Marketers have plenty of challenges they face in working with marketing technology, including securing sufficient resources, working across departmental boundarings, explaining martech to senior executives, and keeping up with a fast-evolving landscape. But as a report [download page] from MarTech and chiefmartec.com makes clear, there are also associated rewards.
The study is based on a Q1 survey of 426 marketers, roughly two-thirds of whom are based in the US. The respondents were asked to identify themselves as one of 4 archetypes, the most popular of which were Marketer (53% share) and Maestro (35% share). As the report defines them, a Marketer, “might use martech in their work, but they primarily create and optimize campaigns and programs. A Maestro architects and administers the systems and processes that the marketing organization runs, including in a marketing operations capacity.”
Both Marketers and Maestros list the same order of challenges, led by securing sufficient resources – time, talent, and money – for work to be done. This – and the next-most cited challenge of working across department boundaries – appear to be more acutely felt by Maestros than Marketers. On the other hand, Marketers tend to find it harder to prove a positive impact on the business from martech and to solve technical issues with martech software.
Perhaps as a result of their seemingly more direct involvement with martech tools, Maestros are generally more likely than their Marketer counterparts to report a range of job aspects to be rewarding. Among both groups, more than 6 in 10 said that demonstrating/proving a positive impact on the business from martech is what they find most rewarding. However, whereas a majority of Maestros say they find it rewarding to support other people in marketing who need to use martech (60%), solve technical issues with martech software (57%) and keep up with changes in marketing and martech (51%), fewer than half of Marketer respondents could say the same.
The least rewarding part of the job for both groups is securing sufficient resources (also their biggest challenge).
Marketer and Maestro Job Responsibilities
Not surprisingly, Marketers and Maestros diverge a little in their top responsibilities. Among Marketer respondents, the most widespread job responsibility (of those listed), is to design, run, and optimize/test marketing campaigns, as cited by 7 in 10. Next up, more than 6 in 10 research and recommend martech products (63%) and design and manage internal workflows and processes (62%). The only other responsibilities shared by a majority of self-identified Marketer archetypes are training and supporting marketing staff on using martech products (53%) and operating martech products as an administrator (51%).
For Maestros, their primary tasks revolve around martech tools. The most common responsibility is to research and recommend new martech products, with 78% reporting doing so. The next-most cited responsibility is the important task of integrating martech products with each other, something 73% of Maestros are tasked with handling. More than 7 in 10 likewise operate martech products as an administrator (73%), design and manage internal workflows and processes (72%) and train and support marketing staff on using martech products (72%).
Some 45% of Maestros approve or veto technology purchases, compared to 30% of Marketers.
Other Findings:
- Spreadsheets are the most used tool by Marketers (80%) and Maestros (71%).
- Marketing automation and campaign management (58%) are the next-most used tools by Marketers, whereas project management (60%) tools place second for Maestros.
- More than 7 in 10 (71% of) Marketers never code, compared to 56% of Maestros.
For more, download the study here.
About the Data: Some 38% of respondents describe the kind of marketing they are supporting in their organization as B2B marketing, compared to 26% for B2C marketing and 36% for both B2B & B2C marketing.
