Tom Ryan

3 Predictions for Marketing Cloud by MarCloud’s CEO

Reasons Marketers Struggle with Pardot ROI Reporting

Proving return on marketing investment is the ultimate goal for any marketer and Account Engagement (Pardot) makes doing so much more achievable. However, accurate Pardot ROI reporting depends on a whole host of factors.

Introducing Marketing Cloud Training by MarCloud

Contrary to popular belief, when consultancies give away the ‘secret sauce’ of marketing automation, they are not shooting themselves in the foot. In our experience, publishing resources that guide customers using platforms like Marketing Cloud only serves to benefit us both. After all, you can’t trust somebody who hides what they do behind smoke and mirrors, right?

The Importance of Pardot UTM Parameters

Let’s start by saying that UTM parameters sound way more technical than they are. We’re not talking about a piece of code or script that requires a developer or your IT team to get involved. UTM parameters can be created and used by all marketers and when it comes to Account Engagement (aka Pardot) they’re vital, for a few reasons.

Pardot User Roles Explained: From Default to Custom

Whether you’re implementing Pardot (now called Account Engagement) for the first time, or onboarding a new team member who needs access to Pardot, you’ll need to understand the various Pardot user roles and permission sets.

Quiz: Are You Ready for Salesforce Data Cloud?

Salesforce Data Cloud is a customer data platform (CDP) that integrates with Sales Cloud and Marketing Cloud out-of-the-box, which means it’s much easier to implement than other CDPs. Don’t mistake this to mean you can jump in and get setup right away though.

New Account Engagement (Pardot) Specialist Exam by MarCloud

True expertise in Marketing Cloud Account Engagement (Pardot) comes from spending a large amount of time and dedication on the platform.

Preparing for Data Cloud: Essential Resources

You may have heard that Enterprise and Ultimate Sales Cloud customers are getting access to a free Data Cloud account; a powerful customer data platform that enables businesses to leverage real-time insights and customer data for better marketing.

Quiz: Salesforce Marketing Cloud vs Pardot

To help you uncover which is the right platform for you, Marketing Cloud Engagement or Pardot (Account Engagement), we've created a quick and fun quiz!

A Guide to Salesforce Marketing Tools [eBook]

Marketers can be easily forgiven for being confused about which are the right Salesforce marketing tools for their business.

How to Automate Lead Assignment for Salesforce Platforms

Lead assignment in Salesforce is crucial for making sure sales-ready leads reach the right person to make contact, at the right time.

Making Sense of Marketing Cloud Connect

We can help you manage Salesforce Sales Cloud with Pardot and other systems front of mind. Ensure your marketing ecosystem is working well!

A Guide to Pardot SEO: Dos & Don’ts

Just because pages are created in Account Engagement (Pardot) doesn’t mean they don’t form part of your overall website SEO.

5 Reasons to Use Einstein for Marketing Cloud

In the Salesforce ecoystem, Einstein for Marketing Cloud is an AI tool that analyses and provides insights about both your audience and marketing activities.

How Connected is Your Marketing Cloud Customer Journey?

To help plan and execute an effective Marketing Cloud customer journey, MarCloud Founder, Tom Ryan, put together the ultimate handbook.

Marketing Cloud Webinar: Marketing on One Platform

Recently, I hosted a Marketing Cloud webinar that demonstrated how to run your entire marketing approach via integrated Salesforce products.

Where to Begin: Your Martech Solution or Strategy?

Just like the chicken and the egg scenario, there are two ways to approach digital marketing: martech solution-first, or strategy-first.

Pardot Domain Setup: A Step-by-Step Guide

Clients or consultants don't need to be anxious about their Pardot domain setup. It's pretty easy when you know what to do. Here's a guide!

How to Set Up Your Pardot Tracker Domain

Implementing Pardot (now called Account Engagement) comes with two types of domain setup, one of which is what we call creating a ‘tracker domain’.

The 7 Deadly Sins of Pardot [Infographic]

Marketing automation software usually comes with a learning curve, and Pardot is no exception. Find out what we consider to be the seven deadliest sins of Pardot in this handy infographic.

