When looking at feature lists for CRMs, various "automations" will be highlighted: salesforce, services, and what you came to read this article for, marketing. CRM software and marketing automation software can be aligned, but they are often two separate programs that either integrate or sync up with each other to share contact data for marketing purposes. Before we dive into how marketing automation is connected to CRM or if you need it for your business, let's define it in clear terms: