CMO: Trends and Resources

In his remarks at the ANA’s 2024 Advertising Financial Management Conference, ANA CEO Bob Liodice shared the results of a survey of CMO’s that illuminates their investment priorities.

Recent news that UPS and Etsy parted ways with their CMOs and weren’t going to replace them caused eyebrows to raise across the industry. And when Professor Scott Galloway declared that “CMOs are dead in 18 months or less,” our chins hit the floor! And all of this was before Starbucks recently dropped its CMO role.

The business buyer is taking longer to purchase, budgets are tighter, and buyer behavior has shifted online. This presents opportunities and challenges, and it's critical that CMOs and CROs are aligned.

The ongoing predilection among major brands to jettison the CMO role altogether and reassign marketing duties puts a major crimp in agency-client relations and makes it harder to foster meaningful partnerships.

This piece from Agency Media Solutions covers how CMOs can shift their mindset and focus from “which agencies should I hire?” to “how can I operate to embolden agencies to succeed?” and supercharge their marketing efforts.

Lately, the relationship between CMOs and CEOs seems more like a marriage in desperate need of counseling. But these research-based tips can turn things into a happily ever after.

Change management — rather than a reduced emphasis on marketing — may explain why some top brands continue to get rid of the CMO role altogether. But new technology — like artificial intelligence — may be able to help improve the role's value as chief marketers feel the squeeze.

If there’s one thing that those of us who have had the privilege to serve alongside the top CMOs and leadership teams know, it is that the best of us consistently find ways to confront disruptive 800-pound gorillas throughout our career journeys – often, together.

An essential part of a CMOs job is not only getting the work done, but making sure the work provides value and meaning for the consumer, meeting their needs and pain points, while also leveraging team skills, time, and budget efficiently. This is why Jenny Wall, CMO at VideoAmp, believes CMOs are the “voice of customers” and “unsung revenue heroes for advertising.”

A new report from McKinsey & Co. reveals some sharp differences when it comes to how CEOs and CMOs understand the role marketing plays and how it contributes to the company's overall goals and objectives. There are several steps CMOs can take to bridge the divide, facilitated by strengthening communication and sharing a customer-centric vision for the company.