Pythons and Boa constrictors are quick to pounce on their prey but after that, digesting them takes a very long time. Similarly, marketing vendors are quick to announce acquisitions but actual integration typically takes years, not months.

Source: The Daily Mail

That's just one of the findings from the latest version of RSG's Marketing Automation and Social Technology report, which contains updated evaluations for: 

• Adobe Marketing Cloud
• Marketo Engagement Marketing Platform
• Attensity
• SDL SM2
• Visible Technologies

Consult the report for the detailed evaluations, but here is a sneak peek of what you will find:

Adobe can provide a wide range of capabilities that span both online and offline marketing. But the data-driven marketing approach advocated by Adobe requires more investment and resources across the entire organization than just those found in a typical marketing department.

Marketo is in the throes of an aggressive re-positioning exercise of turning its marketing suite into a marketing platform. The customer event is branded grandly "Marketing Nation," its partnership program is "LaunchPoint," and has settled on "Engagement Marketing Platform" for the product, after trying a few other labels. If you ignore the hype, Marketo provides a decent toolset for some specific marketing requirements.

SDL acquired social monitoring tool SM2 and instead of continuing to sell it as a standalone tool, is trying re-architect and package it for a broader customer intelligence solution.

Attensity, Crimson Hexagon, and Visible Technologies come at social media analytics and monitoring from different vantage points and each has its strengths and weaknesses. Look for separate posts on these in the next few days.

Subscribers can download the latest full report or individual chapters right away.

Others can obtain a complimentary sample chapter here.