Only One in Three Marketers Are Happy With Their Martech, Ingenuity Warns
Updated: 14 hours ago
Ingenuity's latest Pulse report finds just one in three marketers are satisfied with the returns from their martech investment, and warns that this widening 'value gap' has become a genuine threat to agency retention.
The martech value gap
Marketers have spent a decade buying tools — CDPs, automation suites, analytics stacks. Ingenuity's Pulse report suggests the returns have not kept pace: only one in three marketers say they are satisfied with what their martech investment delivers.
That gap between spend and satisfaction is more than a budgeting headache. Ingenuity argues it is starting to reshape client-agency relationships, as brands question who is responsible for making the technology actually pay back.
Why it threatens agencies
When the tools underperform, scrutiny lands on the partners meant to run them. Agencies that cannot demonstrate real value from a client's stack — or worse, that use AI and automation weakly — become the first line item reviewed.
In other words, the martech value gap has quietly turned into a retention risk. The report frames capability, not creativity alone, as the new battleground for holding on to accounts.
What businesses should do
The instinct when tools underperform is to buy more of them. Usually the opposite is needed: fewer platforms, cleaner data and a ruthless focus on the two or three use cases that move revenue.
For brands and agencies alike, the winning move is to treat martech as a capability to be operated, not a licence to be owned. Value comes from adoption and skill, not the size of the stack.
Quick FAQ
What is the martech value gap?
It is the widening distance between what companies spend on marketing technology and the value they actually get back — with Ingenuity finding only one in three marketers satisfied with their returns.
Why does it threaten agency retention?
When martech underperforms, brands scrutinise the partners running it. Agencies that cannot prove value from the stack, or that use AI weakly, risk losing the account.
How can businesses close the gap?
Consolidate tools, fix data quality and focus on a few high-impact use cases. Value comes from adoption and operational skill, not from owning the biggest stack.
Buying martech is easy; extracting value is hard. Most brands are over-tooled and under-adopted. The agencies that thrive from here won't be the ones with the flashiest decks — they'll be the ones who can actually operate a client's stack and show the money it makes. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
Key takeaway: in 2026, proving you can operate the technology matters more than owning it.
Is your business getting real value from its martech — or just paying for licences you barely use?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Ingenuity Pulse report and Campaign UK.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
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