2023 Year In Review for Marketing Automation

As we are officially in 2024, it is always good to look back at what the previous year brought us. Though many entrepreneurs experienced trying times there was quite a bit of movement, and progression, in the small business MarTech space.

Below you will find some of the SaaS platforms that made the most notable updates to their product, 2023 industry trends, and a review of what we have accomplished here at Automation Bridge and what to expect moving forward.

SaaS Platforms with Notable Product Updates

Perhaps the busiest I’ve seen them in a long time. Leading the way with AI, product improvements, and new features…Zapier just keeps on ticking. See all of their updates here.

It seems like every day I log into LinkedIn I see a new update from Notion. They have definitely been busy and because of their improvements, I do find myself using their software more. See all of their updates here.

So refreshing to see how much development is going on at SmartSuite. They have stayed tuned into the market and are delivering top-value product updates. See all of their updates here.

The biggest updates were to their Interfaces features, but they also made some well-needed adjustments to their database functionality as well. Unfortunately part of their major updates was their pricing (more on that below). See all of their updates here.

I hadn’t realized just how many product updates they launched last year (as they tend to be very quiet in promoting them). However, looking back, they have been very busy with some quite notable updates to the platform (including pricing). See all of their updates here.

One word…wow. This platform just keeps moving at hyperspeed in terms of product updates and capturing market share. I highly recommend you keep an eye on them because there are no signs of them slowing down any time soon. See all of their updates here.

Lastly, ClickUp finally successfully launched 3.0 after months of empty promises and music videos (I actually like the update). See all of their updates here.

Top 3 SaaS Trends

Here are some of the top trends I’ve observed developing over the year that I believe are worth keeping an eye on to see if they continue in 2024.

Pricing

Prices are going up everywhere. As mentioned earlier in this blog post, ActiveCampaign and AirTable definitely ruffled some feathers with their increases and we saw users jump ship to alternatives (more for ActiveCampaign than AirTable). Though you can argue they could’ve handled the increase better, the fact is that they are not the only platforms increasing their prices. In fact, I’ve seen more companies increase their price than not (special shout out to High Level who have not raised their prices a penny in years). I anticipate this trend not slowing down at all.

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The AI boom is here. From new platforms launching daily to experts popping up with courses and other offers to help you take advantage of it all. We are at the inception of mass adoption of generative AI. Prepare for a large amount of subpar content to be created and disseminated powered by AI, making such content easier to create. I’m not against it at all, in fact, I use it quite a bit. But with more adoption comes more abuse. Get ready.

Automation-friendly

Unlike AI, automation is no longer a shiny object. In fact, a lot of SaaS platforms are creating their own native automation capability in an attempt to make their apps more sticky and less reliant on other tools. While I do welcome this approach be aware that you will still need to integrate other tools effectively to achieve consistent results with marketing automation. A trend relative to this to keep an eye out for is the rise in need of an integration specialist.

What We’ve Accomplished

We’ve been busy as well. Here are just a few of our more notable accomplishments we have achieved here at Automation Bridge.

37 New Guest Podcast Episodes

Though the podcast is currently on a break (stay tuned for updates), we have successfully published 37 episodes last year, all including amazing guests. Make sure you get caught up while we prepare for the next season.

3,739 Community Conversations Started

Special shout out to all of my current and previous Community Members and all of the valuable conversations started and content shared. It is because of you all that we have a safe place to share and learn real strategies and tactics to propel our businesses.

60+ Live Member Calls

Another shout out to all the Community Members that attended any of our live calls from Q&As to unboxing new software. I continue to learn just as much from you all as you learn from me.

What’s Next For Us

Our dedication to keeping you informed, up to date, and in-the-know is even more intentional this year than it was last year. You can count on us for great content every week for you to prove such dedication. Here are a few things to keep an eye out for.

New Blog Content

As the longest-standing, marketing automation blog on the internet, we owe it to you to produce fresh content weekly. Our commitment is to do just that. Be sure to check out our blog every week for new posts like this one we recently published.

Monthly Live Streaming

Access to some of our live, members-only calls will now be streamed live across our Facebook Group, LinkedIn page, and YouTube. We recommend you subscribe to our YouTube channel to get notifications for all new live events. Though you will be able to attend live (sometimes in a limited capacity) all replays will be available to community members indefinitely.

New Membership Platform

We have been extremely busy migrating from our existing community platform to a new membership platform to better serve your needs. Doors to this new platform will be opening soon!

New Segmentation Training(s)

Next week we are running our first training of the year that showcases 3 case studies detailing how I have effectively used segmentation to drive millions in revenue in multiple industries. You can register for that webinar here. We will also be running more live webinars quarterly to keep you equipped with everything you need to succeed with automation.

Closing Remarks

All in all, 2023 was a progressive year for a lot of established and new software companies. As I mentioned in the intro, a lot of business owners at all levels of success have lamented how hard last year was. My hopes and prayers are that the trend does not continue for you in 2024.

This is one of the first years where I feel I am on the sideline looking to see what will happen, just like you. I don’t have any deep insight or foreshadowing of things to come. Things are extremely unpredictable right now. Let’s embrace it together and make the most of it.

Cheers to an amazing 2024 for you and your business 🥂.