AI costs don’t scale like licenses or infrastructure. Learn why inference and orchestration drive volatility — and how teams can regain visibility and control. By Angela Vega January 19, 2026 Early in my career, the technology contracts I signed were fairly straightforward. I knew what I was paying for, how many seats I … Continue reading Why AI is the most unpredictable cost in the martech stack
Marketing stacks with too many underused platforms are adding cost, complexity and drag where efficiency was promised. By Tav Laskauskas January 16, 2026 Every week, there’s a new AI-powered marketing tool promising to revolutionize your workflow. It’s tempting to try them all. But here’s what’s actually happening: marketing stacks are more cluttered than … Continue reading How to tell if you have too many tools in your stack
Data is exploding, stacks are sprawling, and AI is raising the stakes. Discover what needs to sit at the center of your martech stack — before it’s too late. Mike Pastore on September 5, 2025 As data and AI become the dominant forces in marketing, the real question is no longer if your martech … Continue reading What should sit at the center of your martech stack in the age of AI?
Better cooperation between IT, marketing and data means fewer turf wars, but every app carries some risk. Mike Pastore on July 30, 2025 There are more than 15,000 martech tools available on the market today, and each of them is a potential risk for your organization. As with any software product, the applications themselves … Continue reading Who’s watching the security of your martech stack?
Forget polished brochures — Gen Z wants TikToks and texts. Here’s how to rebuild your martech stack for them. Alicia Arnold on June 5, 2025 Building a martech stack requires careful consideration — alignment with business goals, key features, integration, and compliance. But in higher education, those traditional criteria are no longer enough. Today’s … Continue reading Gen Z is forcing a rebuild of the martech stack in higher ed and beyond
What separates martech outperformers from the rest? New research reveals how lean, focused stacks drive strategic results. Frans Riemersma on June 4, 2025 “Stack follows strategy” is a well-known mantra. But how do you actually do it? Many teams claim it’s the right approach, but few can describe what the approach looks like in … Continue reading 3 steps to align your stack with strategy
Email can be your brand’s most controllable growth lever — if you stop treating it like a last resort. Here’s how to elevate its role. Kath Pay on May 13, 2025 Email isn’t just a communication channel. It’s a behavioral insight engine, a testing lab and a conversion machine, all in a single dashboard. … Continue reading Email is the most misunderstood channel in your digital stack
The next wave of data management disruption is coming, as AI churns out more unstructured data. Is your stack prepared? Milton Hwang on March 27, 2025 Like many of you, I regularly incorporate AI tools to keep up with marketing and martech trends. They provide me with summaries and extract insights that I either … Continue reading The future of the martech stack and marketing operations is ‘unstructured’
Spurred by AI, marketers are using more tools than ever, and they’re making an increasing number of them, according to The MarTech State of the Stack report. Constantine von Hoffman on March 25, 2025 Thanks to AI, marketers are using more tools than ever, and more are homegrown, according to the 2025 State … Continue reading State of the Stack 2025: Homegrown martech surges as AI accelerates development
Feature bundling and stakeholder preferences contribute to martech overlap. Here’s how to analyze and manage it strategically. Steve Petersen on March 7, 2025 It is not uncommon for martech stacks to have components with overlapping functionality. While some overlap is intentional, too much can lead to wasted budget, unnecessary complexity and inefficiencies. Knowing when … Continue reading The smart way to handle overlaps in your martech stack
