Pardot vs. Marketing Cloud: Key Differences

When researching marketing automation on the Salesforce platform, you will be faced with two options: Pardot or Marketing Cloud. But what are the key differences when it comes to Pardot vs Marketing Cloud?

Both tools appear to have some similarities, on the surface. To add to the confusion, Pardot was renamed “Marketing Cloud Account Engagement” in 2022. Dig deeper, and you’ll find that Marketing Cloud and Pardot (Account Engagement) are distinct from one another.

Confused? you’re not alone. I worked as a Salesforce marketing automation consultant and was frequently asked questions like:

• Do Marketing Cloud and Pardot do the same thing?
• Is Pardot part of Marketing Cloud?
• Is one the ‘dummies’ version of the other? In other words, is one the low budget/small business/no technical skill option?

The answer to all the above questions is no.

So, how is Pardot different from Marketing Cloud? I’m going to compare ‘Pardot vs Marketing Cloud’, debunk some myths, and provide you with some questions to ask yourself (so you can come to your own conclusions).

Note: this is not a feature-by-feature comparison. You’ll find a functionality breakdown at the end of this article. 

The Differences Between Pardot and Marketing Cloud

Ask the question, and the “quick” response will be along the lines of “Marketing Cloud is for B2C marketing, and Pardot (Account Engagement) is for B2B marketing”. I guarantee you that specialists out there will be 🤦‍♀️ 🤦 right now. 

Pardot (Account Engagement) is used for ‘considered purchases’ where there are long sales cycles and multiple decision-makers – which is typical of B2B, but not exclusively. Marketing Cloud is best suited to transactional purchases across multiple marketing channels – which is typical of B2C, but not exclusively. As time goes on, you’ll find more examples of organizations marketing to consumers that will be making a considered purchase, and on the flip side, more accounts (B2B) making transactional purchases, in high-volume, such as self-service commerce.  

With that established, let’s see the Marketing Cloud vs Pardot breakdown.

*As Pardot is closely integrated with the Salesforce platform, customers can take advantage of Salesforce functionality or trusted third-party providers, for SMS, advertising, and more. 

**Social Studio, Marketing Cloud’s social media listening product, is scheduled for retirement. 

***WYSIWYG: What You See Is What You Get.

Frequently Asked Questions (and Debunking Myths)

‘Is Pardot a part of Marketing Cloud?’ and ‘Is Pardot Included in Marketing Cloud?’

It depends on how you interpret ‘part of’, which could mean two things:

• Built on the same product architecture.
• Marketed under the same brand umbrella.

Built on the same product architecture = no, Pardot is partly on its own platform, and partly on the core Salesforce platform. Marketing Cloud still exists on its own, not on the core Salesforce platform. Despite being renamed “Marketing Cloud Account Engagement”, the two do not function together, nor are sold together. Marketing Cloud still exists on its own, not on the core Salesforce platform. 

Marketed under the same brand umbrella = yes, Pardot (Account Engagement) is under the Marketing Cloud brand. 

Pardot (Account Engagement) has been through multiple transitions – first independent, then aligned with Sales Cloud (as the two became increasingly integrated), and now under the ‘Marketing Cloud’ brand with the tagline “Marketing Cloud Account Engagement powered by Pardot.”

‘Pardot is an email marketing tool’:

Sure, the primary channel Pardot (Account Engagement) handles is email; however, you would be a fool to conclude that Pardot only handles email marketing. 

Pardot (Account Engagement) is designed to automatically segment your database in line with prospect behavior, prospect firmographic data, and what’s happening in your CRM. You can combine these data points and only send emails when relevant – that’s where you will get value out of Pardot and justify its price tag.

However, Pardot (Account Engagement) does handle other channels:  

• Considered purchases require a link to Salesforce Opportunities and a tactful, human ‘high-touch’ approach from a sales rep.
• The tools available in Pardot for social posting, SMS, etc. are not as fully-fledged/at your fingertips as they are in Marketing Cloud. Marketing Cloud has dedicated ‘Studios’ and ‘Builders’ for each marketing channel. 

“Pardot is for organizations with smaller budgets”:

While it’s true that Pardot has a lower license price point, it’s not as simple as that!

