More than half of global marketing leaders surveyed say they have greater responsibility for revenue growth and 61% say data acquisition is a top priority for 2014, according to new research by Deloitte and the ExactTarget Marketing Cloud, from salesforce.com.
The new research, entitled, “ Bridging the Digital Divide: How CMOs Can Rise to Meet Five Expanding Expectations ” identifies five key priorities for CMOs based on a survey of 228 global marketing leaders.
“After hearing from hundreds of CMOs and marketing leaders, it’s clear that today’s CMO must constantly assess and adjust to a host of factors including consumer changes, channels, devices, competitors, brand and market share,” said Michael Lazerow, CMO, ExactTarget Marketing Cloud. “Many CMOs today find themselves with one foot in branding, one in the post-digital world and one hand on a compass trying to figure out what’s next. That is why we are excited to help guide marketers on their own journey, as well as the customer journeys they are building on an unprecedented scale.”
The report identified five expectations for CMOs:
Expectation 1: Take On Top-Line Growth
• 53% of CMOs say with the growth of digital marketing, their team’s responsibilities include a greater focus on enabling revenue growth
• 38% of CMOs say they have a larger technology budget to keep pace with the growth of digital marketing
Expectation 2: Own The Customer Experience
• 38% of CMOs name an increased role in customer service as an area where the growth of digital marketing has challenged their teams
• However, 23% of CMOs don’t feel adequately prepared to address an increased role in customer service
Expectation 3: Dig in to Data-Based Insights
• 61% say data acquisition is their top internal marketing priority for 2014
• However, adding personnel with data and analytics knowledge is the number-one area (32%) where CMOs feel least prepared
Expectation 4: Operate in Real Time
• 59% of CMOs named flexible and agile marketing processes as a top internal marketing priority
• Only 16% use web personalization frequently today, while 50% plan to do so
Expectation 5: Master the Metrics That Matter
• 53% of CMOs say ROI was their most important metric used to measure success
• 52% of CMOs say the growth of digital marketing has led to the need for more qualified data and analytics personnel
Expectation 5: Master the Metrics That Matter
• 53% of CMOs say ROI was their most important metric used to measure success
• 52% of CMOs say the growth of digital marketing has led to the need for more qualified data and analytics personnel
“The role of the CMO has expanded from brand steward to customer champion. CMOs play a key role in driving revenue growth. And, to deliver on those growth expectations, CMOs should chart their own path to provide answers to changing consumer demands, new channel adoption, upgrading technology strategies and marketing talent challenges,” said Frances Yu, director, Deloitte Consulting LLP.
In this study, ExactTarget Marketing Cloud and Deloitte conducted an online survey of 228 global marketing leaders. Survey respondents were limited to CMO or Head of Marketing positions reporting to a CEO, president, or country/line of business head. Forty-two percent of respondents belonged to a company with more than $1 billion in revenue, with 24% between $500 million and $1 billion. The survey was conducted from October to December 2013.
Download the full report here (registration required)
Sources: www.ExactTarget.com
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