IN BRIEF
Choosing a marketing automation tool usually fails because a platform is bought whose implementation takes more work than the company has. The tools fall into three classes with different price levels and different demands. This article covers the classes, how they differ, and how to choose without having to undo the decision a year later.
What marketing automation actually does
Marketing automation means a message is sent because of an event rather than because of the calendar. A newsletter goes out on Tuesday to everyone; an automation goes out when someone downloads a guide, abandons a cart or has been silent for three months. The difference sounds technical but is really a difference in timing, and timing decides the result.
Automation is not a substitute for marketing but a multiplier. It amplifies whatever it is fed: if the messages are poor or there is no list, automation sends poor messages faster. That is why the first investment is almost always content and collecting your own data, not a tool.
The three classes to choose between
Tools fall into three classes according to what they assume of their user. Choosing the class is a bigger decision than choosing the brand within it.
| CLASS | FITS WHEN | TYPICAL LEVEL €/MO | IMPLEMENTATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email tool | a list and a few automations | 20–150 | days |
| E-commerce automation | product data drives messages | 60–400 | 1–3 weeks |
| Full platform | sales and marketing in one | 400–2,000 | 1–3 months |
In every class the price depends on contact volume and rises in tiers, so a list price only tells you the entry level. Vendors also change their pricing often, so check the current price at your own contact volume before deciding.
Email tools: the lightest start
This class includes tools such as Mailchimp, Brevo and MailerLite. They are built around email marketing, with automation as an added feature: a welcome message, a short sequence and basic segmentation work well; deeper conditional logic does not.
This is enough for most service businesses far longer than sales pitches suggest. If you cannot name five automations you would build in the first six months, a light tool is the right choice and saves both money and an implementation project.
E-commerce automation: bringing product data in
Klaviyo and similar tools are built for online stores: they read the product catalogue and purchase history, so a message can contain the exact product the customer was looking at. In this class the return on automation is easiest to demonstrate, because the sale is recorded right behind the message.
- Abandoned cart: typically the highest-earning single automation.
- Browse abandonment: a lighter reminder of a viewed product.
- Repurchase: timed to the product’s real lifespan.
- Win-back: aimed at customers who have gone quiet.
The precondition: the product feed and order data have to reach the tool reliably. A broken integration shows up to the customer as wrong product recommendations, and costs more than the automation earns.
Full platforms: sales and marketing together
HubSpot, ActiveCampaign and heavier enterprise platforms combine marketing, CRM and often customer service. The advantage is a single view: a salesperson sees what a lead has read, and marketing sees where the deals came from. The drawback is the price, and that the benefit only appears once sales genuinely uses the system.
This class pays off when the sales cycle is long and there are several decision-makers. Then lead scoring and a shared sales and marketing process produce more than any single message flow. In a Finnish SME, though, a full platform is often bought too early.
What the price does not include
The licence is the smallest cost. The real cost is implementation, integrations and someone maintaining the automations. An implementation project typically costs 2,000–15,000 € depending on the class, and ongoing maintenance 300–1,500 € per month.
- Migrating and cleaning data from the old system.
- Integrations to the online store, the CRM and your forms.
- Producing the content for the messages and flows.
- Privacy: collecting consents and documenting them.
Five automations worth building first
Whatever the tool, the same five flows produce most of the benefit. Build these first and measure the result before designing more complex branching journeys.
- Welcome series: 3 messages to a new subscriber, the first one immediately.
- Lead follow-up: what happens after an enquiry, including when sales cannot get to it.
- Abandoned cart or unfinished form.
- Onboarding: the first 30 days after a purchase.
- Re-engagement: a message to those who have opened nothing in six months.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best marketing automation tool?+
There isn’t one. The choice is made at class level: an email tool is enough if you build a few flows, e-commerce automation is needed for product data, and a full platform only once sales works in the same system.
How much does marketing automation cost?+
A licence typically costs 20–2,000 € per month depending on contact volume and class. Implementation costs 2,000–15,000 € and ongoing maintenance 300–1,500 € per month.
Does automation require its own CRM?+
Not always. In e-commerce the store platform is often data source enough. In B2B sales a CRM is effectively necessary, because without it the link between a lead and a deal breaks.
When is automation not worth buying?+
When there is no list, content is not produced regularly, or nobody has time to maintain the flows. In those cases the tool becomes a paid email sender.
SOURCES AND DATA
VSCY client implementations 2024–2026 · public vendor pricing pages, August 2026 · campaign data on automation flow returns. Vendor pricing changes, so check the current level before deciding.
