picked out by 50% of respondents), which is intently tied to integration. Following all, info is the foundational layer of integrations.

Tied in second also with 50% was “ability to evaluate ROI” — which is heading to be on the top of everyone’s minds in our tighter overall economy. But to evaluate ROI, you want the details. And to get the details, you need integrations. These three things are sure collectively by atomic forces.

But what inspired entrepreneurs to seek out a alternative alternative in the initially put?

When looking to switch a industrial app (the survey handles substitution of homegrown apps separately), the #1 determination was better capabilities (53%). Of course, this will make perception. Entrepreneurs search to martech to give them the capabilities essential to accomplish in constantly shifting and evolving marketplaces. What you can do matters.

Nevertheless, I would have predicted the #2 determination to be value — looking for an alternative remedy to cut down expenditures. That was the survey result in 2021.

But in 2022, much better/much easier integration was the second most prevalent drive (24%, up 5% points from 2021) to seek out a substitution application. Fundamentally, a desire for superior integration activated 1 out of every single 4 martech app substitute initiatives.

Which is quite remarkable.

I have stated this a lot of situations in advance of to martech product or service groups: the marketplace is speaking to you with a terrific booming voice in the sky, “Treat integration as a to start with-course function!”

Progressively, the martech business — and the SaaS universe additional broadly — have taken this to coronary heart. A new research report from Pandium on the Point out of Integrations and APIs at 400 SaaS Firms exhibits that 86% of the Top rated 100 SaaS businesses in the entire world now have a general public integration market. (73% of them have an in-app marketplace.)

That is amazing and a strong testament to the significance of application ecosystems for key SaaS organizations.

But what is even additional telling is that 31% of seed-stage SaaS startups now characteristic a public integration market as well. Almost 1 out 3 SaaS startups — which are particularly strapped for time and assets, compelled to make incredibly challenging choices about what to prioritize — have picked out to prioritize developing both integrations and a market to make it uncomplicated for customers to find and use them.

It is heartening to see martech potential buyers and sellers agree: integration is essential.

We continue to have additional to go on this journey of martech platforms and ecosystems. But as an market, at least’s we’re all marching in the similar way with a substantially additional seamlessly and powerfully built-in future on the horizon ahead.