Hey Smart Marketers!
Let’s cut the fluff.
Launching a product on the Salesforce AppExchange (especially for Marketing Cloud) is not glamorous, and it’s definitely not plug-and-play. It’s slow, political, expensive, and full of hidden traps. And unless you have a very specific strategy and a long-term appetite for pain, you won’t see ROI anytime soon.
I’ve launched 5 products in this space. 3 failed. One of them is “simple” and generates leads on its own. The other one sells into enterprise and took 12 months to close the first deal. I’ve seen both sides.
This post is for people who are serious about building in this ecosystem, and want the unfiltered version of what that actually takes in 2025.
1. The AppExchange Is a Checkbox, Not a Growth Channel
Getting listed on the AppExchange feels like a milestone. In reality, it’s just table stakes.
It won’t bring you leads. It won’t give you visibility. And Salesforce AEs won’t magically start co-selling with you just because you uploaded a logo and passed the security review.
If you don’t already have your own pipeline —content, outbound, trusted brand, SI relationships— you’ll launch and hear crickets. The listing is a credibility layer. Nothing more.
2. Run in front of Salesforce or alongside. Never behind
There are only two valid strategies in this ecosystem:
- Run in front of Salesforce: build something they haven’t built yet but that customers clearly need.
- Run alongside: solve something they don’t care enough to address—because it’s too niche, too tactical, or not strategic enough for them.
If you try to compete directly with Salesforce or extend a product they’ve stopped investing in, good luck. If the platform you’re building on isn’t growing, neither will you.
This is especially true right now with all the noise around Data Cloud and Agentforce. Salesforce is going hard in those areas, but customers aren’t just buying slides: they want actual working use cases. If you can’t prove value fast, you’re out.
3. Enterprise ≠ Plug-and-Play
Let’s kill the myth: if you’re targeting enterprise accounts, your product will never be plug-and-play.
You’re not selling an app. You’re selling a solution. One that has to:
- Fit their processes,
- Integrate with their mess,
- Get through procurement, security, and legal,
- And survive scrutiny from six different stakeholders.
To even be in the conversation, you need:
- System integrator partnerships (Accenture, Capgemini, or boutiques).
- A product that’s customizable by design—configurable objects, APIs, data model flexibility.
- A roadmap that matches enterprise timelines, not startup sprints.
Plug-and-play might work for SMB. For enterprise? It’s a fantasy.
4. PLG Doesn’t Work Here. Stop Trying.
Product-Led Growth (PLG) is great…in theory. But in the Salesforce marketing ecosystem, it’s mostly wishful thinking.
Your end users can’t install anything. Your buyers need a business case before they even look at your UI. And “free trial” means nothing if you’re not already in their procurement system.
Trying to force a PLG motion here is a waste of time. There’s no viral loop. There’s no easy onboarding. Most orgs don’t even have Marketing Cloud sandboxes.
PLG doesn’t fail because your product is bad. It fails because the environment doesn’t support it. If you’re serious about Salesforce, build for how customers actually buy, not how you wish they did.
5. What I’d Do Differently Now
If I were starting today, here’s exactly what I’d do:
- Start with distribution: content, newsletter, or audience first.
- Sell the problem as a service before building the product.
- Only build on Salesforce tech that’s growing and strategically important.
- Partner with SIs before you even think about scaling.
- Build a product that’s flexible enough to fit enterprise needs, but simple enough to demo in 5 minutes.
- Forget about the AppExchange until you’re already closing deals without it.
6. Why This All Matters Now
Salesforce is going through another platform shift: AI, Data Cloud, metadata layers, Agentforce.
It’s a huge opportunity. It’s also a trap. Lots of noise, lots of strategy decks. Not a lot of customers who know what they’re doing. If you show up with vaporware, you’ll get buried. If you show up with real traction, you’ll stand out fast.
You’re not just building a product. You’re betting on Salesforce’s roadmap. And you’re trying to ride momentum they don’t always sustain. If you’re not aligned to where Salesforce is actively investing, you’re going to struggle, no matter how smart your tech is.
Final Word
I’m not saying don’t build here. I am saying: don’t build naive.
If you’re thinking about launching an SFMC product or already feeling stuck, reach out. I’ve made enough mistakes for both of us.
Also: I started a space to talk openly about the messy stuff—r/mopspeople on Reddit. No fluff, no pitch decks, just people trying to get things done in marketing ops.
Let’s build smarter.
Other ways I can help you: