With each new version of Sitecore, most Sitecore users wonder whether they need to upgrade, and what new digital marketing features they'll have access to with each new release.
Previously, the only way to inspect the details was to go through a tonne of Sitecore documentation. Lucky for you, I've done the hard work for you.
In the tables below I compare Sitecore's digital marketing features across versions 9.0, 9.3 and 10.
I've only included dimensions that differ across either of these versions. For any dimensions that aren't included as a comparison, that dimension is the same across all 3.
Each activity is split into the following categories:
- Marketing Automation
- Sitecore Forms
- Personalization
- List Manager
- Experience Manager
- Experience Analytics
- Experience Optimization
Marketing Automation
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you can start a marketing campaign based on | Completed goals, events or outcomes | -Completed goals, events or outcomes; -Scheduled enrolment; -Meeting specified rules |
-Completed goals, events or outcomes; -Scheduled enrolment; -Meeting specified rules |
| Raise abandoned cart event | Not supported | Can trigger an abandoned cart event in marketing automation campaign | Can trigger an abandoned cart event in marketing automation campaign |
| Send commerce email | Not supported | Can trigger a commerce email to send with personalized shopping cart information | Can trigger a commerce email to send with personalized shopping cart information |
| 'Update consent settings' available | -Do not market (removes contact from lists); -Consent revoked (ensures they never receive messages from you again) |
-Do not market (removes contact from lists); -Consent revoked (ensures they never receive messages from you again) |
Marketing messages (Consent to receive marketing messages): -Allow marketing messages; -Do not allow marketing messages General consent (consent to receive all messages): -Give consent; -Revoke consent |
| Customer listener: Check cart activity |
Commerce marketing automation campaigns include the following custom listener: Check cart activity |
Commerce marketing automation campaigns include the following custom listener: Check cart activity, which includes a rule with the condition where the contact's cart has been manipulated |
Commerce marketing automation campaigns include the following custom listener: Check cart activity, which includes a rule with the condition where the contact's cart has been manipulated |
| Decision point: Where the contact’s cart is empty | Not supported | Commerce marketing automation campaigns include the Is cart empty decision point, which contains a rule with the condition where the contact's cart is empty | Commerce marketing automation campaigns include the Is cart empty decision point, which contains a rule with the condition where the contact's cart is empty |
| Create a marketing automation campaign from a template | Not supported | Pre-defined marketing automation campaign templates upon which you can base your own workflows | Pre-defined marketing automation campaign templates upon which you can base your own workflows |
| Marketing automation campaign to send a birthday email | Not supported | Not supported | Ability to create a scheduled marketing automation campaign that runs based on a birthday rule |
| Create a campaign template | Not supported | Ability to save an existing campaign as a template | Ability to save an existing campaign as a template |
| Create a marketing theme | Not supported | Ability to create a marketing theme (template category, i.e. Acquisition) for organizing templates based on business objective | Ability to create a marketing theme (template category, i.e. Acquisition) for organizing templates based on business objective |
| Enrol contacts from a list in a marketing automation campaign | Not supported | Ability to enrol contacts in a marketing campaign from a list | Ability to enrol contacts in a marketing campaign from a list |
| Remove contacts enrolled in a marketing automation campaign | Not supported | Ability to remove contacts enrolled in a marketing automation campaign | Ability to remove contacts enrolled in a marketing automation campaign |
Sitecore Forms
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi page conditional scenarios | Not supported | Form can display different pages based on the user’s selection, or you could show different versions of a form to different people based on their role in the organization | Form can display different pages based on the user’s selection, or you could show different versions of a form to different people based on their role in the organization |
| Pre-filling | Not supported | You can pre-fill fields on a form so users have fewer fields to submit | You can pre-fill fields on a form so users have fewer fields to submit |
| Redirect to URL submit action | Not supported - only supports redirect to page as a submit action | You can redirect to an external URL as a submit action | You can redirect to an external URL as a submit action |
| URL parameters for redirecting URL | Not supported | You can pass on form data to a URL as parameters | You can pass on form data to a URL as parameters |
| Delete form entries | Not supported | Ability to delete form data | Ability to delete form data |
| Publish a form | Not supported | Ability to re-publish forms directly from the Forms dashboard | Ability to re-publish forms directly from the Forms dashboard |
| Field conditions | Not supported | Allows you to apply conditional actions to fields in web forms | Allows you to apply conditional actions to fields in web forms |
| Allow save on field | Not supported | Enables or disables saving the filled-in field data upon form submission | Enables or disables saving the filled-in field data upon form submission |
| Performance tracking | Not supported | Records data about how a field performs | Records data about how a field performs |
| Value provider | Not supported | Allows you to select the source that you want to link the field to, and the pre-fill value of the form will be fetched from this source | Allows you to select the source that you want to link the field to, and the pre-fill value of the form will be fetched from this source |
| Value provider parameters | Not supported | Allows you to enter a key to match the field | Allows you to enter a key to match the field |
