Why Your Marketing Team Needs an AI Strategy—Now

For CMOs or VPs of Marketing / Communications leading teams of 20 or more professionals, AI is no longer a future consideration—it’s already a fundamental part of your organization’s daily work. The numbers speak for themselves:

• 88% of marketers rely on AI in their current jobs (SurveyMonkey)
• 93% of AI-using marketers leverage it to generate content faster (SurveyMonkey)
• 39% of marketers aren’t sure how to safely use generative AI (Salesforce)
• 70% report their employer does not provide generative AI training (Salesforce)

Yet despite AI’s widespread use, most marketing leaders do not have a formal AI strategy, process, or policies in place. There is no alignment around when or why to use AI tools, what tools to use, how to use those tools, or what the expectations are around how those tools are chosen and managed. ? This lack of clear expectations and structure creates unnecessary risk, internally and externally, at every level of the marketing organization.

A well-defined AI strategy promotes a greater understanding of AI’s full scope and potential applications. AI is not just a tool for content generation; it influences automation, audience insights, sense-making, listening, and strategic decision-making. By integrating AI systematically - not ad hoc - your team will be better prepared to capitalize on emerging AI-driven capabilities, such as persona bots, trained language models for content creation, and quality assurance assistants.

Implementing a clear AI strategy now will help reduce risk by ensuring AI usage aligns with your brand’s values, compliance regulations, and ethical standards. It will create clear and transparent expectations so that your marketing team understands how to use AI effectively and within defined guidelines. Without these parameters, teams may unknowingly use AI in ways that create data breaches, legal issues, frustration within the team, or crises of your own making.

Confidence in human oversight at all stages of AI use is crucial. While AI can accelerate processes, human thinking, direction, and management is necessary for alignment with business goals, quality control, and final approvals. Establishing clear checkpoints where human review is required helps maintain the integrity of your marketing content and strategies. Additionally, an AI strategy strengthens control and compliance, ensuring that AI adoption aligns with internal governance policies and industry regulations.

Training, engagement, and professional development opportunities are absolutely critical for ensuring your marketing team is using AI strategically, responsibly, and confidently.? Providing structured learning initiatives, coaching, and training sessions from a trusted consultant ensures that your team can leverage AI to its full potential while adhering to best practices and not compromising your corporate reputation.

The next 90 days present a critical window for establishing an AI strategy that ensures control, compliance, and competitive advantage. Your team is already using AI—now it’s time to lead them with a structured approach that maximizes benefits while minimizing risks.? Start by doing a series of alignment workshops with a facilitator that incorporates your team as well as IT, legal, and other internal stakeholders.? You have the opportunity to lead within the enterprise - take it.??

As a CMO, your leadership in AI strategy will define your organization’s ability to innovate, adapt, and succeed in an AI-driven world. The time to act is now.