What is B2B Marketing Analytics Plus?

We love to rave about B2B Marketing Analytics for Pardot. What some users don’t realise though, is that there is a superior version of B2B Marketing Analytics available too: B2B Marketing Analytics Plus.

5 Reasons To Use Pardot Advanced & Business Units

There comes a point in time when the Pardot Plus edition reaches its limits. When this happens, it’s usually time to upgrade to Pardot Advanced. See some common scenarios that illustrate when you might need to upgrade.

How Many Marketing Automation Specialists Do You Really Need?

Depending on the scope of your activity now and into the future, it’s likely you’ll need an entire team focused solely on your automation activities. This is because there are many skills required.

What is Pardot Engagement Studio? Basics to Brilliance eBook

Whether you’re an old hat at Engagement Studio or you’re just getting started – we’ve created a free eBook resource to help you go from basic to brilliant.

How Long Does it Take to Learn Pardot?

Newbies to the Pardot platform face a steep learning curve. Despite its great user experience and ease of navigation, there are so many features and possibilities for sophisticated marketing automation within Pardot, it’s easy to be overwhelmed

Reduce Pardot Automation Rules With Conditional Completion Actions

Thanks to Conditional Completion Actions, we’re able to greatly reduce the number of Pardot Automation Rules required for Grading.

New Pardot Training Course: On-Demand & Practical Lessons

We’ve decided to provide training in the ‘MarCloud’ way; with a focus on practical, actionable guides and insights, and most importantly, avoiding a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.

Creating Email Templates for Dark Mode: Marketing Cloud & MCAE

How relevant is dark mode to your email campaigns? Very! So why you might go to the effort of making an email template for dark mode?

Top Salesforce Marketing Cloud Email Studio Features

Salesforce Marketing Cloud Email Studio is capable of much more than you probably think. At MarCloud, we have personal favourite features that take client campaigns from standard to sophisticated.

Is Pardot a CRM? (& Other Implementation Questions)

If you’re just starting down the Pardot (aka MCAE) implementation road, perhaps you find yourself asking is Pardot a CRM? Do I need both Pardot and a CRM?

Salesforce Marketing Cloud: An Eloqua Alternative

You may have already heard that Oracle is laying off hundreds of its employees primarily focused on the advertising and customer experience group. This could massively impact Eloqua customers and for some, it will be the beginning of a search for Eloqua alternatives.

MarCloud Shortlisted for B2B Agency of the Year

We’re thrilled when our hard work is recognised in the wider industry. That’s why we’re happy to announce that MarCloud is shortlisted for B2B Agency of the Year in the 2022 UK Agency Awards!

MarCloud is Now ISO 27001 Certified!

MarCloud have reached a significant milestone in achieving our ISO 27001 certification - an internationally recognised and credible standard of client data management and security!

Pardot Conditional Completion Action Ideas

Pardot Conditional Completion Actions aren’t actually available at the time of writing this blog but at MarCloud we’re pretty excited that it’s coming. So excited in fact, that we want to write down some ideas here!

What Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Means for Consultancies

It's time to say farewell to 'Pardot' and hello to 'Marketing Cloud Account Engagement'! Let's take a look at what the name change means for Marketing Cloud consultancies and freelancers alike.

Are Pardot & Marketing Cloud Account Engagement the Same?

Salesforce have announced that Pardot will now be known as Marketing Cloud Account Engagement. So does this mean that the platform will stay the same? What changes can we expect?

Pardot is Renamed Marketing Cloud Account Engagement

The name ‘Pardot' will soon be no more - Pardot is changing its name to Marketing Cloud Account Engagement. Find out what this means for you and your team using the platform.

What Do Salesforce Pardot Consultants Actually Do?

What is a Salesforce Pardot Consultant, and why consider engaging one for your business? We share the daily tasks and support a consultant can provide.

7 Useful Marketing Automation Tips

Seven tips to help you get the most out of your marketing automation platform - from content creation, to organisation!

