Brands shift to centralised platforms as channels grow

Customer engagement platforms face growing pressure as brands expand the number and sophistication of digital touchpoints, according to Ivan Borovikov, Co-Founder of Maestra, who predicts that fragmented approaches to channel management will give way to centralised models over the coming years.

Marketers have shifted from a reliance on single channels such as email towards a mix that now spans SMS, rich communication services (RCS), push notifications and a range of messaging apps. AI assistants have also appeared as a distinct sales channel. This has increased the operational burden on marketing teams that manage campaigns across disparate systems.

At the same time, brands are changing how they use each channel. They are moving from short-form, text-only formats towards richer, more interactive experiences that use images, buttons and detailed product information. This change is visible in campaigns that now combine personalisation with rich media content and more granular offers across messaging platforms.

Borovikov said marketers are beginning to confront a structural choice in how they organise people, tools and data around this expanding landscape of customer touchpoints. He described two main operating models that he sees emerging among brands.

Competing models

The first model assigns a separate team and software tool to each touchpoint. In this structure, brands split marketing functions into channel-specific departments. One group may handle email and SMS with one platform. Another may oversee social channels. A third may manage eCommerce on platforms such as Shopify. Many brands also retain multiple agencies that specialise in each area and then coordinate these external providers internally.

The second model focuses on centralisation. Brands adopting this approach build in-house teams with cross-channel skills. They then use a single, integrated marketing platform as the system of record. Workflows run through one interface and draw on a unified data set, instead of switching between logins and reconciling separate data sources.

Borovikov expects the second model to gain ground as brands confront the operational complexity and cost of managing multiple vendors and tools.

"Here is my prediction: the fragmented approach to channel management collapses under its own weight," said Ivan Borovikov, Co-Founder, Maestra.

He said brands now run campaigns that not only span several channels but also adapt content and offers based on individual browsing history and behaviour. This creates a need for consistent data and decisioning across email, web, messaging and other touchpoints.

Shift to centralisation

Borovikov argues that centralisation supports what he calls "journey-wide personalisation". In this scenario, a customer who clicks on an email moves to a website that immediately reflects that interaction. The site can show a pre-loaded cart with the exact offer referenced in the message. He said separate systems that sync data less frequently struggle to deliver this type of continuous experience.

Cost is another factor. Fragmented stacks often involve multiple agency retainers, integration projects and ongoing data synchronisation work. This can divert budget towards coordination tasks rather than campaign design and testing. Borovikov said Maestra has seen customers reduce marketing technology spend by as much as 64% when they consolidate tools into a single platform.

He also pointed to growth constraints in multi-vendor environments. Each new channel may require a separate procurement process, security review, contract negotiation and technical integration. By contrast, he said, unified platforms can add new modules or channels on top of existing email and on-site personalisation functions. This can include referral schemes, loyalty programmes, WhatsApp campaigns and push notifications that all draw on the same data layer.

AI is emerging as a further driver of consolidation. Many AI-based tools require access to detailed and consistent customer profiles. These tools often work best when they can analyse events and attributes across the full journey rather than within a single channel. Borovikov said integrated systems offer a single profile per customer that is available immediately to AI engines. In contrast, businesses that run separate tools may face months of custom integration work before they can use AI at scale.

Data and decisioning

The trend intersects with broader moves towards first-party data strategies. As privacy regulations and platform changes limit third-party tracking, brands place more emphasis on data collected directly from their own channels. Centralised systems that hold unified data can support this shift by tying together interactions from web, app, email, messaging and in-store touchpoints.

Vendors that provide all-in-one marketing platforms are positioning themselves around this need for a single customer view. They are investing in orchestration tools that coordinate journeys across outbound and inbound interactions. They are also expanding integrations with eCommerce and customer support systems.

Borovikov expects that the brands which act early will gain structural advantages in cost, speed and customer insight.

"The winners will be brands that centralize early. One platform. One view of the customer. One team designing complete journeys instead of isolated touchpoints. This isn't just more efficient, it's the only way to deliver seamless experiences across dozens of channels," said Borovikov.