• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, Yesterday

Marketing and service teams are failing to communicate, and that hurts everything from B2C email to the customer experience. 

To start with, they operate on separate systems -- bouncing consumers between channels, according to Shared Goals, Separate Systems, a new study from Klaviyo conducted by Forrester. 

Of the B2C companies polled, 69% cite retention as their top priority. But only 29% feel these goals are fully supported by their current CRM and engagement tools.

Siloed systems, misaligned KPIs, and fragmented data prevent teams from achieving acting on perfect  alignment.

“Companywide support of the customer journey must include adopting technology and processes that enable employees to work collaboratively across functions,” the study notes. 

But there are other gaps. For instance, while personalization is a top priority for 82% who say it is critical to their goals, only 11% have the tools to deliver it -- and a mere 15% feel they have right tech in place, although 66% say this is critical. 

Among those polled, 46% face disconnected tools and 41% fragmented data.

Yet there is hope: 61% of leaders say collaboration will lead to greater retention, while 55% say it will drive stronger revenue and 53% say it will lead to higher customer lifetime value. 

Among their shared goals over the next 12 to 24 months: 

Increase revenue growth — 53% 

Increase customer retention — 47%

Improve profitability — 41%

Improve customer satisfaction — 37%

Increase customer acquisition — 36%

Increase customer engagement — 33%

Increase customer loyalty/advocacy — 27%

Increase brand awareness — 24% 

“When marketing and service work together, customers feel the difference,” concludes Jamie Domenici, chief marketing officer at Klaviyo. 

Domenici points to Happy Wax, a home fragrance brand. “By unifying their data, they’re able to pause marketing campaigns for any customers with an open issue, ensure their service teams have all the customer context to deliver a fast resolution, and even offer personalized discounts based on what each customer is most likely to purchase next,” he says.

Forrester surveyed 363 global marketers in June 2025.