Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs Salesforce Marketing Cloud comparison

Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Salesforce Marketing Cloud

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Helped 868,787 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Intercom Customer Communica...

Ranking in Social CRM

6th

Average Rating

9.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

CRM Customer Engagement Centers (9th), CRM (22nd)

Salesforce Marketing Cloud

Ranking in Social CRM

2nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Marketing Automation (1st), Marketing Management (1st), Social Media Management Solutions (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Social CRM category, the mindshare of Intercom Customer Communications Platform is 3.3%, up from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Salesforce Marketing Cloud is 7.0%, down from 11.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Social CRM Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Salesforce Marketing Cloud	7.0%
Intercom Customer Communications Platform	3.3%
Other	89.7%

Social CRM

Featured Reviews

Kumar Abhishek Anand

Director at Revivo Technologies

Customer support has improved significantly with seamless chat integration for quick resolutions

The feature we appreciate most about the Intercom Customer Communications Platform is the messenger functionality. We are able to integrate it into our application and provide support to customers directly through our application. The messenger works efficiently, allowing users to have conversations without entering their details repeatedly. There is conversation history available for each customer interaction, and they can access the help section within the chat itself. The Finn AI agent handles conversations both in chat and WhatsApp, which is particularly beneficial. Regarding automation tools, we have enabled the AI agent to answer customer queries instantly, reducing the need for constant staff presence. The AI agent quickly responds to customers and summarizes their issues, informing us when it cannot resolve a problem independently.

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Napitch K

Chief Executive Officer & Founder at growth innovation

Integration challenges impact workflow efficiency

The features of Salesforce Marketing Cloud that I have found most valuable are the Journey Builder and Flow. These capabilities are valuable because they make managing automation easy. Automating customer journeys saves time when scheduling content through every channel, and we can set the automation in advance when planning marketing content. The AI-powered tools such as Salesforce Datorama and Einstein save time and have an impact on marketing strategy decisions for my customers. I have noticed a positive impact from Salesforce Marketing Cloud through customer feedback. For example, a customer mentioned after project completion that it had a significant impact on their marketing team by eliminating the need to hire additional staff for marketing content and planning.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The live chat is pretty good because you can create a macro, which is a predefined input we can give customers."

"The feature we appreciate most about the Intercom Customer Communications Platform is the messenger functionality, allowing users to have conversations without entering their details repeatedly."

"Salesforce is constantly evolving and have a good release cycle."

"This is a very powerful and scalable solution."

"Salesforce allows for the integration of different data sources."

"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution...I rate the technical support a ten out of ten."

"We have found the solution to be scalable."

"Salesforce Marketing Cloud integrates with multiple systems seamlessly, enabling effective lead management."

"You can schedule reports, there's a lot of supporting tools, and you have access to all that information."

"We are satisfied with the Salesforce Marketing Cloud products, which is why we have extended and acquired the Data Cloud as integration."

More Salesforce Marketing Cloud pros

Cons

"Sometimes, the solution lags and takes time to update something."

"It would be beneficial if there was a way to train the AI to better understand customer language."

"Salesforce Marketing Cloud should include more point-and-click functionality."

"This solution could be more user-friendly."

"The main action I want to do in Salesforce Marketing Cloud is to export data into Excel and use it. My company may have that feature locked down, or if the Excel data exporting function still isn't available in Salesforce Marketing Cloud, that's the feature I want."

"It's a very good solution, but the way the prices are structured is not always good, and I feel like that is a problem."

"The majority of my clients are happy, but when it comes to the CDP of Salesforce, the client gets confused. They have no clue that Salesforce has a CDP platform too. If my clients want to go ahead with the same vendor, Salesforce, they get confused about the different marketing suites which are available. There is no clear marketing done for the suites available for the clients, this is where the client is facing the real challenges."

"The cost is always a concern for anyone using a SaaS product."

"In the SMS area, it is not up to the mark, compared to what has been developed for email."

"The pricing is a bit high."

More Salesforce Marketing Cloud cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"Salesforce has different versions of the solution and some are more suitable for smaller clients. However, Salesforce is expensive."

