Why MarTech success depends on utilisation, not size

In the race to stay ahead of changing customer expectations, brands have been on an ongoing buying spree and marTech stacks keep growing. New tools for automation, data integration, personalisation, content creation and analytics are added every year.  

Yet despite this, the findings of the 2025 Digital, Marketing & eComm in Focus report suggest only 19% of brands report strong or semi-strong Martech utilisation. For brands under $100 million in revenue, that figure drops to a sobering 15%. 

At the same time, nearly half of marketing leaders (49%) say they are under increasing pressure to demonstrate ROI from their marTech spend. Budgets are being scrutinised, finance teams are asking tougher questions, and leadership teams want proof that these platforms are delivering value. The message is clear: stack size does not equal stack success. 

The utilisation gap 

With the proliferation of marketing technology, many brands have responded by building increasingly complex stacks that combine enterprise platforms, niche tools, and custom integrations. 

But more tools don’t automatically create better outcomes. In fact, complexity can often create barriers to deriving value from your investment as it can lead to; 

• Lower adoption rates – Teams struggle to learn and use multiple platforms, especially when training in inconsistent and team member churn occurs.  

• Poor integration and the burden of maintaining it - When tools don’t talk to each other, they create friction in workflows and gaps in reporting. On the flip side, even when brands have successfully integrated their marTech stack, the sprawl of connections can become a challenge in itself — requiring constant maintenance to keep integrations up to date and to ensure upstream changes don’t create downstream disruptions. 

These factors create a widening gap between the potential of a stack and the value actually realised.  

Best-of-Breed Beats All-in-One 

One of the most compelling findings from the 2025 report is the strong correlation between best-of-breed stack adoption and higher utilisation. Brands that lean towards best-of-breed solutions, reinforcing composability as a key priority for stack architecture, see a higher level of utilisation.  

This approach contrasts sharply with the “one-size-fits-all” mentality. While all-in-one platforms promise simplicity, they often sacrifice depth, flexibility, and innovation. Best-of-breed stacks, by contrast, allow marketers to tailor their technology to their unique needs, workflows, and customer journeys. 

With clear evidence that composability drives utilisation, it’s vital that marketing and CRM leaders have a stronger seat at the table when it comes to platform decisions. Too often, research shows IT leaders default to the “known” enterprise solutions - choices shaped by historical brand reputation rather than the specific needs of the business. 

The ROI Reckoning 

With 49% of marketing leaders under pressure to prove ROI, the stakes have never been higher. Boards and CFOs are scrutinising marTech budgets, demanding evidence of impact. Vanity metrics and vague promises no longer suffice. 

To meet this challenge, marketers must shift from acquisition to activation. That means: 

• Auditing the stack: Identifying which tools are used, underused, or unused. Eliminate redundancies and streamlining the stack for optimal utilisation 

• Driving adoption: Success isn’t just about buying the right tools - it’s about embedding them. That means investing in training, onboarding, and cross-department alignment so the whole organisation understands and embraces the platform. Too often SMEs hold all the knowledge, which limits impact. When broader teams know what’s possible, they’re more likely to leverage marTech to enable initiatives from personalisation to experience delivery - and the tools become truly embedded. 

• Integrating systems: Connecting data sources and workflows to create a unified marketing engine but doing so in the way which streamlines the ability to maintain the stack, vs creates complexity in how much needs to be maintained.  

• Measuring impact: MarTech should be measured against well-defined KPIs that link directly to business outcomes. These outcomes need to be tracked and shared with stakeholders on a regular basis - so progress is visible and understood, not only surfaced when questions are asked or additional investment is required. 

Operationalising the Stack: A Strategic Imperative 

Focusing on strategic clarity and operational excellence will ensure you’re not leaving significant value on the table. Here’s practical steps to make it happen: 

1. Strategy First, Technology Second 

Technology only amplifies the strategy it’s built to serve. Too often, brands invest in platforms without first defining the customer experience they want to enable, or the data foundations required to support it. A clear strategy should shape the use cases, workflow design and measurement approach before a single licence is purchased. Without that blueprint, even the most advanced stack risks becoming a patchwork of tools chasing vague objectives. When strategy leads, technology choices become sharper, adoption improves, and ROI follows naturally. 

2. Build Cross-Functional Ownership 

marTech success is predicated on collaboration between marketing, IT, sales, and customer experience teams. Create shared ownership of the strategy, tools and processes to ensure alignment and accountability. 

3. Prioritise Enablement 

Even the most powerful tools are useless if teams don’t know how to use them. Robust enablement programs - spanning training, documentation, and shared practices - empower teams to build maturity and embed platforms into BAU. Adoption isn’t the job of a single SME; it requires shared understanding across functions to truly drive impact. 

4. Embrace Agile Experimentation 

Don’t wait for perfection. Pilot new tools, test integrations, and iterate quickly. Use agile methodologies to adapt your stack to changing needs and feedback. 

5. Focus on Outcomes, Not Features 

Avoid the trap of chasing shiny objects. Evaluate tools based on their ability to drive specific outcomes - whether that’s lead generation, customer retention, or campaign efficiency. 

The Bottom Line  

The next wave of MarTech- powered by AI, automation and real-time analytics - promises even greater potential. But without a focus on utilisation, these innovations risk becoming just another line item in an underperforming stack. 

The brands that win will be those that sweat the stack: operationalising their investments, enabling their people and proving measurable impact. Procurement is no longer the end goal; adoption and value realisation are where the real gains lie. 

---

For the full findings from the Digital, Marketing & eComm in Focus 2025 report - including insights from over 200 marketing, digital and eCommerce leaders across Australia - download your copy here.