3 Data Points Every CMO Should Know

There is no better time to be a CMO. It may not always feel like it given the data indicating the head of marketing has the shortest tenure of any C-Suite peer but that’s old news and the truth is the role is dynamic, fast moving, and interesting, to say the least, and most importantly, visibly and critically important to business growth. As CMOs we have the opportunity on a daily basis to drive our businesses forward in meaningful ways.

Here are three data points I came across recently that start to outline the mandate for CMO success in the era of AI, data, creativity, and growth. 

40% of CMOs Cite Growth as Their #1 Challenge (Deloitte/ CMO Council 2019)

The first mention I can remember of the CMO growth mandate was in a 2014 CMO Club piece by Gregg Walach. And now, five years later, we have the Cannes Lions CMO Growth Council and the Institute for Real Growth which put some teeth to their initiatives in 2019. It shouldn’t be a surprise that 40% of CMOs cited growth as their #1 challenge in the recent Deloitte CMO Survey. The next most often cited challenge cited by marketing leaders wasn't even close - “Deliver a powerful brand that breaks through the clutter” came in at 14%. The key to staying in seat and enjoying the ride? Figure out how to orchestrate data, technology, and creativity to grow the business and communicate that growth to C-Suite peers.

CMOs That Integrate Data and Creativity Grow Revenue Twice as Fast as Non-Integrators (McKinsey)

Driving growth today and tomorrow is about combining data, insights, and creativity in the right way. Sure there’s org design, talent, channels, brand voice, etc. etc. But marketing today is a whole new ball game and it takes an alchemy of sorts across data and creativity to rise above the noise and make an impact. 

I always like to say that insights are the real currency of data-driven marketing and creative and have seen first hand the power of insights, and not just data, to drive growth. When the Persado team used its AI platform and experts to analyze thousands of message permutations for a recent campaign for JPMorgan Chase, the team found that curating the exact the right words and messages in a way that aligns to the customer journey delivered nearly twice as many home equity line of credit applications compared to the control ads that Chase created. How? By making marketing more personal, authentic and human again, at scale. That’s real growth for the bank and comes from the insights that using the right words in the right way drive brand engagement and marketing performance improvements to drive growth.

Nearly 1/3 of CMO Budgets Allocated to Marketing Technology (Gartner)

Data-driven creative and brand communications and the resulting growth benefits can’t happen without technology, which increasingly means leveraging data science and AI. This has generated significant hype in the marketplace which, combined with the increased scrutiny of marketing technology budgets, means that CMOs and their teams need to be even more disciplined in their research and evaluation of AI solutions to ensure they are going down the right path in support of delivering the best customer experience and value. 

This could be one of the biggest challenges facing CMOs today: How to successfully deploy the right marketing technology stack like a seasoned CIO and demand that every bit of value be squeezed from that portfolio like a numbers-driven CFO.