Tips to Reduce Tech Bloat in your MarTech Stack

Tech bloat is a common problem in the world of marketing operations. There’s an estimated 13k tools available in the MarTech  landscape (via a quick google search.) As new tools and platforms emerge, it's easy to fall into the trap of adding new technology to your martech stack without considering its actual value. This can lead to a bloated tech stack, which can be difficult to manage, costly, and poses added security risks to your customer data. 

Here are some steps you can take to help reduce tech bloat in your martech stack:

Conduct a MarTech Audit

The first step in reducing tech bloat is to conduct a martech audit. This involves reviewing your entire martech stack to identify which tools and platforms are actually being used and which are redundant. It helps to ask all members of your department and include any free trials. Once you have a clear picture of your stack, you can begin to eliminate any tools that are not providing value or posing a security vulnerability for your customer data. 

TIP: Create a sheet outlining all the tech you’ve identified. Include these fields:

• Cost
• Renewal Date
• Budget Owner
• Software Admin 
• Return on Investment (ROI) statement 
• [What would you add? Leave below in the comments.]

Consolidate Tools Where Possible

Look for opportunities to consolidate where possible. For example, if you have multiple tools for email marketing, consider sending them all through a single platform that can handle all of your email needs (prospects, customers, etc.). Talk with your GTM counterparts and make sure you aren’t duplicating efforts from a technical standpoint. This also helps continuity with your brand. Did your creative team help design email templates for the “Shadow-CRM” someone downloaded? Likely not. 

Consolidating tools is especially important if you’ve just acquired a new company. You should absolutely do the audit exercise above if you’ve recently acquired a new company and inherited their software. Guaranteed you’ll need to consolidate some tools. You could be paying for 4 webinar platforms and not even know it! Again, the more tools you have, the more risk there is with securing your customer’s data. 

TIP: Consolidation can help simplify your stack and reduce the number of tools you need to manage. Less tools = Less resources (people) to manage the tools. 

Prioritize Integration

When deciding which tools can be consolidated, prioritize tools that integrate with your existing source systems (Marketo, Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.). Integration is essential for ensuring that data flows smoothly between different tools without manual effort. A manual process is always more prone to error than an automated/integrated process. 

Tools that aren’t integrated create additional complexity. Complexity = $$. 

Focus on ROI

When evaluating the value of a particular tool, focus on its return on investment (ROI). Consider factors such as cost, functionality, and potential impact on your campaigns. Keep the tools that provide tangible value and/or a positive ROI. Consider setup costs and support fees. Who can help if it breaks? Do you need additional internal IT support, or an external technical resource? Is that in the budget? So many things to consider when evaluating the ROI of software. 

Keep in mind, installing more software without a good plan will create additional problems. Time is money. Any software investment should save time and scale the processes and programs that generate revenue. 

TIP: Avoid adding tools simply because they are trendy. Get a free trial and play with them in your spare time before deciding if they are worth integrating into your stack. 

Enable Your Team

Finally, ensure that your team is properly trained on the tools in your martech stack. Lack of training can lead to underutilization of tools (waste of money), which can create the illusion of a need for additional technology to fill the gaps. Invest in training to ensure that your team is fully equipped to leverage the tools in your stack effectively. 

TIP: Start quarterly/bi-annual training sessions for all members of your team that use the software. This is great for onboarding new hires. Spread the knowledge!

In conclusion, reducing tech bloat is critical for ensuring that your martech stack is efficient, cost-effective, and easy to manage. By following the steps above, you can reduce tech bloat and streamline your martech operations for optimal results. 

Thanks for reading! Leave a comment or share some of your tips below!