Campaign Influence: How MarCloud Uses Pardot

Instructional blogs can sometimes be a little theoretical. So to give you a better idea of how to make the most of Pardot, we show you how MarCloud uses Campaign Influence.

From Form Handlers to Forms: Tips and Tricks for Switching Over

When it comes to collecting certain kinds of information from your prospects, there are two options: Pardot forms and handlers. We run you through which option to use, and when.

A Pardot Introduction for Beginners [Video]

Learn more about your Pardot account, what you should be looking at, and how to use it - so you can spend more time taking advantage of Pardot's clever tricks and features!

How to Set Up a Pardot-Only User

Whilst managing all of our users in Salesforce is now the holy grail, occasionally, we may need to create Pardot-only users. This post contains a step-by-step guide to make life easy for you.

The Pardot Business Units Implementation Guide

Your go-to comprehensive Pardot Business Units Implementation Guide with considerations and exercises to ensure you're set up for success.

Pardot Winter 22 Release Highlights: Webinar & Live Demo

The Pardot Winter 22 release is here and there is a lot to unpack! So what does this mean for Pardot users? In a recent webinar with Director of Product Management at Salesforce, Kylie Yancey, we took a look at the features.

4 Ideas for Marketing Cloud Interactive Email Forms

When used strategically Marketing Cloud Interactive Email Forms can be hugely powerful for prospect engagement. Here are four of the ways we like to use them.

How to Use Salesforce Marketing Cloud & Pardot Together

Depending on your core marketing channels, for any business it can actually be very effective to use both Salesforce Marketing Cloud and Pardot for great results.

How to Prepare for the Pardot Lightning Landing Page Builder

Much like the Lightning Email Builder released towards the end of 2020, the new Landing Page Builder means the way we build landing pages is about to get a whole lot easier.

Managing Non-Profit Volunteer Recruitment With Pardot

When it comes to managing non-profit volunteer recruitment activity, it’s certainly not something that should be taken lightly. Here are four ways Pardot can support your efforts.

SaaS Marketing Automation: Webinar & Live Demo

If you’re a business that operates under a Software as a Service (SaaS) model, then this webinar will demonstrate the technical applications of setting up and maintaining lead capture and prospect nurture journeys for better business outcomes.

Introducing the New Business Card Scanner App for Pardot

Introducing the new Business Card Scanner app for Pardot! Pardot users can now import prospect information to their account instantly with the Pardot Business Card Scanner app from MarCloud Technologies. Read on to hear about all the powerful features!

Pardot Webinar: Marketing Through the Customer Journey

Watch as we held an exclusive webinar that walked Pardot users through best-practice marketing automation strategies and talked about what other customers are doing to achieve results within their vertical.

Pardot Marketing Calendar for Account Hygiene [DOWNLOAD]

Even with all the right tools, it can be hard to keep track of when you need to do everything. Not with the free Pardot marketing calendar.

How to Organise Your Pardot Account Like a Pro [EBOOK]

We make it our mission to ensure you’re getting the most out of your marketing automation activity. Here's how to keep your Pardot account organised!

MarCloud Shortlisted for B2B Marketing 2021 Martech Awards

In the B2B Marketing 2021 Martech Awards, MarCloud has been shortlisted for two awards! As well as sharing the news, this is an invitation to join us in the live Martech Awards ceremonies on LinkedIn this 24-25 March.

An Epic Example of Pardot Dynamic Content for Blogs

Just for fun, we've created a blog that's entirely made of Pardot dynamic content. It's not great for SEO but it's a great example of creatively using dynamic content. Fill in the form below to choose which blog content you want to see! 

B2B Marketer’s Handbook: Pardot Grading & Scoring That Works [EBOOK]

Having the ability to grade and score prospects in Pardot is one of the most exciting features. Download this free Pardot Scoring & Grading Handbook to guide your own models and plans, including real world examples.

Pardot Grading & Scoring Worksheet [FREE DOWNLOAD]

Understanding how Pardot grading and scoring works is different from being able to plan and implement customised models. The Pardot Grading & Scoring Worksheet is an interactive tool for marketers to use to plan their own models.

