If you’re a B2B marketer or sales manager, you’ve probably seen a dozen tools promising to “streamline your workflows” and “align your teams.” It all sounds great—until you try to untangle what actually makes one platform better than another for your real-world needs. This guide is for you if you want to compare Ortto with other top B2B go-to-market (GTM) software and cut through the noise to make a smart, practical choice.
Let’s break down how to actually compare Ortto with other leading GTM tools—so you can spend less time researching and more time closing deals.
1. Get Clear on Your Actual, Specific Needs
Start simple: What’s genuinely broken or slow in your sales and marketing process? “Streamlining workflows” is nice, but you need to pinpoint the pain:
- Lead qualification taking too long?
- Sales and marketing don’t know what each other are doing?
- Manual work eating up time (think: lead routing, reporting, follow-ups)?
- Not enough insight on what’s working?
Write down your top 3–5 problems. If you don’t, you’ll end up comparing features you’ll never use.
Pro tip: If you’re not sure what the main issues are, ask the people actually doing the work. The gap between what leadership thinks and what’s actually slowing things down is usually pretty wide.
2. Know What Ortto Actually Does (and Doesn’t)
Ortto bills itself as an all-in-one platform for B2B marketing automation, customer journeys, analytics, and (to some extent) CRM. Here’s what you’re really getting:
- Visual customer journey builder: Drag-and-drop workflows for emails, SMS, in-app messaging, and more.
- Audience segmentation: Decent tools for slicing up your database based on actions or attributes.
- Reporting and dashboards: Built-in analytics, though not as deep as dedicated BI tools.
- CRM-lite: Basic contact, deal, and pipeline management (but not a full-on Salesforce replacement).
- Native integrations: Connects to popular tools like Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, and Zapier.
What Ortto isn’t: - It’s not a full enterprise CRM. - It won’t replace your data warehouse or advanced analytics stack. - The automation is solid, but not as granular as, say, Marketo or Pardot for complex enterprise workflows.
If your needs fall into “I want to automate common tasks, get better visibility, and keep sales and marketing on the same page—without an army of admins,” Ortto is worth a look.
3. Build a Shortlist of Real Competitors
There are hundreds of GTM tools out there, but only a handful are truly comparable to Ortto for B2B teams. Here are the ones you’ll probably see on “top lists”—along with what actually sets them apart:
- HubSpot: Well-known for its CRM, marketing automation, and sales tools all in one. Great for teams that want everything under one roof, but gets expensive fast as you grow.
- ActiveCampaign: Solid for marketing automation and email, lighter on CRM and reporting.
- Marketo (Adobe): Deep marketing automation for bigger enterprises, but complicated and pricey. Not a fit unless you have dedicated ops folks.
- Pardot (Salesforce Marketing Cloud): Built for Salesforce users, strong on B2B lead gen, but same story—complex, and best if you’re already deep in the Salesforce ecosystem.
- Salesforce Sales Cloud: The CRM gold standard. Add-ons and integrations can get you close to “all-in-one,” but expect a learning curve and real admin work.
There are others (Zoho CRM, Freshworks, etc.), but most B2B teams looking at Ortto are weighing it against the list above.
4. Compare the Right Features—Not Just What’s on the Homepage
Vendors love feature checklists, but you want to dig into how things actually work day-to-day. Here’s a practical way to compare:
A. Automation & Journeys
- How easy is it to set up a workflow? (Drag-and-drop? Coding required?)
- Can you trigger actions from any data point or just a few?
- Is there built-in A/B testing?
- How granular can you get? (Multi-branch logic, delays, triggers, etc.)
Ortto’s journey builder is easier than Marketo, but less powerful than HubSpot or Salesforce with all add-ons.
B. Segmentation & Personalization
- Can you segment by any user attribute or event?
- Real-time updates, or does it lag?
- How easy is it to personalize emails, landing pages, etc.?
HubSpot and Ortto are both strong here for most use cases.
C. CRM & Sales Tools
- Is the CRM actually usable, or just tacked on?
- How easy is it to see the full customer journey?
- Does it help with pipeline management, or just store contacts?
Ortto does “good enough” CRM for smaller teams, but if you need deep opportunity tracking, Salesforce is still king.
D. Reporting & Attribution
- Can you see which campaigns actually drive revenue, not just clicks?
- How customizable are dashboards?
- Can you export raw data if you want to?
Ortto’s reporting is friendlier than Marketo’s, but not as deep as Salesforce or a real BI tool. HubSpot is somewhere in the middle.
E. Integrations
- Does it connect natively to your existing tools, or will you need Zapier and workarounds?
- How reliable are the integrations?
- What’s the API story—if you need it?
Ortto covers the basics, but if you have a weird stack, double-check before you commit.
5. Test the User Experience—Don’t Just Watch Demos
Every vendor demo looks slick. The real test is what happens when you try to do your own work, with your own data. Here’s how to pressure-test:
- Get a free trial or sandbox environment.
- Try to build one of your actual workflows—not just the “hello world” demo.
- Time how long it takes to get sales, marketing, and ops folks up to speed.
- Ask: Would my least technical team member be comfortable here, or will they avoid it?
If you can’t get real work done in a week, that’s a red flag.
6. Don’t Ignore Pricing and Hidden Costs
Sticker price is just the start. Look for:
- User limits: Many tools price per user or per contact in your database.
- Feature lock-in: Some platforms keep key features (like advanced reporting or API access) behind higher price tiers.
- Implementation costs: Will you need to hire a consultant just to get started?
- Long-term contracts: Month-to-month is always safer until you’re sure.
Ortto is generally more affordable than the big enterprise suites, but can get expensive if your contact list grows fast.
7. Get Real Feedback From Other Users
Forget polished testimonials—go find reviews on sites like G2, Capterra, or Reddit. Look for:
- Complaints about support or uptime
- Comments about ease of use for non-technical folks
- Hidden deal-breakers (like slow reporting or buggy integrations)
Don’t just rely on the “Top 10” lists—see what people actually doing the work have to say.
8. Make Your Decision—and Keep It Simple
Here’s the honest truth: No platform does everything perfectly. Tools like Ortto, HubSpot, and Salesforce all have their strengths and trade-offs. The best tool is the one your team will actually use, and that solves the biggest headaches right now—not the one with the flashiest feature set.
Keep it simple. Pick what solves your real problems today. You can always add or switch tools later as your needs evolve.
Summary:
Comparing Ortto to other B2B GTM tools isn’t about chasing checklists or buzzwords. Focus on your actual pain points, try the tools with real workflows, and don’t get distracted by features you’ll never use. Start simple, get your team on board, and iterate as you go. That’s how you actually streamline sales and marketing—without the headaches.