Global study: What will keep CMOs busy in 2018?
Focus on growth
Business growth is a given, and driving it forward is undoubtedly a central part of the marketing director's remit, which is being recognized by the renaming of CMOs to "Chief Growth Officers" is made clear. The fact that the main focus is on revenue is very clearly felt by senior marketers. More than eight in ten (82 %) of CMOs state that the function has become more focused on financial results. Almost two-thirds (63 %) of marketing leaders say their top priority is to drive business growth. With this focus on the bottom line, it goes without saying that the importance of marketing must increase: 82 % of CMOs think that the influence of marketing has increased internally.
Customer-oriented
It's understandable that those focused on growth will turn their attention to understanding customers' needs to determine whether problems need to be addressed or processes optimized. For one in two CMOs, looking at the customer journey is at the top of the list, and almost half (44 %) of marketing leaders also say they plan to use a customer-centric model. Two thirds of global CMOs state that marketing decisions should be based on how they affect the customer, not the company.
Everything revolves around data
With the increased focus on the customer and growth, data is more important than ever. One in two leading marketers currently say they have control over the budget for data and analytics. However, the proportion will increase as more than 80 % of CMOs say they are getting more money to invest in data. This budget will no doubt be gratefully received, as more than three quarters say that data management and analytics take up a lot of their time. But having more data available doesn't necessarily mean it can be used more effectively.
Data mountain
Global CMOs highlight that more than half of the data available to companies is not being used to its full extent. Three quarters agree that they are only able to use a small proportion of the data available. This presents an opportunity for leading marketers, as more than nine in ten (92 %) say that design and analytics need to work more closely together to drive business success. As the budget for data has increased, but more than half of the data is not being used to its full potential, there is an opportunity for CMOs to "Magic and mathematics" by leveraging brand awareness, storytelling and experience with data to increase sales.
Internal/External
Two-thirds of CMOs are leaning towards more in-house marketing services, but only 3 % say they currently have the perfect in-house capabilities. Chief marketing officers who want to provide more functions internally face budget and team skills challenges, with slightly less than half of CMOs having good internal team skills and 68 % stating that it is important to have people on board who are skilled enough to keep up with technological developments. However, with the martech explosion and the dramatic growth of digital marketing and programmatic advertising, more than half of CMOs (55 %) say they have an internal skills shortage, and due to the skills gap and implied talent shortage, it looks like outsourcing to service providers (agencies, martech vendors, etc.) is still essential.The results show that 43 % of CMOs still fully outsource programmatic advertising. It is the most fully outsourced function. More than a third of leading marketers (36 %) outsource advertising, and more than a quarter fully outsource creative and design and research and insight (28 % each).Essential elements such as marketing strategy, pricing and product marketing, and customer experience are typically handled in-house. Of the top 15 areas in which marketing leaders have budget responsibility, marketing strategy is the function most frequently delivered entirely in-house (86 %), followed by product marketing (76 %) and customer experience (75 %).
Budgets
While CMOs overall say they need to do more with less, there are some functions where engagement is already high and budgets and time spent on marketing are increasing. Marketing leaders expect to spend more on digital, content marketing and social in the short term. Three quarters of marketing managers allocate a higher budget to these channels. They also expect the time spent on these functions to increase similarly. They are seen as "Progressive marketing functions" described at "Established marketing functions" such as marketing strategy, advertising, brand development, PR, design and product marketing, only a small proportion of CMOs expect budgets to increase. Four out of ten leading CMOs expect spending on advertising to increase. One in two forecast an increase in investment in brand building, and almost 40 % will spend more on design. Slightly less than half want to invest more in communications and PR in the coming year. "sI developing functions"CMOs are currently seeing their expertise in demand and budgets increasing: customer experience, customer service, e-commerce, data and research are now becoming increasingly important. However, as these areas are not exclusively marketing tasks, CMOs do not currently have full control over these budgets, but this is likely to change.three quarters of CMOs say they will receive a higher budget for customer service, and a similar proportion expect an increase in customer experience.
The influence of time
"The evolving marketer" shows significant deviations in the agenda of global CMOs based on length of service. The priorities of established CMOs who have been in office for more than 5 years differ - with the exception of priority "Growth"- The focus of newer CMOs (less than five years in the role) is significantly different. Every second established CMO is focused on building internal collaboration (45 %) and improving the customer experience (47 %), while newer CMOs (less than five years in the role) are still in the start-up phase of their role. Therefore, their focus is on organizing infrastructure, implementing new systems and processes, and creating models to leverage the data they have access to.Newer CMOs emphasize the customer journey (57 %), while only 39 % of established CMOs do, and creating a customer model that is aligned with the business strategy (52 % vs. 33 %). Realizing the full potential of data is a priority for half (49 %) of new CMOs, but only a third (35 %) of established CMOs.Revenue and accountability are prioritized nearly three times as often by established CMOs vs. newer marketers (41 % vs. 17 %).
Show effect
84 % of newer CMOs say it takes less than five years to make a real impact, while just under half (49 %) of established CMOs agree.Mike Jeanes, Global Head of Insight at NewBase, explains: "In recent years, the CMO's role has expanded from a predominantly promotional and creative function to a centralized corporate elevator pitch that serves all levels and functions of the company and creates the data-driven connection between the brand and the consumer. The role of the CMO is multifaceted and complex. They are increasingly faced with the challenge of driving business growth and adapting their resources to keep pace with industry change and consumer demands."