Pardot Lightning Email Builder: Webinar with Live Demo

In previous blogs, we’ve run through the main capabilities and setup steps for Pardot’s new Drag-and-Drop Email Builder. Recently, I was invited to co-host a webinar with Pardot specialists so users can see first-hand how the feature works.

MarCloud Consulting Wins Global PR & Marketing Excellence Award

MarCloud Consulting has been awarded Campaign of the Year’ in the 2020 Public Relations and Marketing Excellence Awards! Presented by the Business Intelligence Group, in recognition of quantifiable business results.

What Do We Need For Great Pardot Lead Generation?

The end-to-end process of lead generation can feel like having a dozen balls in the air at once, particularly when it’s done 100% manually. Pardot lead generation automates the repetitive parts, if we have the right basics in place.

Why Outsourced Marketing Automation Services Should Be Agile

Finding marketing automation services can be an overwhelming task. As automation software continues to become a necessity, there are plenty of new providers cropping up to help businesses capitalise on their technology investment.

Automation as a Marketing Career Path: Q&A With An Expert

When it comes to choosing a marketing career path, there are plenty of options. From the creative side of copywriting, web and graphic design, to strategy and account management, there are specialist roles in all sorts of areas.

Pardot vs HubSpot vs Marketo - What’s the Difference?

These three automation software are consistently in the top 10 rankings by G2 and other reputable sources. In the interest of helping you understand how; Pardot vs Hubspot vs Marketo, compare, let’s discuss their differences.

A Complete Guide to Pardot Campaign Reporting & Multi-Touch Attribution

Achieving accurate Pardot campaign reporting is a challenge many marketers face. So I started this  blog post intending to clear up some questions about campaign attribution that I get asked frequently

The Pardot Audit Checklist: Your Guide to Success

Ready to run a Pardot audit on your account but not sure where to start? A Pardot audit is essential to keeping a healthy account. So, we’ve got a handy Pardot Audit Checklist right here that will guide you through each step.

How To Embed Dynamic Content On Your Website

Pardot's dynamic content is super useful for emails and form thank you content but did you know you can use it on your website too? Watch our video on how to use Pardot dynamic content on your website.

Pardot Business Units: What You Need to Know

Pardot Business Units is a great new feature to help larger organisations structure their marketing teams and manage data. It's key to think about how best to structure your account before jumping in! We break it down for you here.

Pardot Connected Campaigns

Pardot Connected Campaigns align Pardot campaigns to Salesforce campaigns and means there's complete alignment for your reporting across both systems. If you're not using this, take a look at how to turn it on and why it's so powerful.

Pardot Layout Templates: The Ultimate Guide

First things first – why do you need Pardot Layout Templates? I get asked this question a lot and I'll go over that in this blog. Read on for a comprehensive guide to developing responsive Pardot Landing Pages, Forms and Emails.

Pardot Marketing & Automation Statistics 2020

Deciding on the right marketing automation tool for your business? Here's a collection of stats about Pardot marketing and automation in 2020. What better way to illustrate the power of Pardot for your B2B marketing.

Pardot vs Marketing Cloud: What’s the Difference?

When you compare the features of Pardot, with the features of Marketing Cloud, you’ll see a lot of the same functionality. So when it comes to Pardot vs Marketing Cloud, what are the difference

Top 10 Marketing Automation Online Resources We Love

Your daily dose of marketing automation tips and guidance from experts with great online resources. If you have a desire to really diversify your understanding of this tech and become advanced in automation theory too, read on.

The Best Pardot Feature List For Marketers 2019

Here is our Best Pardot Feature List’, published for any marketers currently considering Pardot! We give you 11 of the best features you need to know about to ensure you're getting the most out of your marketing automation investment.

Why Pardot? MarCloud Founder Tom Ryan Shares His Story

When choosing between various marketing automation tools for your business, you’ll likely ask yourself; why Pardot? In this blog you'll learn why Pardot is the automation platform of choice for MarCloud Founder Tom Ryan.

Pardot Reporting & Proving Marketing Attribution Using Salesforce

Setting up the best marketing attribution model in Pardot can help you to prove which campaigns are contributing towards conversions and won deals in Salesforce. Level up your Pardot reporting with this tool!

9 Features to Look For in a Marketing Automation Platform

Here's how to determine which features you actually need to produce engaging content, capture and nurture leads, and create a more sophisticated approach to your marketing activity.

Benefits of using Pardot Forms over Pardot Form Handlers

It's a question I get asked often, why move over to Pardot forms rather than use Pardot form handler and keeping the same process? Here's why I recommend

Why B2B Marketing Automation is the Key to Demonstrating ROI

The power of a full-scale b2b marketing automation software to help you demonstrate ROI can't be debated. It allows you to show the journey of your prospects from their initial touchpoint online, to their moment of conversion.

Pardot Agency vs. Freelance Consultant: Your Options Explained

As if getting to grips with Pardot wasn’t testing enough, finding external support comes with challenges! Get help deciding whether to recruit a freelance consultant for your Pardot requirements or employ a go-to Pardot agency.

Pardot Automation Rule Criteria for Number Fields

Don’t you just hate it when you want to quickly find a sentence from the Pardot documentation that validates what you thought, but what you thought would take 2 minutes eventually turns into an endless searching. Let's go over how to save time.

The Most Common Salesforce Pardot Integration Mistakes to Avoid

If you're just about to do your Salesforce Pardot integration, stop and read this article first! I will share the most common Pardot Salesforce integration mistakes and also explain why these need to be avoided.

Pardot Quick Start Basics: 6 Steps to Get You Running Smoothly

Pardot quick start packages usually aim to get you up and running fast, so you can begin automating marketing processes. However, for those who would rather do this work in-house, getting started with Pardot is potentially challenging.

What to Expect from Your Pardot Partner

Don't get caught up with a Pardot partner that can't deliver what you need. As you venture into the MA world or seek to upgrade your automation capabilities, consider these points when choosing your support.

What is Pardot & is it Right for Your Business?

Pardot is a Salesforce marketing automation software that has a broad range of features that makes running and measuring marketing campaigns from a single place easy. Learn what Pardot is and how it can help your marketing team.

Pardot & Salesforce Email Marketing - Opting Prospects Back In

The Pardot Engagement Studio is a powerful piece of marketing tech that can transform your marketing campaigns and automate the customer journey. This blog covers the process needed to opt somebody back into Salesforce.

How to Approach Pardot Lead Nurturing With The Engagement Studio

The Pardot Engagement Studio is a powerful piece of marketing tech. This article looks at the marketing methodology behind it and how you can use this tool to send the right message to the right people at the right time.

Preparing For The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - Guidance For Marketers

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation and it is the Europeans policing and protection for the processing of personal information of individuals. If you were confused by all the grey areas, here's a simplified guide for marketers.

Pardot Campaigns Quick Audit: Visualising the System

An audit of your Pardot campaigns gives you a chance to take a step back, breathe, and gather your thoughts. Following this, it gives a new perspective. Here I cover how to do a quick audit of your Pardot set up by visualising what you need.

7 Benefits of Pardot Landing Pages

Pardot landing pages provide many benefits and can be as flexible as you need them to be. By the end of this guide we hope you feel more equipped to make a confident decision about which landing page tool you're going to use.

Ideas For Your Next Pardot Engagement Studio

The Pardot Engagement Studio is a powerful piece of marketing tech that can transform your marketing campaigns and automate the customer journey.

Pardot Reporting: How To Justify Your Marketing Spend

The goal for any marketer is to be able to build marketing campaigns, track performance and show leads generated as a direct result of marketing to the rest of the business. Let's go over how Pardot reporting works.

Account-Based Marketing Ideas For Pardot's Engagement Studio

With Pardot's Engagement Studio, Accounts Based Marketing has become much easier to implement as users are able to build out a flexible framework that you can tailor to each account. Let's go over it in more detail.

