Martech change is slow, and that changes everything

For most of its existence, martech was defined by constant change. Vendors often change basic systems. Vendors compete on features. Changing pitches – even critical ones – was the norm.

That pattern has been broken, and the break is visible in the data.

The 2025 MarTech Replacement Survey shows a significant decline in replacement activity in major categories.

• Marketing automation is down from 31.1% in 2024 to 19.4% in 2025.
• CRM decreased from 22.1% to 9.7%.
• Email platforms decreased from 24.3% to 13.7%.

That’s not switching between categories. It is a withdrawal based on recovery behavior. It’s happening as other categories – like analytics/BI – continue to grow, which reinforces that this isn’t a simple demand reduction but a shift in how teams are evolving their stacks.

5 years of stability, spike, then pullback

Looking back five years, the change becomes clear.

From 2021 to 2023, conversion rates across all major platforms were remarkably stable. Marketing automation is up nearly 24%. CRM and email followed similar patterns. In 2024, other categories increased – especially marketing automation, which reached 31%.

Then, by 2025, restoration activity dropped significantly in almost every major category.

This pattern — stability → spike → reversal — marks a clear break from previous behavior.

It’s churn time

From 2021 to 2023, martech change has followed a consistent pattern: steady work, fast decisions, and feature-driven change.

The rates of change in all the main categories remain stable, however the reason because the change was very consistent. For many years, “better features” were the dominant factor in replacement decisions. Cost, integration, and data capacity were important, but none clearly outweighed the others.

By 2023, there were signs of a short replacement cycle. Thirty-one percent of systems replaced were two years old or less, suggesting that teams are increasingly willing to move to newer tools.

Decision timelines were consistently fast as well, with approximately 70%-80% of replacements approved within six months. This was not the time to hasten disruption. It was a period of constant upheaval – a constant work of change driven by incremental improvements rather than fundamental change.

The changes start in 2024

In 2024, priorities began to change – as behavior remained unchanged. Cost became the number one factor in switching decisions, cited by 61% of respondents.

This marked a break from years past, where cost, features, integration, and data capabilities were balanced evenly. But despite this change in priorities, the restoration work was not delayed.

Marketing automation remained the most replaced category for the fifth year in a row, and conversion rates remained high in most categories. The market was under pressure – but teams were still willing to change key plans.

2025: doubt replaces churn

In 2025, behavior finally caught up with emotion. Conversion rates are down in almost every major category. CRM fell to 9.7%, the lowest rate recorded in the study.

Even the stages are often stopped as the growth areas show signs of balance. At the same time, AI emerged as an important factor in decision-making:

• 37.1% cited AI capabilities as important
• 33.9% said they want AI capabilities

But that interest didn’t translate into immediate change. Instead, AI seems to reinforce a wait-and-see attitude. If better AI platforms are expected soon, delaying the switch becomes a logical choice.

The defining feature of 2025 is not disruption. Doubt.

Why the change happened

Several structural changes help explain the transition.

First, the SaaS market is growing. By 2024, 96% of exchanges involved a commercial request, and most of them were commercial-to-commercial exchanges. The market is no longer growing primarily through new discoveries – it is developing within an established base.

Second, the main categories are stable. CRM, marketing automation, and email platforms are being replaced less and less, suggesting they have reached a level of operational maturity for many organizations.

Third, the mindset of decision-making is changing. The earlier emphasis on feature separation gives way to a stronger focus on cost, ROI, and integration.

Together, these changes reduce the urgency of installing systems – even if there are better alternatives.

One important nuance: this is not a breakdown of martech work. Most organizations still interact with their stacks in some way year after year. What is changing How they change those stacks. The change is far from wholesale change and towards incremental change.

From innovation to efficiency

The logic behind purchasing decisions has changed.

• 2022: The elements rule
• 2023: Features, integration, and cost measured
• 2024: Cost became the main concern
• 2025: Efficiency and AI considerations come together

The clear line is clear: from the innovation-first to the effective-first concept.

Interest in AI is growing within that framework – but primarily to improve performance, not as a trigger for rapid platform change.

What it means for advertisers

For retailers, this environment means longer testing cycles and a higher bar for switching decisions.

For marketing teams, the focus is shifting to extracting more value from existing systems – improving usage, strengthening integration, and demonstrating ROI.

For those advocating for change, contradictions are no longer “new features.” “It’s better results.”

A pause before the next wave

Martech does not stand still. But the way organizations develop their stacks is changing. Replacement cycles are slow. Incremental change eliminates wholesale change. Efficiency surpasses innovation as a key driver.

The next wave of disruption will come – but it will likely be driven by structural shifts, such as AI-native platforms, rather than incremental improvements within existing categories. For now, the market is stagnant.