"We did a yearly license. We negotiated and got a great deal. I don't think we would have gotten far with the regular price, but they negotiated, so it was worth that."

"The solution is a bit expensive."

"It's normal pricing."

"On a scale where one is the lowest and ten is the most expensive, I rate the solution an eight out of ten."

"I don't know if my company pays for Salesforce Marketing Cloud monthly or yearly. It's a SaaS, so it's a recurring cost, but I have no information on its price."

"The solution's pricing is very high and should be more flexible for smaller companies."

"Salesforce is an expensive solution."

More Salesforce Marketing Cloud pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	20
Midsize Enterprise	14
Large Enterprise	28

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

The live chat is pretty good because you can create a macro, which is a predefined input we can give customers.

What needs improvement with Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

For the Intercom Customer Communications Platform, we are updating our knowledge base to help the AI read more proactively. It would be beneficial if there was a way to train the AI to better under...

What is your primary use case for Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

When asked about AI tools and AI coding tools, we were using ChatGPT until recently. We switched to GitHub Copilot, which we have integrated into our IDE for software development purposes. Regardin...

What do you like most about Salesforce Marketing Cloud?

Datorama is part of Salesforce Marketing Cloud, which is quite a valuable feature that provides customer analytics.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Salesforce Marketing Cloud?

I did not work on any pricing or implementation aspects but learned on my own when dealing with Revenue Cloud products.

What needs improvement with Salesforce Marketing Cloud?

Salesforce Marketing Cloud works effectively as a suite, best-of-suite solution. However, if you want to reuse specific components, it doesn't have the same solution flexibility since it's not micr...

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Product Reports

CRM Customer Engagement Centers

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Intercom Customer Communications Platform report

Salesforce Marketing Cloud

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Also Known As

Intercom

ExactTarget

Overview

Intercom Customer Communications Platform enhances interactions by offering robust tools designed to streamline customer engagement and support, effectively catering to modern business communication needs.

Providing a comprehensive approach to customer interaction, Intercom facilitates seamless conversation management through its adaptable suite of messaging, logistical, and analytical features. Frequently utilized for customer support and marketing, its flexibility and user-friendly design encourage efficient communication. While offering valuable insights through analytics, some users note areas for improvement in customizability and pricing models, pointing towards a potential enhancement in fine-tuning its cost-effectiveness and adaptability to diverse business strategies.

What are the standout features of Intercom?

Live Chat: Immediate customer support through real-time messaging.
Automated Bot: Streamlines inquiries by handling routine questions.
Integration Capabilities: Connects seamlessly with third-party tools.
Inbox Management: Organizes conversations for efficient response.

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Faster resolutions lead to happier clients.
Improved Team Efficiency: Automation reduces manual workload.
Actionable Analytics: Data-driven insights optimize strategies.
Scalable Solutions: Adapts to growing business demands.

Industries such as e-commerce, SaaS, and tech-driven businesses often implement Intercom for its ability to provide personalized customer journeys. Its messaging platform excels in maintaining customer relationships and resolving issues quickly, which is crucial in these fast-paced sectors.

Intercom

Salesforce Marketing Cloud is a comprehensive marketing automation platform that enables businesses to create personalized and targeted marketing campaigns across multiple channels.

With its robust set of tools and features, marketers can easily manage and automate their email marketing, social media advertising, mobile messaging, and customer journey mapping.

The platform offers advanced segmentation capabilities, allowing marketers to segment their audience based on various criteria and deliver tailored messages to each segment.

Additionally, Salesforce Marketing Cloud provides powerful analytics and reporting features, enabling marketers to track the performance of their campaigns and make data-driven decisions.

With its user-friendly interface and seamless integration with other Salesforce products, Marketing Cloud offers a seamless and efficient marketing automation solution for businesses of all sizes.

Salesforce

Sample Customers

Expensift, Moz, Invision, Salesforce, Droplr, Vend, BugHerd, Ghost, Put.io, Codeship

American Express, Financial Conduct Authority, KPN, Merck KGaA, Peterborough City Council, The Chapar, ADP, Financial Times, Stanley Black & Decker, SureFlap, Western Union, Philips

Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Salesforce Marketing Cloud