Pardot Marketing With the Engagement Studio: An Overview

You've invested in Pardot and now have access to numerous features and functionality with powerful capability. How do you even begin drawing up a plan? Here's some useful advice to spark ideas on drawing up a solid plan.

How To Convert More Leads With Marketing Automation Tools

Inbound marketing is even more effective when combined with marketing automation. In this article we cover both in detail and outline how you can convert more leads by combining the two together in your marketing efforts.

Pardot Content Regions 101

Pardot content regions can be used to save time and ensure your templates are secure and replicable. Here we take a look at Pardot best practice with some practical examples to get you fully clued up on how to use content regions.

Understanding the Pardot Engagement Studio

Need ideas for your next Pardot Engagement Studio? Get inspired and learn how to manipulate the tool by reading our overview of the Engagement Studio here. In this article, we ensure you have the tools to grasp the basics.

Integrating your SaaS platform with Salesforce and Pardot

Take a look at how your SaaS platform can integrate with Salesforce and Pardot with this free systems architecture diagram designed by Macram. The illustration visualises the SaaS platform, Salesforce, Pardot systems architecture and more.

Using Blended Pardot Lead Scoring & Grading In Your Pardot Strategy

Scoring & grading can excel your Pardot strategy to the next level. In this blog you'll learn more about a blended scoring & grading model and how to follow best practice. Read on if you're ready to excel your strategy and gain some tips.

Best Practice Pardot Tutorials: Managing Data with Pardot & Salesforce

I've put together this quick Pardot tutorial for managing data between Pardot and Salesforce because it’s not always the case that the reports I've mentioned accurately reflect the true scenario. It includes a visual illustration of the two.

How to use Pardot Repeat Automation Rules

Pardot Repeat Automation Rules are a game changer and can revolutionise the way your marketing automation tool is set up. Learn how to use them here.

Infographic: Getting To Know the Pardot Lifecycle Report

Need help understanding the Pardot Lifecycle Report? Wondering; what is a Pardot MQL? How does Pardot define a SQL? Get up to speed with the different lifecycle stages with this helpful, free infographic from MarCloud.

Why Custom Code Your Pardot Landing Page Templates

If there’s one thing I’d like you to take away from this blog, it’s that Account Engagement (Pardot) landing pages are as versatile as any other landing page platform. They can be as flexible as you need them to be - especially when you use custom code rather than the drag-and-drop page builder.

The Pardot Implementation Guide For Marketing Managers

Choosing to implement Pardot as your marketing automation platform of choice is a big decision as it takes a lot of time researching and planning how the platform will fit within your organisation. Read through our comprehensive guide.

Pardot Retargeting in the Engagement Studio - What You Need To Know

Pardot retargeting. It's a thing. With the Engagement Studio, it's opened doors for how you engage with prospects. It’s time to harness the power of Pardot retargeting using the Engagement Studio. Read on for a comprehensive guide.

12 Brilliant Pardot Tips From a Certified Expert

Pardot tips to help you get the most out of your automation platform. Start optimising your marketing activity with these quick wins and useful tricks!

Pardot Integration With Salesforce CRM For Streamlining Sales

Salesforce & Pardot are perfect partners and their integration is remarkable. Find out what its all about here and why the pair work so well together.

Perform a Pardot Automation Audit & Start Getting More Value

A Pardot audit will allow you to understand the areas in which you are performing well and identify where you need to improve. Get to grips with it here.

Optimising Sales Processes With Pardot Scoring

Marketing automation can be the key driver in optimising sales processes for your business. Here's an example of how this can be set up in Pardot.

3 Reasons You Should Audit Your Pardot Marketing Automation Account

Find out what a Pardot audit actually is, what it really means to you and the actionable recommendations that come subsequently. A must read for Pardot users!

Four New Year Resolutions for Your B2B Marketing Automation Strategy

It's the time of year when marketers begin to consider their goals for the new year, how to improve their marketing automation programs, and what new nurture programs they can create. Here are four new year's resolutions for your BSB marketing automation strategy.