Marketing automation turns customer data into communication: welcome journeys, cart abandoners, lifecycle campaigns. The tools are as good as the events and profiles that reach them, which is why data delivery belongs in the rating.
When this category matters
When email should move from newsletter blasts to a revenue-relevant channel. For shops, from the moment abandoned-cart flows leave measurable revenue on the table. And in every consolidation where sending, CRM, and tracking live in three separate worlds.
Decision criteria
- Data delivery: how do web events and orders reach the tool reliably?
- EU hosting and the vendor's GDPR position.
- Cost model: by contacts (Klaviyo) or sending volume (Brevo), priced against your list.
- Segmentation depth for e-commerce: product data, purchase history, predictions.