Responding to Customer’s Decision-making Intention in Pandemic Scenario: Indicators for Choosing the Right Marketing Automation Platform

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the marketing activities of companies in various industries and has had a dramatic impact on the global economy. Digital technologies played a vital role during the lockdown as they facilitated communication between organizations and customers. Channels for reaching customers and marketing communications are changing rapidly. Traditional buy-sell relationships between customers and companies are becoming more complex and must be understood in a more differentiated way. Supporting marketing activities by exploring digital technologies, this study is conducted to (1) provide insights into current marketing automation and customer decision-making intentions implemented by companies, and (2) identify the motivations, benefits, and challenges driving the adoption of digital marketing automation. A holistic MA model for choosing a MA solution complements the basic information and shows the selection procedure and the most important selection and evaluation indicators.