The role of the CMO has changed a lot. With the proliferation of channels, devices, platforms, and a fear of recession looming, it’s difficult for a CMO to prove marketing’s value without having access to unified and holistic data, a pool of talent, connecting with customers, and standing out in a crowded marketing landscape. There’s too much data to make sense of it. All of this, together, can give rise to a host of unique challenges that CMOs must overcome. Here are the 5 challenges that CMOs might face in 2023:
5 Challenges That CMOs Might Face
1. Uncertain Future
The future right now seems uncertain, and that means becoming wiser with your marketing spend. While testing and learning is the norm in marketing, right now is the time to stick to tried and tested strategies. And this obviously does not mean holding off on marketing investments.
With the abundance of data and marketing channels, there can be several distractions that could drain your coffers, so it is important to organize your data and stick to channels which will work within your budget and for your audience.
If your target audience is not likely to read their email, don’t invest in it just because everyone else is. In the same way, if paid advertisements haven’t yet given you the ROI expected, it’s best to hold off till the seas become calm once again.
2. Retaining Talent
In the wake of the Great Resignation, one of the biggest challenges CMOs face is not external but internal. Labor shortages have impacted nearly every industry and new talent that fits your company culture and expectations can be hard to find. This is why it becomes even more important to retain the talent you do have. Investing in new methods of working can increase productivity and make employees happier.
3. Standing Out in a Crowded Digital Marketing Landscape
Everyone has gone digital after the pandemic, making most digital platforms rather crowded. To stand out, you need to be unique and noticeable. The best way to do that is to add a little personality. The image you want your brand to embody would depend on the audience that you hope to resonate with.
In a crowded digital landscape, businesses that can forge a genuine connection with people stand to gain. So it is crucial to know and understand your target audience.
4. Connecting with Customers
Building lasting relationships with customers is essential. Managing these relationships is even more crucial. Afterall, existing customers bring in the lion’s share of revenue. So it is important to have a customer marketing strategy in place.
With news of a global slowdown everywhere, now is the time to forge strong bonds with customers and understand what they are looking for. Granted that most would be looking to downsize or stop any business dealings till things settle down, but with a strong relationship, most will choose to come back to their preferred partners.
5. Demonstrating Successful ROI to Justify Their Budget
Multiple marketing channels and siloed systems means finding actionable insights is tough without having access to specialized talent. And without actionable insights, how do CMOs demonstrate successful ROI?
This is where investing in marketing analytics tools–that can unify data sources to measure marketing effectiveness and activate marketing intelligence–is of immense help. As marketing budgets come under intense scrutiny, CMOs will have to demonstrate successful ROI to justify their budgets.
Summing Up
All these challenges, whether internal or external, can be overcome with the right strategies and systems and made significantly easier with automation. When disparate systems are integrated to provide a single source of truth, half the CMO’s battles are won.
DiGGrowth—an AI-driven no-code marketing intelligence platform—gives CMOs the ability to justify their marketing spend by demonstrating the ROI of marketing activities. Know how DiGGrowth can solve data hygiene challenges, integrate disparate systems, and provide focussed insights using custom dashboards and reports for CMOs. Know more
