PeerSpot user
Marketing at Kenes Group
Vendor
Allows us to build marketing flows that send automated emails based on user actions.

What is most valuable?

  • Can segment the database in a number of ways. We can target leads based on where they came from, what they did in the emails, and what they did on the website.
  • Automation ability: Allows us to build marketing flows that send automated emails based on user actions.
  • Lead scoring: Helps us find the most relevant leads based on source and behavior.

How has it helped my organization?

We have a large database that targets many different types of users for many different types of events. Marketo helps us easily segment and target the appropriate users for the relevant events. Automation also helps us to instantly send relevant offers to registered participants.

What needs improvement?

  • Marketo is still very slow. Despite promises over the years to improve this, we are still waiting for a reality when it takes a few seconds to load large lists of data.
  • The landing page building is still a very non-intuitive and a non-user friendly process. Marketo would be wise to adopt an easier approach, similar to what unbounce offers.
  • More proactive support from account managers would be nice, especially in problem-solving.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for three years.

Buyer's Guide
Marketo
May 2024
Learn what your peers think about Marketo. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2024.
771,212 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

There were no issues with deployment.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

There were no issues with stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

There were no issues with scalability.

How are customer service and support?

Customer Service:

I would give customer service a rating of three out of 10.

Technical Support:

I would give technical support a rating eight out of 10.

How was the initial setup?

I was not involved in the initial setup.

What was our ROI?

We have found it very challenging to measure our ROI through Marketo.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Real User
Smart Campaigns and other features form the backbone of our digital marketing operations
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of this solution is Smart Campaigns."
  • "Marketo should give more power to the users for data manipulation."

What is our primary use case?

With Marketo as the core strength, I have led numerous Marketing Automation projects from end to end. I have analyzed business requirements for MAP implementation, configured database setup, worked on SSL implementation, handled system integration, coded Email and Landing Page Templates, configured analytics setup, and led more than five hundred campaign projects.

How has it helped my organization?

Marketo is the backbone for our company's Digital Marketing operations.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this solution is Smart Campaigns. It is very easy to use and very powerful too.

What needs improvement?

Marketo should give more power to the users for data manipulation. Marketo sees data in terms of Leads and Campaigns, which is fine, but there are other perspectives of data too that can and should actually be utilized. I compare this to Adobe Campaign which allows the manipulation of data from different angles.

For how long have I used the solution?

My organization uses Marketo since around 2013 - 2019, 6 years in total. I myself contributed since 2016, so that's around 3.5 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Very stable and solid.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Very scalable and easy to use.

How are customer service and technical support?

They are very helpful and supportive, but at times I found some communication troubles.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Marketo
May 2024
Learn what your peers think about Marketo. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2024.
771,212 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Head of Digital Marketing Operations at a marketing services firm with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Stable and good for sending out emails
Pros and Cons
  • "The main feature of Marketo is sending out emails, so that would be the most valuable feature."
  • "It could be more scalable."

What is our primary use case?

We use it in our company, which is a market research company. In terms of the version, I don't think there are multiple versions, so it's the latest one that I have.

What is most valuable?

The main feature of Marketo is sending out emails, so that would be the most valuable feature.

What needs improvement?

It could be more scalable.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

So far, it looks stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It could be more scalable. Currently, 20 people are using it in my company. We are definitely going to expand its usage in the future.

How are customer service and support?

Their technical support is all right.

How was the initial setup?

I was not a part of it, but from what I've heard, it was complex.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It is expensive. We have a yearly license.

What other advice do I have?

I would advise others to ask for expert services from an agency. I would rate Marketo an eight out of 10.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Marketing Campaign Manager with 51-200 employees
Real User
The ability to build and automate complex scenarios is valuable.

What is most valuable?

Marketo makes it easy to stay in contact with our base of customers, prospective customers, and partners. The ability to quickly build and automate complex scenarios, create dynamic lists, and analyze campaign results is invaluable.

What needs improvement?

With the increasing sophistication of anti-phishing and filtering software, we have seen a number of messages that return link clicks – even though links were not actually clicked.  A simple indicator of this, is when Marketo analytics show that every individual at a particular company has clicked on a link (usually the same one) in an email.  These “phantom clicks” can make it difficult to estimate the effectiveness of a particular email or piece of content.

