It’s budget season! That wonderful time of year when we’re all trying to predict what our teams will need 12 months from now, justify what we’re already spending and somehow find room for new initiatives.
If you’re responsible for marketing technology, you know how quickly dollars can add up. CRM platforms, marketing automation, analytics tools, AI subscriptions, agency support and integrations.
Decide up front what success looks like. Are we saving time? Improving data quality? Making execution more consistent? Creating a better customer experience? Assign someone to measure it and be willing to stop funding experiments that don’t pay off.
But before we add another line item to next year’s budget, here are some questions I’ll be asking of our own tech stack.
1. What would break if we turned this technology off tomorrow?
Before shopping for anything new, look at your renewals. Not just the costs and contract dates. Look at what you’re using, how you’re using it and whether you’re getting the full value of what you’re paying for.
Is your team using the platform? Are you tracking the right activities and outcomes? Is the data reliable? Does it work with the rest of your technology? And here’s my favorite question: If we took it away tomorrow, what would break?
If your team immediately panics and starts listing five processes that would stop working, that’s useful information. The platform is critical. Now it’s time to make sure the contract, license levels and renewal terms match the value you’re getting. Expect an increase year-over-year.
If nobody can articulate what it does or who relies on it, that’s also useful. But be careful: low adoption doesn’t always mean low value. Maybe implementation never got finished. Maybe nobody was trained. Or maybe you’re paying for features your team doesn’t know exist.
The goal isn’t to cut tools just to cut costs. It’s to know what’s critical, what needs attention and what has become shelfware.
I’ve written before about building a tech stack that fits your business. Budget season is a good time to apply that same thinking to every renewal.
2. Are we already paying for something that does this?
This question matters more than ever with AI assistants and functionality in existing platforms. Every week seems to bring a new product that promises to solve a marketing problem. I love exploring what is possible. I don’t love paying twice for the same capability.
Before you approve a new platform, ask your team to show you what your existing CRM, marketing automation or analytics tools can already do. Many vendors keep adding features, and some of the functionality you’re about to buy may be sitting inside a contract you’ve already signed. Those AI features in existing software may be priced by consumption and that should also be considered in forecasts.
You may discover that the answer is a new feature, a better configuration or a small integration rather than an entirely new system. And if a new purchase really is justified, you’ll have a clearer case for why.
Related Content: Tidy Up Your Martech Stack
3. Can we improve the process instead of buying another product?
Sometimes the problem isn’t a missing tool or technology. The problem may be a manual process, disconnected data or a workflow that’s been duct taped together over the years.
Could we automate the reporting we already do? Could an AI agent help move information through an existing workflow? Could we connect two systems instead of adding a third? Those are the questions I’d ask before signing another annual contract.
That doesn’t mean automation is free. Integrations, governance, security, testing and maintenance all take resources. But those costs deserve to be compared with the full cost of another platform, including the effort to implement and adopt it.
As I discussed in From AI Hype to AI Systems, the opportunity isn’t always to add more technology. Often, it’s to get the systems and workflows you have working better together.
4. Do we have the right people and partners to make it work?
Here’s where I think budgets often fall short: we fund the software, but not enough of the strategy, setup, training and optimization that make the software useful. A powerful platform with poor adoption is still an expensive problem.
That doesn’t automatically mean adding headcount, either. A good agency partner should meet you where you are. Maybe you need turnkey support because your team doesn’t have the capacity or technical expertise to own execution (do it for me). Maybe you need an agency to set everything up and then train your people to take over (do it with me). Or maybe your team is ready to execute but needs help designing processes that are easy, efficient and repeatable (do it yourself).
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. When budgeting for agency support, be realistic about what your team can own and where external expertise creates value. That might include platform strategy, integrations, data quality, automation, enablement or ongoing optimization.
And remember that technology changes after implementation. Your business changes, too. Budgeting for the right support isn’t just about getting something live. It’s about making sure it keeps working and continues to improve.
Leave Room For What You Can’t Predict
Technology costs are increasing year-over-year. A few years ago, accounting for a 4% increase year-over-year covered most budget changes. Now, however, Gartner is advising buyers to expect a 10-20% increase in SaaS renewals. Others site up to a 30% increase.
Annual budgets are fixed on a calendar, but technology innovation isn’t. Leave a defined amount of room to test promising capabilities or improve existing workflows during the year. Just enough flexibility to respond when something genuinely valuable comes along.
The best technology budget isn’t necessarily the biggest. It’s the one that aligns your people, processes, data and platforms with what the business needs to accomplish. So, before you approve next year’s tech budget, don’t just ask what you can afford to buy. Ask how much more you can accomplish with what you’re already paying for.
Wondering if you’re getting the most out of your marketing technology investments? We can help you take a closer look at your tech stack, uncover opportunities to improve efficiency and make smarter decisions about where to invest next. Let’s talk.
