martech - Martech Therapy (Page 3)

The CDP RFP Dating Game

How agencies, vendors, analysts, and executives hide behind the smiles

On paper, a Request for Proposal (RFP) looks like the fairest way to choose a Customer Data Platform, or anything else for that matter. I am sure if my wife had known about RFPs when we met, I would have been on the receiving side of one. Good thing she didn’t. An RFP is an attempt to make sense of vastly complex and different products through structure, neutrality, and vendor A vs vendor B data in neat columns. But if, like myself, you’ve been in this business for a while, you know the truth 👇🏻

Most RFPs are wired

From economics to Martech: Ana Mourão on wins, governance, and positivity

Small wins, strong processes, and the human side of Martech

I had such a pleasant conversation with Ana Mourão on Couch Confidentials. She has this rare combination of sharp Martech expertise and an optimistic outlook, even when talking about the messy side of digital transformation.

What struck me most was how Ana sees Martech not just as a stack of tools, but as a system of people and processes where small wins can make a huge difference. From building 7 million profiles globally to navigating the “Groundhog Day” of transformation projects, she’s found ways to stay positive and drive impact.

Thanks again, Ana, for sharing your experience and your

The real Martech ROI equation

Revenue minus stack costs does not equal a return on investment, so what does?

Have you ever seen this quote:

“The first time you go through it, you don't understand it at all. The second time you go through it, you think you understand it, except for one or two small points. The third time you go through it, you know you don't understand it, but by that time you are so used to it, it doesn't bother you anymore.”

If you are reading this article, you might be inclined to think that this quote is from some notable Martech leader describing your Martech stack. Nothing is further from the truth. The quote is

From psychology to Spryker: Guido Jansen on community, automation, and AI in B2B

Spryker’s Global Business & Technology Evangelist, Guido Jansen, discusses community, vibe coding, and the reality of AI in the enterprise.

In this episode of Couch Confidentials, I sit down with Guido Jansen, Spryker’s Global Business & Technology Evangelist, and someone with one of the longest job titles I’ve ever introduced on the podcast. Guido’s path is unusual: a background in applied cognitive psychology, years building the Magento community, and now leading community and customer success efforts at Spryker.

We discuss what it means to build ecosystems that last and how feedback loops from hackathons and developer meetups inform Spryker’s product direction. Guido also shares his experiments with n8n, vibe coding, and MCP integrations, as well as

Before you deploy your CDP, train your crew

From naval drills to Martech deployments, why practice still makes the difference

I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating → CDP projects don’t just test your tech stack, they test your team. And most of the time, that test happens in real time, under pressure, with stakes that no one thought to rehearse.

After I published the piece on CDPs as a kind of digital transformation stress test, the comments and direct messages lit up with something that felt oddly familiar. People weren’t just reacting to the tech insights; the internet is filled to the brim with those. They were describing moments of confusion, panic, last-minute scrambles, and hard

MAP, CEP, or CDP? Klaviyo’s James Fang on where marketing automation is headed

A conversation about consolidation, AI, and why labels like CEP or MAP might miss the bigger picture.

Season 2 of Couch Confidentials opens with James Fang, Director of Product Marketing at Klaviyo and former VP at mParticle. We get into the weeds of Martech terminology, such as CEP, MAP, CDP, and whether those labels still mean anything when platforms are converging. James shares why Klaviyo positions itself as a B2C CRM built on a shared data platform, and how that ties into the wider trend of commoditized CDP features.

We also discuss the consolidation wave I’ve written about in the CDP Reboot and Multi-CDPs series, with James pointing to real-world cases where companies are questioning the

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