Dentsu: These are the most important marketing trends in 2025

For the fifth year running, Dentsu Creative has published its annual survey of top marketers worldwide on the latest marketing trends. A total of 950 Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) from Germany, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Great Britain, Italy, India, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Spain, the USA and the United Arab Emirates took part in the comprehensive study and provided their insights. Eight key topics were identified.

Across eight key topics, it is clear that creativity plays a key role. CMOs in Germany are also faced with a major challenge: recognizing data potential in the company and using it sensibly for strategic decisions. This task is not new, but has taken on a new dynamic due to the increasing importance of artificial intelligence (AI). As a prerequisite for success in a changing marketing environment, inventiveness and concept development are increasingly coming to the fore as crucial skills. Creativity is therefore no longer just a nice-to-have, but a key driver of innovation and long-term success. However, alongside AI as a marketing tool, human creativity remains at the heart of any successful creative process. In the future, the challenge will be to use AI as a supporting tool.

The eight key topics from the perspective of German CMOs for 2025:

From omnichannel creativity to omnipresent creativity

At a time when growth is increasingly difficult to achieve, CMOs need creative ideas not just in communications, but in every area of their business. 78 percent of the German CMOs surveyed believe that the importance of creativity will have a greater impact on business success.

From share of voice to share of culture

Share of voice - the percentage of a brand's media spend compared to the total spend in a category - used to be a measure of market success and higher sales figures. However, the fragmentation of the media has changed this. Today, brands that are part of a cultural discourse are successful. This means that brands must reflect and shape the zeitgeist in order to be present in social media and reporting. In this way, they become cultural reference points. 74 percent of CMOs agree that it is more important than ever to be part of a culture or zeitgeist.

The future lies in cooperation

CMOs are increasingly recognizing that brands today are the result of a tightly networked ecosystem of talent, partners and creatives. In this context, 72% of respondents confirm that they believe that the marketing of the future will consist of collaboration between companies, creatives and platforms.

From seamless to unmistakable experiences

As product benefits are quickly copied on the market, brands must be able to communicate their differentiation through connected and distinctive brand experiences. 68% of CMOs agree that brands must reach their target groups through efficient and content-rich storytelling across all touchpoints that consistently adopts a human-centered perspective.

From insight to foresight

CMOs are under increasing pressure to anticipate trends and customer wishes before they arise. 68% of CMOs therefore see it as their responsibility to better predict changing consumer behavior in order to develop new products and offers on this basis.

AI is not a competitor when it comes to creating engaging campaigns

Artificial intelligence is increasingly seen as a valuable partner and co-creator, and not as competition for human creativity. While it can be supportive in many areas, the ability to create emotional and engaging campaigns remains a human domain. 42 percent of Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) believe that generative AI will not be able to develop campaigns that truly touch and inspire people.

More innovation from within

As the pace of change in the marketing environment is accelerating, more and more CMOs are investing a significant proportion of their budget in innovation topics. The changing investment behavior clearly shows that this topic is being given a higher priority (financially speaking) and is no longer a nice-to-have: 56 percent of CMOs plan to invest more than 20 percent of their budget in innovation.

Transforming companies into a better society

In the face of looming challenges, the role of marketing as a driver of growth is becoming increasingly important. CMOs want agencies to not only execute briefs, but also help them transform their business through the power of creativity. At the same time, CMOs in this country want marketing activities to have a positive impact on society: 74% agree with the statement that their brand should have an impact on people, companies and society.