This issue has been discussed extensively in the Marketo community, and the larger ESP community as well.  While there are several temporary works arounds, I would like to see a more proactive attempt at a long-term solution.  I do recognize that this problem is not limited to Marketo, and it certainly has not been a deal-breaker for our continued use of the platform.

For how long have I used the solution?

Three years

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

I joined the organization after deployment, but am told it was a relatively smooth process. As with any automation solution, the real hurdle isn't in the deployment, it's in optimizing processes to take advantage of the product's unique capabilities.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Marketo is a solid automation platform with fantastic stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the solution is virtually unmatched. We've expanded our operations (and database) greatly over the past few years without a hitch.

How is customer service and technical support?

Customer service is prompt, friendly, and generally helpful.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Pricing depends on the size of your database and feature set.  Our experience with the renewal process has been frustrating.  Marketo bakes a substantial price increase into each contract which has required renegotiation every year.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user264924 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user264924Marketing Campaign Manager with 51-200 employees
Real User

There are certainly more budget-friendly platforms out there, but the pricing is within the range of what I would expect for an enterprise solution. The renewal process has proven challenging. We've had a new rep every year, and Marketo generally requests a substantial price increase.

See all 2 comments
PeerSpot user
Marketing Campaign Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Enables the use of templated landing pages and emails to make it easy to create messages and landing pages. The available analytics are sub-par.

How has it helped my organization?

Great ease of use creation for campaigns. Marketo enables the use of templated landing pages and emails to make it easy to create messages and landing pages.

What needs improvement?

The available analytics are sub-par.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

No.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

No.

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

This is where Marketo falls short. Their customer service is awful.

Technical Support:

OK>

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Yes. Switched with a new company.

How was the initial setup?

Straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

In-house and vendor.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Yes.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user670116 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user670116Growth Strategies and Demand Generation Consultant at a marketing services firm with self employed
Vendor

I have used Marketo, Pardot, Acton and Infusionsoft in the last year. None of them are "easy" to use. I have not used clickfunnels yet but looking at it as I hear itvis much easier to build landing pages on.

See all 2 comments
PeerSpot user
Head of Marketing at a tech vendor with 51-200 employees
Vendor
I like the email drip campaigns. It could be easier to set up and manage.

What is most valuable?

Email drip campaigns

How has it helped my organization?

Automated customer outreach from sign up to upgrade

What needs improvement?

Easier to create/modify graphic driven templates

Need automatic 404 reporting for links included in content

For how long have I used the solution?

5 years

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

Takes time to setup and manage

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

None

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

None

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

8 out of 10

Technical Support:

8 out of 10

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Manual solution with Constant Contact - easier to manage multiple campaigns in Marketo

How was the initial setup?

Architecture for the brand and organizing landing page domains/URLs took time

What about the implementation team?

In-house

What was our ROI?

Saves .5 man/year

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Varies

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Hubspot

Pardot

What other advice do I have?

Hire a Marketo certified consultant prior to install and launch.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user4029 - PeerSpot reviewer
Marketing at a tech company with 10,001+ employees
Vendor
Advanced capabilities for closed-loop lead management, but needs a better UI and integration with marketing resource management

Valuable Features:

- Relative ease of use - Advanced capabilities for closed-loop lead management - SFDC sync

Room for Improvement:

- Can be more than what you really need - Wish it had a better user interface - Needs integration with marketing resource management
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user4401 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user4401Developer at a transportation company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Vendor

Do you know if Marketo support mobile devices? Thank you.

PeerSpot user
Growth Strategies and Demand Generation Consultant at a marketing services firm with self employed
Vendor
I like the integration with Salesforce. I would like to see attribution reporting.

What is most valuable?

I like the integration with Salesforce.

How has it helped my organization?

We have a better alignment of sales and marketing. It allows me to do things in Salesforce without an admin.

What needs improvement?

  • Speed to sync if you have lots of leads
  • Attribution reporting

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

In terms of stability, it takes longer to sync with Salesforce than it should at times.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In terms of scalability, the more leads you have, the longer it takes to sync with Salesforce.

How are customer service and technical support?

I would give technical support a rating of 5/10.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have used Act-On, HubSpot, and Infusionsoft. Many clients switch due to cost.

How was the initial setup?

To make the initial setup better, brush up on best practices and come up with a naming convention that starts with the year, month, and date in order to keep things consistent.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Pardot, HubSpot, and Act-On.

What other advice do I have?

Map out your processes and customer journey before you start building.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user