Today we released RSG's annual briefing on the state of the Marketing Automation & Social Technology marketplace. RSG subscribers can access the full analysis here.

The martech world has perhaps never seen so much change. The core concept of the marketing funnel is disappearing, replaced by the customer journey. The pace of change can be quite unnerving: you risk of falling behind if you don’t keep up with competition, but you can also seize opportunities to race ahead.

Despite all of this rapid change, we can say two things with certainty:

1. The strategic importance of marketing is more significant than ever before
2. Marketing is much more dependent on complex technology than ever before

If yesterday’s marketing is represented by Mad Men (reliant on individual brilliance and insights), today’s marketing is represented by Math Men. The popular editor at chiefmartec.com (Scott Brinker) likens this to marketing moving from being “Art + Copy” to “Code + Data.”

RSG's 13-page advisory briefing offers ten key trends to help you navigate both the near-term and long-term futures.

One more thing you'll find in the briefing: a current snapshot of  key marketing technology players circa Q1-2016, and where they lie on the change spectrum. Use this to assess how vendors could match your own enterprise tempo. Note there is no single magic square here -- what matters most is identifying the best-fit solution for your unique needs.

Figure 1: RSG Reality Check for the Marketing Automation and Social Technology Market, 2016. Click to enlarge

RSG Subscribers can obtain the detailed briefing here.

For more detailed reviews of the individual vendors, consult our complete evaluation report.