Right Integrations: How do I connect my tools and data?

• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Facebook

Key levers:

• MAP, CRM, SEP, ERP, CMS, CDP
• Martech optimization, API
• Collaboration tools

Delivering a Unified Buyer Experience requires alignment not just between silos, but also between the tools that each team uses. Each department has valuable business information that can contribute to building a comprehensive picture of each account’s needs and identifying what the next best action is to help them on their buyer journey. Anyone familiar with Scott Brinker’s annual Marketing Technology Landscape map will know that there are nearly 10,000 tools available to sales and marketing professionals, but we recommend focusing on six core areas: MAP, CRM, SEP, ERP, CMS and CDP.

Start by understanding what these tools are, and what roles they play – and then conduct an audit. Ask yourself: Are there any crossovers? Are any redundant? Do any contribute to the performance of more than one silo? Are any already integrated and are there any that should be? In the absence of full integrations, is data shared between tools and silos, and if so, how? The goal is to optimize your toolset, and most importantly identify all those that would benefit from integration, either native or via API in order to provide all relevant stakeholders with a full picture in the form of real time data.

Finally, consider collaboration tools as another approach to facilitating the sales and marketing alignment crucial to deliver UBX. A Sales Engagement Platform (SEP) is the natural ‘connector’ between these silos, as both work out of it, delivering against common goals by using the same data, messaging and assets. Messaging platforms and training resources can also help, working and operating as an extension of both teams.

1. Crawl

To address the ‘old chestnut’ of sales and marketing alignment, the minimum requirement for a successful UBX campaign is that sales and marketing have access to the same data, even if there isn’t a real time integration between your CRM and MAP.

2. Walk

Good data alignment is achieved through the integration of your key core systems, typically CRM, MAP and SEP. This ensures live access to the latest data for all the different parties involved in delivering UBX: marketing, SDR and sales.

3. Run

Best practice data alignment today involves a CDP (Customer Data Platform) or data lake (a central depository of all data) integrated with all key systems with a two-way live feed. This ensures maximum availability of information between siloes and supports the most detailed reporting.