Organizations of all sizes and budgets use Pardot. Unfortunately, some organizations are tempted by the lower price point and opt for Pardot for this reason alone – rather than Marketing Cloud, even if it is a better-suited option.

These organizations may find that they spend more time and money on customizations and integrations in the long run – the saying ‘don’t cut corners’ is very true in this instance.

‘Pardot is for non-technical teams, without technical resource in-house’:

As I highlighted under ‘technical knowledge and skills required’ in the comparison table, Pardot (Account Engagement) has been designed to be WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get). This keeps users from delving ‘under the hood’, which makes Pardot harder to ‘break’. To truly maximize Pardot, however, you do need specialists on hand with both technical skills and marketing acumen – otherwise, you will be restricted to ‘cookie-cutter’ use cases.

In a standard setup without too many complex, non-standard processes, Pardot can be managed by a certified Pardot Specialist, with ‘clicks not code’.

Examples of how Pardot may need to be stretched are below: 

Marketing Cloud has a range of ‘Builders’ and ‘Studios’, some of which require specialization. Data management in Marketing Cloud is more complex than in Pardot, often requiring development knowledge. 

Having said that, once a Marketing Cloud is set up in line with the datasets/segmentation/ETL activities a marketing team needs, it can be used by a non-developer quite comfortably. Plus, the Salesforce partner network (ISVs) are bridging gaps to make this even easier, such as drag-and-drop segmentation.

To summarize, the time required to learn Pardot (Account Engagement) is far less than Marketing Cloud. 

Can You Use Both Marketing Cloud and Pardot?

Yes! You can use Marketing Cloud and Pardot together if you have the budget to spend! It’s usually a case of:

• Organizations don’t have the budget for both, and so ‘shoehorn’ the processes they would have implemented in the other platform into the one platform.
• Organizations do have the budget for both, but aren’t aware they need both.

So, perhaps it’s not a case of ‘Pardot vs Marketing Cloud’ after all. Here’s an inside view of how Hermann Miller uses Pardot and Marketing Cloud together:

Using Salesforce Marketing Cloud and Pardot Together – a Story of Two Cars

If you identify the use cases, then it’s worth considering using both solutions. BUT try not to get carried away with the shiny toys. There are ways to adapt Pardot for B2C marketing (one project I worked on – I don’t recommend it), and ways to adapt Marketing Cloud for B2B marketing.

As I said before, don’t simply choose Pardot for its cheaper price tag if you know, deep down, you have a B2C use case.

Which Is Right for You?

Hopefully, the information so far has helped ‘lift the fog’ and point you in the right direction. Here are some questions you can ask yourself:

• Does your organization have ‘considered purchases’ where there are long sales cycles and multiple decision-makers? = Use Pardot
• Is your sales process managed with Leads and Salesforce Opportunities? = Use Pardot
• Does your organization have ‘transactional purchases’ across multiple marketing channels? (and e-commerce) = Use Marketing Cloud

Summary

There are key differences between Pardot and Marketing Cloud – factors such as how long your sales cycle lasts, how many decision-makers influence it, and which marketing channels you use heavily, will clearly guide you towards which tool you should use.

Still unsure? There are plenty of Salesforce consultancies that will be able to advise you further. Finally, try not to make quick, rash buying decisions; go into the evaluation stages of your Pardot/Marketing Cloud with your mind clearer on the factors you should be considering. Is it a case of Pardot vs Marketing Cloud, or Pardot and Marketing Cloud?

Appendix: Functionality Breakdown

Although this matrix shows which ‘boxes’ each platform ticks, remember that what this can tell you is limited. What may appear as lacking in one tool is likely because it is far stronger in other areas; for example, Pardot appears to have gaps with some marketing channels, however, this is because its focus is on the Salesforce object connection and data sync.

Plus. it’s best to explore which Marketing Cloud add-on products are compatible with Pardot. For example, your use case may suit Pardot better but you also want to use Advertising Studio (yes, that’s a possible combination!)

*Social Studio, Marketing Cloud’s social media listening product, is scheduled for retirement. 

**You can do campaign reporting in Marketing Cloud, however, when it comes to Salesforce Campaigns, Pardot’s capabilities are much further advanced, aiding you to do Campaign Influence reporting.