Is Pardot a CRM? (& Other Implementation Questions)

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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?


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Tom Ryan

2 mins


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With so many automation and customer management technologies available to marketers these days, it’s no surprise that some get confused between marketing automation software versus customer relationship management (CRM) software versus others. 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?
And you’re not alone in pondering these questions. So let’s answer them.



Is Pardot a CRM?
No, Pardot is not classed as a CRM.

I’ve definitely come across businesses attempting to use it as their sole customer relationship management tool but ultimately, this is rarely effective because Pardot is not designed for sales and customer denmark dialing code management (not to be confused with customer nurturing which involves sending emails to customers with brand evangelism in mind, or for cross/upsell campaigns).

The power of Pardot is in its lead generation and lead nurturing capabilities. The purpose of the platform is to grow and manage a database of prospects and leads to the point that they are ready to be handballed to the sales team for purchase or upsell.

This is why you won’t find common CRM features such as quotes or proposal management or the ability to schedule and manage meetings.

Pardot features include lead scoring and grading, email campaign automation, and mark