| File upload | Not supported | You can allow a visitor to attach a single file or multiple files to your web form | You can allow a visitor to attach a single file or multiple files to your web form |
| Email confirmation | Not supported | To prevent incorrect submission of the email address, you can consider using an email confirmation field | To prevent incorrect submission of the email address, you can consider using an email confirmation field |
| Advanced settings | Not supported | You can choose whether to enable performance tracking, AJAX, and robot detection | You can choose whether to enable performance tracking, AJAX, and robot detection |
Personalization
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personalization effect tracking | Not supported. Only has a reach and effect % for each version | The personalization effect tracking feature allows Sitecore to calculate the effect of personalization rules without running a personalization test | The personalization effect tracking feature allows Sitecore to calculate the effect of personalization rules without running a personalization test |
| Predefined rules where predefined rule is true | -Not supported in XM -Only supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Only supported in XP & XP in CMS only mode |
-Supported in XM, XP and XP in CMS only mode |
| When current interaction's campaign's custom facet field is classified under the specified custom group | Supported in XM (only supports in-person personalization) & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode (only supports in-session personalization), and supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode (only supports in-session personalization), and supported in XP |
| Using channels in conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
| Using dates in conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
| Using devices in conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
-Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode, and XP |
| Using fields in conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
| IP geolocation conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
| Item hierarchy conditions | Supported in XM and XP | Not supported in XM. Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP | Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode, and XP |
| Item information conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode, and XP |
| Item version conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP CMS only mode, as well as XP |
Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode, and XP |
| Marketing automation conditions | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode. Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode. Supported in XP |
| Outcome conditions where the current contact has registered the outcome during any interaction |
Supported in XM - reflects outcomes achieved within the session, rather than information from the xDB Supported in XP |
Not supported | Not supported |
| Outcome conditions where the current contact has registered the outcome during any interaction where monetary value compares to value | Supported in XM - works on in-session outcome triggering, not historical behaviour from the xDB. Supported in XP |
Not supported | Not supported |
| Security conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode and XP |
| Sitecore query conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode. Supported in XP |
Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode and XP |
| Social conditions |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
Not Supported | Not Supported |
| System conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
Supported in XM, XP in CMS only mode and XP |
| Tracking conditions | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Venue conditions | Supported in XM and XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific campaign was triggered during the current visit | Supported in XM and XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode. Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode. Supported in XP |
| Where the specific campaign was triggered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific campaign was triggered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where a past or current interaction is on the specific Channel and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where a past or current interaction is on the specific Channel and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the number of engagement value points compares to number | Supported in XM & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific goal was triggered during the current visit | Supported in XM & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific goal was triggered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific goal was triggered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the current visit matches the specific pattern card in the specific profile | Supported in XM & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific outcome was registered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific outcome was registered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the ID of the page event is specific value | Supported in XM & XP | Not supported | Not supported |
| Where the name of the page event compares to specific value | Supported in XM & XP | Not supported | Not supported |
| Where the specific page event was triggered during a past or current interaction and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the page index compares to number | Supported in XM & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the specific page has been visited during the current visit | Supported in XM & XP | -Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the value of the specific profile key in the interaction profile compares to specific value | Supported in XM & XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
| Where the search keywords compares to specific value | Supported in XM & XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
| Where the site name compares to value | Supported in XM & XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
Not supported in XM Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
