It’s generally understood that transformation is a process – messy, complicated, at times tedious, nothing likely to happen overnight or in a vacuum. What we often forget, however, is the shape it can take; how it can bend to perception and expectation in such a way as to seem invisible, nonexistent. The writer Suzy Ross puts it this way: “Transformation is an ongoing process that tends to appear ordinary, when, in fact, something extraordinary is taking place.” It could be right in front of us, essentially, and we’d never know it, that’s just how good it is at hiding in plain sight.
Take, for example, the transformation we’ve seen in a technology like marketing automation – once a luxury only established enterprises could afford, now the bedrock of the modern B2B marketing tech stack. We always knew it was a solution capable of collecting untold amounts of engagement data. What we didn’t realize until recently – what we failed to notice – was the bold new way that data could be harnessed; a quiet revolution made possible by machine learning that would allow marketing automation, a stalwart engagement engine, to enable highly personalized, one-to-one interactions at scale at every stage of the customer lifecycle. Transformation that had lived for years beneath the surface, only just bursting out.
Here at Act-On, we’re dedicated students and scholars of transformation. It’s why we’re continuing to innovate within our product to help brands better engage with buyers and deliver individualized customer experiences. It’s also why we’re proud to be named the only Visionary vendor in the 2017 Gartner Magic Quadrant for CRM Lead Management.
This evaluation was based on Act-On’s completeness of vision and ability to execute. At the core of this vision: a commitment to helping marketers do the best work of their careers by delivering innovation that empowers them to connect and engage with customers in more meaningful ways, for longer-lasting relationships. We’ve a clear picture of where business is headed and how marketing technology’s evolving, and we’re building towards this future and rethinking marketing’s role through Adaptive Journeys™ – leveraging machine learning to simplify the customer journey and orchestrate 1:1 interactions at every stage of the purchasing process.
But there’s more to this vision than just the future. We’re building to support marketers in the present, who are turning to marketing automation in record numbers and relying on marketing automation to drive pipeline and revenue growth.
We believe our Visionary standing is backed by a unique, value-based pricing model; a standalone suite of lead management capabilities; robust integration options; and unrivaled customer support – everything that the do-it-all marketer requires to be successful. We’re heeding a call that marketers have sounded – per a study we recently commissioned with EConsultancy on the State of B2B Marketing Automation, 85 percent of marketers rate their marketing automation systems as effective, and 58 percent said they saw a return on investment in six months or less – and it’s clear marketers are seeing the benefit; more than 4,800 businesses worldwide now rely on Act-On to power their brand, demand, and customer marketing programs.
Transformation happens all the time, often while hiding in plain sight. We’ve seen firsthand just how it can work on a technology, how it can all but reshape a field (marketing), and we’re determined to stay ahead of it by staying with it – transforming ourselves as the technology and landscape demands. We’re proud to have this mission validated by our Visionary position, and proud to be helping marketers succeed in today’s fast-changing digital landscape.
Find out for yourself what transformation can do for you.
Gartner Magic Quadrant for CRM Lead Management, Jason Daigler, Ilona Hansen, 22 August 2017.
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