Navigating tech partnerships: instantprint partners with Insider amidst frustrations with Salesforce Marketing Cloud

In modern business, technology has become the cornerstone of success. From customer engagement to data management, the right technology partner can make or break a company’s trajectory. This realization was at the forefront of Dan Robinson’s mind, the Head of eCommerce at instantprint, the largest UK-based online printing company.

In an exclusive conversation with Insider, he shares his candid experiences and insights into why he began looking for a new technology partner and how he stumbled upon Insider.

A rollercoaster ride with Salesforce Marketing Cloud

Dan Robinson didn’t mince words when describing his experience with Salesforce Marketing Cloud. What he had expected to be a seamless journey with the well-known tech giant turned into a series of challenges. “It’s considered best-in-class technology, but for us, it’s been nightmare after nightmare after nightmare,” he said.

The promised efficiency of Salesforce Marketing Cloud never materialized for Dan and his team at instantprint. UI nightmares and the basic inability to receive test emails left Robinson questioning what “good UI” even looked like regarding CRM tools.

And the challenges extended beyond UI and functionality, too. For instantprint, the real struggle lay in integrating Salesforce Marketing Cloud with its existing business systems. Robinson described how the system’s aspiration to be the single source of truth clashed with the company’s established business processes.

“We work with many brands who are all at different stages of their technology re-platforming, so we have multiple brands set up on different bespoke systems,” Dan explained. “This meant we needed multiple Salesforce integrations to get all of our data in there.”

“We’re two and a half years into our partnership with Salesforce, and yet I still can’t send an automated Welcome Flow to new subscribers. That’s where we’re at. So you can imagine my marketing manager’s dismay—we’ve got this best-in-class tech, but we can’t even send automated welcome emails.

This inefficient situation prompted Robinson to look elsewhere for solutions.

Looking for a new solution

Recognizing the limitations of Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Dan contemplated widely recognized tech names like HubSpot, Ometria, and Klaviyo. However, it was Insider’s consistently positive positions in technology reports from Forrester, G2, and Gartner that caught his attention. This social proof aspect was pivotal in convincing him to explore Insider as a potential solution.

“I had seen Insider before, but I wasn’t fully aware of what they could offer. I had been considering more well-known tech names like HubSpot, Ometria, and Klaviyo. But then I looked at all the Forrester, G2, and Gartner technology reports and I just couldn’t believe Insider’s positions on them all.”

— Dan Robinson, Head of eCommerce at instantprint

Following his trouble with Salesforce’s clunky user experience, a good and intuitive interface was also high on Dan’s grading criteria for new partners. “I looked very carefully at Insider’s loading speeds, the interface, and tools and that was the clincher for me,” he says.

Robinson then faced the decision of whether to unify solutions under one umbrella with Insider or to continue using multiple-point solutions. He acknowledged the pros and cons of both routes, realizing that centralization could bring efficiency while diversification could mitigate risk. Striking this balance between consolidation and versatility was a critical consideration.

A glimpse into the martech landscape

instantprint’s martech stack was, at the time, dominated by Salesforce and Salesforce Marketing Cloud. The company also employed Dotdigital for specific emails and functionalities that the Marketing Cloud struggled with.

Yet, as Robinson delved into Insider’s capabilities, he saw the potential to replace these platforms while also accommodating other functionalities. The likes of Klevu for search, Getsitecontrol for pop-ups, and Google Optimise for A/B testing were on the list of tools that Insider could potentially replace or enhance.

“We looked at Klaviyo, which provided some but not all of what we wanted. If we’d chosen Klaviyo or Dotdigital we would have had to supplement with a further A/B testing tool. We didn’t have to do that with Insider.”

— Dan Robinson, Head of eCommerce at instantprint

Fastest time to value with Insider

Robinson’s vision for the future was centered on realizing ROI swiftly. The strategy was clear—divide and conquer. The marketing team would focus on driving traffic to the site, while the eCommerce team would work on increasing conversion rates.

And Insider offered incredible time to value for instantprint. “Our eCommerce teams can already take action with Insider, such as getting Eureka live and personalizing the website based on user interactions and attributes,” Dan explains. “The marketing side of things will obviously take a bit more time whilst we get our CRM data integrated.”

With Insider, Dan and his team can finally build email journeys—quickly and at scale. His plans for email marketing include trigger-based email automation, including cart abandonment messages, anniversaries, and welcome flows.

Broadcast emails personalized for segmented groups are also on the horizon, marking a notable departure from the challenges of Salesforce Marketing Cloud’s difficult-to-use toolset. “We’ll start building the journeys while we continue the IP warm-up process,” Dan explains.

Looking Ahead

Looking forward, Dan envisions instantprint becoming one of Insider’s larger clients in the UK. “We plan to work closely with Insider to help pioneer developments on their product roadmap. That way, we’ll always be early adopters of new feature releases. I want instantprint to be seen by Insider as its go-to company,” concludes Dan.

Dan’s story is a testament to the pivotal role that technology partnerships play in modern business landscapes. From frustration with a once-admired solution to the excitement of embracing Insider’s capabilities, instantprint’s shift is a valuable lesson for companies whose current tech stack isn’t giving them what they need.

Find out more about how Insider can help your brand

If instantprint’s struggles resonate with you, then we’d love to chat about how we can help your brand achieve the same success. Book a call with us today, we’d be happy to show you how we do things around here.