Too many tools, not enough insight

Published March 22, 2025 | 4 minute read
Written by Lane Goedhart

Why sales and marketing teams are drowning in data silos

Modern go-to-market teams are powered by data, but ironically, data is also what holds them back. Sales and marketing professionals are expected to move fast, execute campaigns, track performance, and adapt in real time. But the tech stack they rely on is often bloated, fragmented, and working against them.

New hires in sales or marketing typically get access to 15-30 different platforms on day one. CRMs. Analytics tools. Campaign builders. Project management platforms. Spreadsheets. Messaging apps. Signature software. The list is endless.

And yet, getting a clear view of what’s working - and what isn’t - is harder than ever.

According to ZoomInfo, the average company now uses over 75 tools. As companies scale, so does their stack. But more software doesn’t mean better insights. It often means more data silos, more confusion, and a widening gap between technical and non-technical teams.

What is a data silo?

A data silo is any repository of information that is isolated from other parts of the organization. In sales and marketing, this happens when different tools track similar metrics without syncing. One team uses the CRM, another uses spreadsheets. One group tracks campaign performance in their ad manager, while another logs conversions in a separate system.

These silos block visibility. Instead of collaboration, they breed misalignment. And instead of data helping teams move faster, it slows everyone down.

The hidden costs of tool overload

When your tools don’t speak the same language, people start translating manually. Marketers copy/paste numbers between dashboards. Sales leaders ping data teams for basic reports. Product teams struggle to understand attribution. Even leadership loses confidence when metrics don’t line up.

This isn’t just a workflow issue. It’s a strategic liability. Here’s what’s really at stake:

• Misaligned metrics: Without shared data, marketing can’t prove its impact on pipeline, and sales can’t trace revenue back to campaigns

• Slower decisions: Critical insights are locked away, requiring manual pulls and team handoffs.

• Lost opportunity: Teams can’t quickly identify what’s working across the funnel, so they miss chances to double down.

• Data distrust: Conflicting sources lead to confusion and erode confidence across teams.

We’ve all seen the Slack threads. The Notion docs titled "can someone pull this?" The recurring standups where people argue over which number is right. These are symptoms of a bigger issue: fragmentation.

Why data silos persist

Silos don’t exist because people want them to. They happen because modern stacks are complex, and integrating them isn’t easy. Teams buy the best tool for their use case - but not necessarily for the company as a whole. Data then gets stored in disconnected systems that don’t talk to each other.

And when integration is possible, it often requires engineering resources or custom code that most go-to-market teams can’t access on their own.

The shift toward unified insight layers

The future of go-to-market isn’t "more tools." It’s fewer tools that work better together. Increasingly, teams are consolidating their stacks and investing in unified data layers that bring everything into one place.

These platforms don’t just integrate data. They make it usable. Insights are easier to access, and everyone (from the SDR to the CMO) can work from the same source of truth.

Even more powerful? The rise of natural language interfaces. Instead of learning SQL or building reports manually, teams can now ask questions in plain language and get instant answers, pulled directly from connected systems.

"Which campaign drove the most revenue last quarter?"
"What’s the win rate for leads from LinkedIn ads?"
"How many users converted after downloading the whitepaper?"

All answered in seconds, without needing a data analyst.

Where teams go from here

The best teams aren’t the ones with the most tools. They’re the ones who can actually use their data. Eliminating silos isn’t just a technical challenge - it’s a strategic advantage.

The companies that win will be the ones who stop drowning in disconnected dashboards and start building shared understanding across every department.

Contributors:

Lane Goedhart is a builder, data enthusiast, and early-stage operator.
Founder Associate @ Lemonado