Audit Your Martech Before You Renew It
Lisa Heay
Summary
Many martech contracts renew at the start of the year, often automatically. This post offers a quick way to review your stack before that happens: build a renewal list, ask five questions about each tool, and decide whether to cancel, renegotiate, or renew with a clear goal.
By Lisa Heay, Vice President of Business Operations at Heinz Marketing
Last month I wrote about what marketing should stop doing in 2027, and one of the first places I suggested looking was your tool stack. This month I want to go a little deeper on that, because the timing matters as the year winds down.
A lot of martech contracts renew at the start of the year. Many of them renew automatically. And once that invoice is paid, you’re usually locked in for another twelve months, whether anyone is using the tool or not. We’ve been there, locked into a laser-tight contract we couldn’t do anything about.
That makes the next few weeks one of the best windows of the year to take a hard look at what you’re paying for.
If you’re planning a full stack overhaul, I covered that process earlier this year in How to Simplify Your MarTech Stack Without Losing Functionality. This post is the quicker version, including five questions to ask about each tool before your renewal hits.
First, build your renewal list
You can’t evaluate what you can’t see. Start with a simple list of every tool your team pays for, including the ones on someone’s personal credit card. For each one, note:
- The renewal date
- The cancellation notice window
- The annual cost
- Who owns it internally
That second item is the one people miss. Plenty of contracts require 30, 60, or even 90 days’ notice to cancel or change your plan. If your renewal is January 1, your real deadline might already be close.
The tools you know about are easy. The ones that cause trouble are the ones nobody remembers buying. Check expense reports, monthly financials, and company credit card statements for recurring charges. You could also look at the apps connected to your Google or Microsoft accounts. And ask your team directly, because someone always has a tool they signed up for “just for one project.”
5 questions to ask before you renew
- Who would notice if it disappeared tomorrow?
This is a better test than “who has a login.” If the honest answer is nobody, or one person who uses it twice a quarter, that tells you a lot. If a whole team would be stuck, that tells you something, too.
- Are we using what we’re paying for?
Compare the seats you pay for to the people who actually log in. Then look at the features in your tier. It’s common to pay for an enterprise plan and use a starter plan’s worth of it. Sometimes the answer isn’t cancel…it’s downgrade.
- Does something we already own do this now?
Platforms change fast, and a lot of them added features (and AI) this year. Your CRM, your marketing automation platform, or your project management tool may now cover what used to require a separate platform subscription. Check before you renew your separate tools.
- What is it connected to?
Some tools look small but sit in the middle of everything. Before you cancel, find out what data flows in and out, which workflows depend on it, and what would break if it was gone tomorrow. Also make sure you know how to export your data, and do it before the contract ends.
- Would we buy it again today?
Forget what it cost to implement and how long you’ve had it. That’s in the past now. If someone pitched you this tool tomorrow, at this price, would you sign? If you hesitate, that’s worth paying attention to.
What to do with the answers
Once you’ve run each tool through these questions, it should land in one of three places. If you read last month’s post, these will look familiar:
Stop: cancel it. Send your cancellation notice in writing, inside the notice window. Export your data first, and let anyone who used the tool know what’s changing and what replaces it, if anything.
Fix: renegotiate or right-size it. If the tool is worth keeping but the contract isn’t, have the conversation now. Ask about a lower tier, fewer seats, or a better rate. Vendors would usually rather keep you at a lower price than lose you completely. And if adoption is the real problem, assign an owner and a plan to get the team using it.
Scale: renew it with intention. For the tools that are truly working, renew with a clear goal for the year ahead. You could also explore if a multi-year agreement or an expanded plan may make sense, because you know this tool earns its keep.
How to have a renewal conversation
Most vendors expect some kind of negotiation at renewal time, even if they don’t advertise it. Going in prepared makes it a much easier conversation. Here’s how to approach it:
- Bring your usage data. “We’re paying for 25 seats and 9 people log in” is a strong opening.
- Ask what changed in your price. Many renewals include an automatic increase. Ask for it to be waived or capped.
- Time it well. Sales teams often have more flexibility near the end of their quarter or year.
- Ask about other options. A lower tier, fewer seats, or a shorter term are all fair requests.
- Get it in writing. Make sure any change shows up in the renewal paperwork, not just an email.
Make it a habit
The point isn’t to cut tools just because. It’s to make sure every dollar invested in your tech stack is doing something useful. Put your renewal dates on a shared calendar, set reminders well ahead of each notice window, and do a lighter version of this review every year. Your future self and your finance team will thank you.
Next month, I’ll take on another year-end cleanup job: getting your data in shape before the new year.
If you’d like help sorting out your stack before renewals hit, Heinz Marketing can help. Email us at acceleration@heinzmarketing.com.
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