| Where the traffic type compares to number | Supported in XM & XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mod -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where a past or current interaction is on the specific venue and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number | Not supported in XM. Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where a past or current interaction is on the specific venue and when the number of elapsed days compares to number and when the past number of interactions compares to number and the custom data compares to value |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
| Where the Visit started at one of pages in list | -Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the start date compares to date | -Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| Where the referrer compares to specific value | -Not supported in XM -Not supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
-Not supported in XM -Supported in XP in CMS only mode -Supported in XP |
| xDB is enabled condition | Yes for XM & XP | -No in XM (Installed with the Sitecore XM topology packages) -Yes in XP in CMS only mode, and in XP |
-No in XM (Installed with the Sitecore XM topology packages) -Yes in XP in CMS only mode, and in XP |
| The personalized experience dialogue box | Not supported | Has a personalized experience dialogue box that shows statistics for personalization rules that are implemented on the current page as well as statistics for personalization rules that are being tested on the page. | Has a personalized experience dialogue box that shows statistics for personalization rules that are implemented on the current page as well as statistics for personalization rules that are being tested on the page. |
List Manager
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Use a segment as a filter in the reports you generate with Experience Analytics | Not supported | You can use a segment as a filter in the reports you generate with Experience Analytics | You can use a segment as a filter in the reports you generate with Experience Analytics |
| Manage contact lists and sources | Not supported | The List Manager enables you to efficiently manage contact information added or imported from different sources (including custom sources) and systems such as the Email Experience Manager or through Marketing Automation. | The List Manager enables you to efficiently manage contact information added or imported from different sources (including custom sources) and systems such as the Email Experience Manager or through Marketing Automation. |
Experience Manager
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| How functionality differs depending on installation options of XM | To run XM, you must set the Xdb.enabled configuration setting to false in the Sitecore.Xdb.config configuration file. When xDB.enabled is set to false, you do not have any access to the reporting or collection databases. Any functionality that depends on the xDB for data collection is not available and a number of applications in the Sitecore Experience Platform cannot run |
If you used the Sitecore XM Scaled topology packages to install Sitecore XM, no personalization conditions are available and you cannot implement any personalization | If you used the Sitecore XM Scaled topology packages to install Sitecore XM, a smaller set of personalization conditions are available and you can implement in-session personalization with the available conditions |
Experience Analytics
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filter a report by segment | Not supported | Not supported | You can use segments from List Manager to filter reports in Experience Analytics |
| Personalized experience dialogue box - ‘reach’ metric |
Supported Reach = (Visitors that match the condition/All visitors) x 100 |
Not supported - replaced by Impressions (Impressions % = (Visits that match the condition and view the page/All visits that view the page) x 100) | Not supported - replaced by Impressions (Impressions % = (Visits that match the condition and view the page/All visits that view the page) x 100) |
Experience Optimization
| Activity | Sitecore 9.0 | Sitecore 9.3 | Sitecore 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active personalized experiences | Not supported | Supported - The Active personalized experiences list gives you an overview of all the personalized experiences that have been created on your websites. | Supported - The Active personalized experiences list gives you an overview of all the personalized experiences that have been created on your websites. |
| Personalization suggestions | Not supported | You can view and apply personalization suggestions for a page | You can view and apply personalization suggestions for a page |
| Get an overview of personalization suggestions for all pages | Not supported | In Experience Optimization, you can get an overview of all the unapplied personalization suggestions that Sitecore CortexTM has found for your Sitecore instance. | In Experience Optimization, you can get an overview of all the unapplied personalization suggestions that Sitecore CortexTM has found for your Sitecore instance. |
| Test personalized components | Not supported | You can run a test on personalized components before you make the personalization active for all eligible site visitors | You can run a test on personalized components before you make the personalization active for all eligible site visitors |
| Analyzing the effect of personalization on a component | Not supported | In the Personalize the component dialog box, you can view Visits and Effect for each version of the component. | In the Personalize the component dialog box, you can view Visits and Effect for each version of the component. |
| Personalization effect tracking | Not supported | Ability to run a personalization test that gives you information about how personalized content performs compared to default content, when shown to a specific audience. | Ability to run a personalization test that gives you information about how personalized content performs compared to default content, when shown to a specific audience. |
Wrap Up
I hope this content was valuable for you. If you have any questions about whether a particular activity is possible in a Sitecore version that's not addressed here, please fire the question in my Facebook group for Sitecore Marketers and Content Authors, and I can look into it for you.
