With incorrect implementation, can be difficult to use
Updated August 23, 2019

With incorrect implementation, can be difficult to use

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 5 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

Global Enterprise

Overall Satisfaction with Marketo

We use Marketo across our global marketing teams. We are currently using it for customer emails and webinar registrations but are working to set up drip-nurture campaigns to help drive qualified leads to sales.

Pros

  • It's very easy to organize all of your assets into folders, programs, and campaigns.

Cons

  • Implementation is an ongoing struggle for us and our support package no longer provides consultation hours.
  • Integration of Skype for Business does not exist.
  • Having to review the community for help can be a pain as not all the questions get answered there.
  • Cross-Sell
  • Lead Management
  • Prospecting / New Business
We use Marketo to generate interest and registrations in our upcoming webinars and events. We also use the Smart Campaign feature to create nurture streams to target our prospects and cross-sell to our existing customers.
We switched to Marketo because HubSpot was unable to accommodate our needs as a global organization. However, for the USA specifically, I believe that HubSpot was more user-friendly and had better customer service.
If implemented correctly, Marketo is great for lead nurture programs to qualify leads for your sales teams. However, if you drag out implementation or switch "Admins" midway through, it can get to be a huge mess very quickly.

Adobe Marketo Engage Feature Ratings

WYSIWYG email editor
8
Dynamic content
Not Rated
Ability to test dynamic content
Not Rated
Landing pages
8
A/B testing
10
Mobile optimization
8
Email deliverability reporting
9
List management
7
Triggered drip sequences
8
Lead nurturing automation
8
Lead scoring and grading
Not Rated
Data quality management
Not Rated
Automated sales alerts and tasks
Not Rated
Calendaring
5
Event/webinar marketing
7
Social sharing and campaigns
7
Social profile integration
Not Rated
Dashboards
7
Standard reports
6
Custom reports
6
API
Not Rated
Role-based workflow & approvals
Not Rated
Customizability
Not Rated
Integration with Salesforce.com
Not Rated
Integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM
Not Rated
Integration with SugarCRM
Not Rated

Learnings & Advice

I can't recall anything that really sticks out as a success. Our overall "use" of the platform has been a whole lot of confusion and frustration. The most important lesson I have learned is that if you decide to purchase Marketo, you should make sure you have a solid implementation plan in place beforehand. It might also be a good idea to pay for an external consultant because in my experience, Marketo does not have a customer success team that's available to make sure you understand and are using the platform effectively. I've never felt that Marketo cared about our success - they simply care about getting paid.
I know that Marketo has a lot of great features but unfortunately we aren't set up to use any of them in advanced, unusual, or creative ways.
Make sure you have the support of an external agency to ensure you have your Marketo instance set up in the best possible way and so you have someone with expert-level knowledge of the platform to help you learn and understand how it works. Additionally, make sure you plan to set it up and use it immediately. Our company set up the instance and didn't start using it for a few months - at that point, whatever "training" we received from Marketo was long since forgotten.
The Marketo community has been the only way I've been able to solve issues I run into with the platform. However, having to search through a bunch of posts hoping that someone else faced the exact same problem as you is a real time-suck.
My biggest recommendation, as I've already stated a few times in this review, is to make sure you have someone (an agency, an in-house expert, etc) who can ensure your implementation is effective and you understand how the platform works. If you fail to set the platform up swiftly and effectively, it's extremely hard to get any support from Marketo after that and you'll find yourself in a 3-year slump with nothing to show for it (from my own personal experience).

Marketo Support

I'm frequently directed back to the "Community" for answers to my questions and so far, most of my questions that others have also asked have been unanswered. This is not an efficient system when you need quick help and results. Additionally, when I try to get in contact with my account manager, I find that he consistently tries to sell me more "add-ons" to solve the issues - I don't want to pay even MORE money for something I'm already paying a lot for and am not able to use effectively!
ProsCons
None
Slow Resolution
Poor followup
Less knowledgeable
Problems left unsolved
Escalation required
Difficult to get immediate help
Need to explain problems multiple times
Support doesn't seem to care
Sadly, I have never experienced exceptional support from Marketo.

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