Improve these 8 things about your marketing operations today

Also - The separation of marketing ops teams and tech teams

In this edition:

1. 8 Practical Marketing Ops Improvements

2. Marketing Ops Versus Technology Teams

3. POLL - How Big Should a Marketing Ops Team be at a Mid-Sized Firm?

4. For Paid Subscribers: Real Advice and Wisdom About Leadership and Teamwork

Less than 10 days till the marketing ops conference of the year! It’s not too late to sign up for MOps-Apalooza 2024.

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Join the Marketing Planning Workshops!

Ever built a marketing plan only to see it forgotten by Q2? This season, elevate your planning game to create strategies that drive action and results across your team. Join our workshops with Inverta for practical insights designed to streamline planning and showcase marketing's impact.We have two more 55-minute workshops upcoming, and we’ll break down:

• Campaign Strategy: We're bridging the gap between goals and actionable execution. We will show a smarter way to build plans that actually work (Oct 31, 10am PT).

• Measuring Impact: We'll go in-depth on how to prove your value with data that stakeholders care about (Nov 14, 10am PT).

Especially if you're in mops, you should register for both workshops. Don't worry if you can’t make it live, we'll share the recordings and slides with you afterwards.

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8 Things You Can Do This Month To Improve Marketing

So many people have great ideas. So few execute on them.

That's why I love marketing ops - we're the ones making things happen.

Even if you're not in marketing ops, here are tangible ways you can take ownership of the work and actually move the needle:

1 - Document and operationalize A/B test results: Don’t run tests just for the sake of it. Capture insights, then apply those learnings across future campaigns. Build systems that get better over time.

2 - Double down on top-performing campaigns: Too often, we try to spread resources across everything. Instead, identify what’s working and focus on it. Cut the rest—no need to keep sinking time into low performers.

3 - Remove friction from GTM processes: Is your campaign launch process more complicated than it needs to be? Fix it. Streamline every step, reduce bottlenecks, and make it as easy as possible for teams to get campaigns out the door.

4 - Enable easy access to data: Sales and marketing teams shouldn't have to jump through hoops to get the data they need. Build systems that serve them the right insights at the right time so they can engage customers in a meaningful way.

5 - Maintain data cleanliness and accuracy: Your campaigns are only as good as the data behind them. Implement solid data governance practices so you can trust the information driving your decisions.

6 - Create clear, useful reports and dashboards: Execs don’t need 20-page reports. They need actionable insights. Build dashboards that highlight the key performance metrics so they can make fast, informed decisions.

7 - Reevaluate budgets and optimize for ROI: Don’t set it and forget it. Keep an eye on where your dollars are going and reallocate funds to the areas that are delivering the highest returns.

8 - Align teams with clear marketing plans: Want to avoid misalignment? Document your marketing plans and socialize them so everyone is moving in the same direction. Clear communication is how you avoid silos and make sure the entire team is pulling toward the same goals.

Owning the work doesn’t mean taking on more. It means knowing where to focus, where to cut, and how to execute relentlessly. Execution will always outperform a shiny idea with no follow-through. Don’t just talk about it—get it done.

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Marketing Ops Versus Technology Teams

I've adapted this graphic from Gartner's original to illustrate the expanded scope of marketing operations.

Now is the time for marketing operations to step up and own these essential business functions. We are both strategic thinkers and skilled tacticians, bridging the gap between high-level business goals and the technical execution needed to achieve them.

This update highlights the growing importance of AI, along with the need for robust project management and effective technology governance.

While GTM teams may frequently utilize AI, it’s marketing operations’ role to assess AI use cases, ensure data standardization and compliance, and establish consistent, impactful AI strategies that drive measurable business value.

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POLL: How big should a marketing ops team be at a mid-sized company?