Most CMOs still treat marketing automation platforms as back-office utilities - the digital plumbing that keeps campaigns flowing.
But when you unravel what these platforms can really do, you see they have the potential to become revenue systems. Too often though, companies fail to harness that potential - even after spending millions each year.
In this article, I’ll share my observations from working with global pharma companies:
- How marketing automation platforms (MAPs) are used today
- Where companies go wrong, reducing them to “just operations”
- How MAPs can be harnessed as true growth drivers
The problem with how we think about Marketing Automation
While working with a large US pharma team, we were asked to identify personalization opportunities in their campaigns. What we found instead was telling:
It took weeks to launch a single campaign. Teams were copying templates, chasing approvals, building vendor flows, and endlessly editing target lists - all to send… emails.
This company had invested over a million dollars annually in a top-tier platform, yet it had been reduced to an expensive email-sending machine.
We pivoted and looked for:
- Underutilized features they had already paid for
- Automation opportunities across workflows, builds, and integrations
- Low/no-touch execution models to cut manual effort
The insight was clear: buying the tool isn’t enough - it’s how you configure and leverage it that defines ROI.
Campaigns’ execution without realizing full potential of MAPs
I see similar patterns across pharma. The issue isn’t the platform; it is the way how we think of the set up and how we govern it
MAPs reduced to email engines - journeys default to email-only while other channels and data integrations sit idle.
Tech-first rollouts - platforms stood up by IT without a blueprint of brand use cases or customer journeys.
Fragmented ownership - marketing, ops, IT, and agencies each manage a piece, but no one owns the end-to-end experience.
Execution over impact - success measured by campaign volume and speed to launch, not engagement lift or commercial outcomes
The result? A multimillion-dollar system that performs like a basic back-office utility.
On paper, the MAP looks “in use.” In reality, what’s missing is a blueprint - a design that ties platform capabilities to brand strategy and customer engagement goals.
How can pharma teams harness the power of MAPs
This is an opportunity for company leaders to set the right expectations. Before one gets to tactical fixes, leaders can really frame the reframe the role of marketing automation platforms for their teams.
MAPs should not be seen as campaign factories. They are commercial systems - as central to growth as CRM, supply chain, or market access. The question isn’t “How do we send campaigns faster?” It’s:
- How can this platform make every HCP interaction smarter?
- How do we integrate it so field reps, marketers, and digital channels are orchestrated - not operating in silos?
- How do we use automation to free up people from execution, so they focus on strategy and customer experience?
Once leaders make this mindset shift - from operations enabler to growth driver - the tactical steps fall into place.
To move from utility to growth engine, marketing automation needs to be treated as strategy plus execution at scale:
Start with a blueprint - design the MAP around brand goals, customer engagement models, and integration with field insights.
Unlock advanced features - AI-driven personalization, dynamic content, and predictive journeys should replace static campaigns.
Automate the manual - workflows, templates, and integrations reduce repetitive effort and free up teams for strategy.
Measure impact, not output - shift the lens from “how many emails went out” to “what lift in engagement or uptake did we drive.”
Redefine ownership - MAP cannot sit in marketing ops alone; it needs cross-functional accountability tied to commercial strategy.
When done right, the MAP stops being a cost sink and starts powering faster market execution, smarter engagement, and measurable commercial impact.
Closing the gap in the Age of AI
Today, platforms are no longer just systems of record - they are systems of intelligence.
Marketing automation can anticipate customer behavior, optimize engagement in real time, and free up teams to focus on strategy rather than execution.
Yet in pharma, the gap remains: platforms worth millions are too often running below capacity. The AI features are there but sit idle. Campaigns are executed, but insights aren’t flowing back into brand strategy. Operations run, but orchestration across channels is missing.
Closing this gap is not about more spend - it’s about rearchitecting how teams use what they already have:
The opportunity is bigger than efficiency. It’s about building a learning system for engagement - one that adapts with every interaction and strengthens the brand’s position over time.
In the Age of AI, the real question isn’t whether your MAP is operational. It’s whether it’s making your customer engagement smarter, faster, and more valuable.
Originally published on LinkedIn on September 2, 2025.
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Manvi Kapoor
Founder & Managing Director of ThinkCraft. 10+ years advising global pharma brands on customer engagement, analytics and go-to-market. Guest lecturer at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
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