:: Salesforce / Marketing Cloud
Marketing Cloud consulting that connects to revenue
Marketing Cloud can do a lot, which is why many teams use a fraction of it. We set it up properly, build journeys that respond to what customers do, and connect it to Sales Cloud so marketing can see which campaigns lead to deals.
Journeys and automation
Account Engagement (Pardot)
Connected to Sales Cloud
:: What we do
What our Marketing Cloud consulting covers
B2C journeys, B2B lead nurturing or both.
01
Setup and data model
Business units, sender authentication, data extensions and contact model done right the first time.
02
Journeys
Welcome, onboarding, abandoned cart and re-engagement journeys triggered by real customer behaviour.
03
Account Engagement (Pardot)
Lead scoring, grading, forms and nurture programs for B2B teams, synced with Sales Cloud.
04
Email templates and AMPscript
Reusable, tested templates with personalised content that render well in every major inbox.
05
Segmentation and SQL
Audiences built with SQL queries and filters, refreshed on a schedule.
06
Reporting and attribution
Campaign influence and dashboards that show which campaigns lead to pipeline and revenue.
:: Which Marketing Cloud
Which Salesforce marketing product do you need?
“Marketing Cloud” covers several products. Picking the wrong one is the most expensive mistake we see, so start here.
B2C
Marketing Cloud Engagement
High-volume email, SMS and push with Journey Builder. Suits retailers, travel, media and any business with many consumer contacts.
B2B
Account Engagement (Pardot)
Lead capture, scoring, grading and nurture campaigns tied to Sales Cloud. Suits B2B teams handing leads to sales reps.
Growth
Marketing Cloud Growth and Advanced
Newer editions built on the Salesforce Platform and Data Cloud, for teams that want marketing in the same org as sales and service.
Data
Data Cloud
Brings customer data from web, apps, commerce and other systems into unified profiles for segments and personalisation.
:: How it works
How a Marketing Cloud project runs
A first set of journeys is usually live in six to ten weeks.
Weeks 1 to 2
Audit
Current tools, data sources, consent and campaigns reviewed, and priorities agreed.
Weeks 3 to 5
Set up
Account configuration, data model, sender authentication and Sales Cloud connector.
Weeks 5 to 8
Build
Templates, segments and the first journeys, tested with seed lists.
Weeks 8 to 10
Launch
Journeys live, team training and a results review after the first month.
:: Step by step
Marketing Cloud implementation, step by step
Most marketing automation projects stall on data and consent, not on email design. This is the order we follow.
01
Agree goals and the first campaigns
Pick two or three programmes to launch first, such as a welcome series and lead nurture, and how you will measure them.
02
Set up the account and sending domain
Business units, users, sender authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) and a dedicated IP warm-up plan if volumes need one.
03
Connect Salesforce and your data
Sync leads, contacts and accounts from Sales Cloud, and bring in purchase or product data you will use in segments.
04
Set up consent and preferences
Subscription categories, unsubscribe handling and consent fields that match GDPR, CAN-SPAM and local rules.
05
Build templates and journeys
Reusable templates and content blocks, then the first journeys or Engagement Studio programmes, tested end to end.
06
Report on revenue
Campaign influence and dashboards that show which campaigns touched pipeline and closed deals.
:: Cost and timeline
How much does a Marketing Cloud implementation cost?
Typical prices for our Marketing Cloud work, based on a senior team at $25 to $35 an hour. Marketing Cloud and Account Engagement licences are billed separately by Salesforce.
Account Engagement setup
$5k – $15k
4 to 6 weeks
Pardot connected to Sales Cloud, forms, scoring and grading, two nurture programmes and training.
Marketing Cloud Engagement
$15k – $45k
6 to 12 weeks
Account and domain setup, data model, consent, templates, first journeys and Sales Cloud connector.
Data and personalisation
$45k – $100k+
3 to 6 months
Data Cloud, unified profiles, advanced segments and personalised journeys across channels.
What it costs to run
Licences from Salesforce, usually priced by edition and contact volume, plus the people or agency time to plan and build campaigns each month.
What moves the price
Which product and edition
Number of data sources
Contact volume and channels
Consent rules across countries
Templates and journeys to build
:: Deliverability
Email deliverability and consent checklist
The best journey is worthless if it lands in spam. Check these before your first send.
Set up before you send
SPF, DKIM and DMARC records in place
A branded sending domain and reply address
IP warm-up plan for large volumes
Clear unsubscribe and preference centre
Consent source and date stored per contact
Bounces and complaints monitored
What hurts deliverability
Importing old or bought lists
Sending everything from one domain at once
No double opt-in where it is expected
Ignoring complaint and bounce rates
Image-only emails with no text
:: Why Sterling
What you get
A correctly configured Marketing Cloud account
Live journeys for your key moments
Reusable email templates
Leads synced to Sales Cloud with scores
Campaign reporting tied to pipeline
:: Tools we use
Marketing Cloud Engagement
Account Engagement (Pardot)
Journey Builder
Email Studio
AMPscript
SQL
Data Cloud
Sales Cloud
Tableau
4.9
Average rating on Clutch · 350+ projects since 2019
:: Questions
Questions about Marketing Cloud
What does a Marketing Cloud consultant do?
Marketing Cloud or Account Engagement (Pardot)?
Can you move us from Mailchimp or HubSpot?
How do we prove marketing's impact on revenue?
Do you handle consent and email deliverability?
What is Salesforce Marketing Cloud?
What is Marketing Cloud Account Engagement?
How long does a Pardot implementation take?
How much does Salesforce Marketing Cloud cost?
Do we need Data Cloud for Marketing Cloud?
Can you run our campaigns after setup?
:: Related Salesforce services
Other ways we can help
Send us your brief. We’ll help turn it into reality
A senior engineer replies within one business day with questions or a first plan: approach, team, timeline and estimate.