12:00 BST/07:00 EST 6th August, 2024, London – Dotdigital, a marketing technology provider, has unveiled results from its first global CMO report, surveying marketing professionals. The report highlights the trends disrupting the digital marketing landscape in 2024.
The report reveals some compelling statistics:
- A third of marketers see AI as a major hurdle
- Nearly half of respondents cite they are not fully prepared for data regulation changes
- 28% cite a lack of AI knowledge as a top concern for their teams
- 30% of marketers say social media and email marketing yield the best ROI
Survey details
As part of Dotdigital’s CMO survey, the company gathered insights from over 750 marketing leaders across the UK, US, and Australia, spanning 13 industry sectors. The report addresses the contemporary global dynamics and challenges marketers face, defined not by analysts but by marketing professionals themselves.
Key themes identified include Adaptability, the AI divide, Engagement, and Innovation – each playing a crucial role in shaping strategic frameworks and operational tactics in the marketing sphere. The comprehensive report explores each theme, equipping marketing professionals with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate key challenges and capitalize on opportunities.
Key findings
- AI Challenges: Although most marketing teams use AI tools for marketing automation (32%) and data analysis (31%), significant barriers remain. 33% of marketers admit to lacking confidence and skills in using AI effectively, and 30% are also concerned about data privacy issues with open-source models.
- Regulatory Concerns: Nearly half of those surveyed still feel unprepared to deal with new data regulations, with 32% citing regulatory compliance as the biggest challenge within their marketing team. They listed a lack of visibility and control of endpoints as a barrier to maintaining compliance with regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
- Rising Importance of CX: Marketing teams are increasingly assuming responsibility for managing customer experience (CX) to enhance engagement, marking a notable shift. Although traditionally CX teams have operated across various departments, a growing number of marketers (32%) now consider CX a primary focus and essential duty.
- Top Investment Areas: Regarding innovation, marketers globally reported the top investment areas as automation software (43%), influencer marketing (35%), and AI integration (30%). These technological advancements will help CMOs empower their teams to create the best experiences without the heavy lifting.
Looking ahead: Trends and predictions for 2024
- Anticipate Growth in Data Privacy Trust-building: 36% of marketing leaders see data privacy regulations as a key opportunity to gain consumer trust, a figure that will most likely increase.
- Prepare for Advanced AI Integration: Addressing the gap in AI prompting skills will be crucial in the coming year as businesses adopt more structured AI implementations and the hype around the technology stabilizes. Marketers should focus on enhancing transparency and fostering human-AI collaboration in content creation.
- Anticipate a Shift in MarTech Expectations: With marketing teams taking greater CX ownership, CMOs will expect marketing automation platforms to provide advanced data insights, enable two-way communication, and integrate tools like the WhatsApp Business API. Decision-makers will look for platforms with CDP-like capabilities.
- Embrace the rise of Micro-Influencers: Expect a surge in partnerships with micro-influencers (1,000 to 100,000 followers). These influencers connect meaningfully with target audiences on brand-aligned topics, offering cost-effectiveness, credible endorsements, and higher engagement rates.
Juliette Aiken, CMO at Dotdigital, notes: "To engage modern consumers, marketers must balance innovation with authenticity, adapt to shifts in the marketing landscape, and invest in technologies that drive creative, tailored customer experiences. It's crucial to embrace these advancements while upholding data privacy and ethical standards to maintain customer trust.
Embracing technology without hesitation is vital to avoid being left behind. We encourage all marketers to be adaptive and resilient, innovate relentlessly, and craft unique campaigns to capture consumer attention in novel ways."
Dotdigital has provided marketing technology to brands for over 20 years to improve their marketing and engagement. This year, the company commissioned the CMO survey to uncover insights into the strategies, struggles, and success metrics influencing the marketing field globally, ultimately showcasing a real-world view of what marketing professionals are currently contending with.
To find out more about the report and its findings, visit Dotdigital’s website where you can download the report free of charge.
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About us:
About Dotdigital
Dotdigital is an all-in-one customer experience and data platform (CXDP) that empowers marketing teams to exceed customer expectations with highly personalized cross-channel journeys.
With Dotdigital, marketers can seamlessly unify, enrich, and segment customer data. Breaking down data silos, Dotdigital streamlines decision-making and paves the way for marketing creativity that delivers customer engagement at scale.
With powerful AI capabilities, Dotdigital makes it easy to automate deeply personalized experiences across web, email, SMS, WhatsApp, chat, push, social, ads, and more.
Trusted by over 4,000 brands across ecommerce, retail, not-for-profit, education, financial services, and other sectors, Dotdigital enables marketers across the globe.
Headquartered in London and established in 1999, Dotdigital is focused on building trusted, connected, and future-proofed solutions that empower customer-obsessed businesses. Learn more at dotdigital.com
Contact details:
Candice Lester
House of PR
0401 367 343
