Senior Marketing Operations Consultant | Strategic Go-To-Market Expert | Entrepreneurial Leader | Supporting Teams & Driving Growth | MD @ Ivenium Marketing
Thinking about switching your marketing automation platform? Stop. Read this first. Lately, I’ve noticed a trend...more and more clients are migrating from one platform to another. Eloqua to Marketo. Marketo to HubSpot. Eloqua to SFMC. And the list goes on. Often, it’s driven by dissatisfaction - not just with the platform, but with the ROI. Teams invest heavily in these tools, but the results don’t match the promises. Sometimes, the platform feels clunky or outdated. Other times, a shiny new tool seems like the magic fix. But here’s the uncomfortable truth = 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦. Switching is tempting, but unless you address underlying issues—misaligned processes, poor data quality, or low team adoption—you’re just trading one frustration for another. Want a smoother migration or to maximise your investment? Start with these dos and don’ts: ✅ 𝐃𝐨: >>𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆. A migration is the perfect opportunity to clean your database, audit your campaigns, and rethink what “good” looks like. >>𝑫𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈. Your workflows, processes, and campaign structures should be crystal clear before you even think about moving. >>𝑰𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈. A new platform only works if your team knows how to use it. Don’t assume adoption will happen magically. ❌ 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭: >>𝑹𝒖𝒔𝒉 𝒊𝒕. Migrations take time. A poorly planned switch can cause more chaos than the old platform ever did. >>𝑰𝒈𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔. A fancy new tool won’t fix broken campaign workflows or poor reporting structures. >>𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒂. Your data’s health is just as important as the platform itself. Garbage in, garbage out. Switching platforms can make sense—but only if you approach it strategically. Have you been through a migration? What’s one lesson you wish you’d known beforehand? ============ 𝐀 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞: I’m Claire Robinson, and at Ivenium Marketing, we help marketing ops teams improve results by streamlining processes, optimising tools like Eloqua and Marketo, and solving the root issues holding you back. 🔔 Follow me for insights on leadership, marketing operations, and more. #MarketingAutomation #PlatformMigration #MarketingOps #Eloqua #Marketo #Pardot #Hubspot #SFMC
Om ☁︎
2w
Two Cents of what i've seen. Often decisions about platforms made by the decisions makers who joins business early. The vision doesn’t align after the key decision-makers leave the company. Executives sometimes choose platforms they are familiar with or have used before. They will influence stakeholders to invest in those tools even if they're expensive. Either case once the executive exits. The story ends and the platform often faces inconsistent management,. As it will see many stakeholders and his team joins the business. As these leaders have goals now and they always think forward . Looking into system is only done by Ops team. Even if they want to fix the campaign and targets will nor give them enough time to fix. Meanwhile they will run ops as per the current need and demand. This lack of alignment and clarity can lead to missed ROI and frustration to sponsors at top. As discussed, selecting or migrating to the right tool should be as per requirements. Also, the executives need to ensure the vision is carried forward consistently—can deliver far better results and long-term success. Otherwise #Migrations
Ian Hunt
2w
I 100% agree with the sentiment expressed here. Lost count of the number of clients and acquaintances I’m aware of who have done this or are thinking of doing it. Those that have are still running into the same issues they had before because, to put it bluntly they find that a different badge on their tools makes no difference if their data and processes are rubbish. When I was starting out in the CRM world there was an acronym that seems to have been forgotten - GIGO. Garbage in = garbage out. It’s still true whether that’s the data, the process or the message. Don’t just blame the marketing app because you haven’t bothered to prepare the data, learn the tool, or focus on the target. Review everything. Then you might be in a position to make real progress at potentially a lot less cost.
Matt Fiel
2w
"You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone." Having been through multiple marketing automation migrations, I’ve learned that many decisions are driven by (1) gut feelings or (2) cost savings — often at the expense of functionality. The result? Processes that once worked may become frustrating or require complete re-engineering. One critical lesson: make sure you map existing marketing processes against the new tool's capabilities before making the leap. A detailed evaluation could save you from unnecessary frustration and unexpected limitations. OH. And always make sure DKIM and SPF are configured 😅
It's usually pricing driven - vendors offer lots of discounts to switch, even if there is no actual real practical reason...
Agree, but speaking from my own experience, there are definitely times where (all other elements equal) the platform is indeed the problem.
Tim Bohn
2w
Couldn't agree more Claire. And often I see companies moving from a more capable platform to a less capable platform because the UI is slightly nicer or the vendor sales team have done a number on the main stakeholder.
100% agreed, though I gotta say - sure does make things easier for certain roles when your MAP and your CRM are within the same UI.
Claire, amazing insight. It's not about what platform, when you understand what's the role of marketing automation in an organization's overall strategy and how it helps you drive your vision, teams don't even consider such migrations. They know what they want and stick to it.
Senior Marketing Operations Consultant | Strategic Go-To-Market Expert | Entrepreneurial Leader | Supporting Teams & Driving Growth | MD @ Ivenium Marketing
2wIn a recent conversation with various MOps leaders, when asked "what's one piece of advice you wish you'd known when starting your MOps career?" someone replied with: "don't get tied to a platform, get tied to building solutions."