Did you know that technology accounts for 33 per cent of the average marketing budget? Most of that spend, according to Gartner, goes towards infrastructure; marketers are investing in more apps, more bandwith and more computation power to cope with the demands of data-driven marketing. But you don't have to spend millions of dollars developing or buying apps for your marketing stack. Browser-based apps (or 'web apps') are often more cost-effective than desktop software, and they offer a range of other business benefits too:

• Increased mobility. Unlike 'traditional' apps, browser-based apps can be accessed from anywhere, at any time, via any device with an internet connection. This is a game-changer for remote or distributed teams who need mobile-friendly tools. 
• Easier maintenance. With browser-based apps, you don't have to worry about costly installation process or upgrading every PC when there's a new version of the app. All you need to do is make sure your browsers and plugins are up-to-date.
• Increased capacity. Most web-based apps run on several servers simulatenously. This is called clustering, and it makes it possible for the app to cope with increasing workload. 

Ready to give it a try? Start with any (or all!) of these browser-based apps for marketing agencies. They'll streamline your processes, make collaboration easier and won't burn a huge hole in your wallet. 

1. Feedly

Stay up to date with the latest news using RSS readers. Since the demise of Google Reader, Feedly has been the newsreader of choice for people looking to stay up to date with clients, prospects and industry news.

2. Workable

Getting the best people for your agency is challenging enough without all the paperwork and process hassle. Luckily, Workable makes that go away with a collaborative, SaaS candidate management system.

3. GoCardless

Late payment is the bane of any growing agency. But with GoCardless, you can implement direct debits in about 15 minutes. Get clients to sign up in the honeymoon phase of your relationship and you’ll never hear ‘the cheque’s in the post’ again.

4. Know Your Company

KYC is a spinoff from Basecamp and it’s designed to help owner-managers get a better idea of how employees feel so they can overcome company growing pains. It’s easy to implement and remarkably insightful. It asks a couple of questions a month and collates the answers.

5. Turbine

Yes, you can get control over your spending and costs without becoming a slave to mountains of paperwork (or software that looks like it hasn't been updated since 1997).  Manage expense claims, purchase orders and even time off requests in your browser and cut out pointless paperwork with Turbine. 

6. Taco

Feeling scattered with the proliferation of productivity and project management apps? Get all your tasks from 35 different apps, including Basecamp, GitHub, Jira, Exchange, Wunderlist etc., and pull them into one app - Taco-  where you can prioritise and filter them easily.

7. Zapier

With this tool, you can connect pretty much any app to any other app and build your own bespoke workflows. For example, Zapier can send you a Slack message when someone completes a task on Basecamp or add new orders from WooCommerce to a Google Sheet.

8. Website Grader

HubSpot’s Website Grader is a great tool for spotting problems and opportunities with a client’s website. It’s a great conversation opener and a useful testing tool for client sites. Plus, if you have a good website like ours, it gives you a nice pat on the back.

9. Hunter

Got a name but no email address? Know the company and want to get contacts there? Hunter can help. Get 150 free searches and turn email strangers into leads and customers.

10. Exclaimer

Wouldn’t it be great if everyone’s email had a consistent signature (.sig if you’re old school)? Especially if you could add a call to action and update it easily? If you use Office 365 or Exchange, Exclaimer lets you do just that, in the cloud, easily.

11. Answer the Public

Enter a keyword into this free tool and get a list of the questions real people ask in search engines. But first pause to admire the majestic use of video on a home page.

Know any other great apps for marketing agencies?

Let us know in the comments below!