The Marketing Automation Report 2021

Lead generation and lead qualification through data-driven marketing in B2B. A study by Pedalix and the Institute of Marketing Management at ZHAW.

The year 2020 was turbulent and brought far-reaching changes. During the Corona crisis, digital value chains became the "saving anchor" for many companies.

Trade fair appearances, classic advertising and physical encounters became less important.

The sales of online shops increased rapidly, digital platforms as well as customer portals gained importance and sales as well as marketing became more digitalized.

In addition, many organizations felt compelled to continue to deal with digitization comprehensively and without compromise.

In 2020, it became apparent that people and companies can adapt quickly if they have to.

Generally, technologies change quickly, organizations rather slowly.

In future times of a networked world, marketing automation will be critical for success in the interaction between customers and companies with their numerous digital contact points such as websites, online shops, social media, search engines and newsletters.

This study examines what Swiss companies think about marketing automation, whether they use it and how they use it. It is aimed at marketing and sales professionals who are involved in process automation and digitalization.