CMO's Playbook: Leveraging AI for Future Marketing Success
TL;DR
The Evolving Role of the CMO in the Age of AI
Confronting the Future with AI and Reinvention
The CMO role is undergoing unprecedented change, with AI dominating discussions. To stay ahead, a massive leap in operational design is essential. Download the report for more insights.
Key Growth Moves for CMOs
To win with AI, CMOs need to make five key growth moves to bridge the gap between promise and delivery:
- Win the moment: Use AI to master the shift from journey-based thinking to moment-based execution. Download the report
- Forge an infrastructure that doesn’t flinch: Create integrated platforms where data flows seamlessly and AI enhances human capability. Download the report
- Heal your EX to fix your CX: Transform internal workflows to revolutionize customer touchpoints. Download the report
- Hire for heart. Train for AI: Focus on emotional intelligence and train teams in AI technologies.
- Stop chasing campaigns. Architect outcomes instead: Design marketing operations to achieve specific business results.
The Marketing Execution Gap
Many marketing organizations are structurally incapable of delivering the results boards demand despite larger budgets and sophisticated tools. To prevent marketing aspirations from outrunning execution capabilities, fundamental operational transformation is essential. Download the report
Winning the Moment
CMOs who use AI to master the immediate consumer moment are building adaptive lifetime value that sparks real growth. Consumers want to be known before being served, prioritizing personalized interactions and proactive support. Download the report
Ginny Cartwright Ziegler, CMO, Pearson:
The customer relationship needs to be seen through a multidimensional prism. A series of experiences that must be imagined, created, orchestrated and tracked. And you cannot be complacent. The customer is always evolving and expectations only go higher. You’ve got to be on it all the time.
The Rise of AI-Powered Answer Engines
AI-powered answer engines are transforming digital discovery by delivering immediate, synthesized responses directly in the results page. This shift means fewer clicks to websites, forcing brands to win in the fleeting microsecond and deliver value instantaneously. Download the report
A recent study found that the presence of an AI overview in search results correlated with a 34.5% lower average clickthrough rate (CTR) for the top-ranking page. Download the report
Building an Infrastructure That Doesn't Flinch
Most tech stacks weren’t built to predict, personalize, and protect all at once. Visionary CMOs are creating integrated platforms where data flows seamlessly, AI enhances human capability, and customer experiences remain flawless. Download the report
Allison Robl Stransky, CMO, Vice President Corporate Marketing, Samsung Electronics America:
The tools in the marketing landscape are changing at a faster pace than they’ve changed before... the biggest challenge is keeping up with them.
Amidst technological sprawl, platformization is emerging as the clear path forward, streamlining infrastructure into connected platforms. Download the report
Healing Employee Experience to Fix Customer Experience
External customer experience is a manifestation of internal organizational health. Leading CMOs are transforming internal workflows before attempting to revolutionize customer touchpoints. Download the report
Only 28% of organizations report that the end-to-end customer experience is effectively owned and aligned across functions. This organizational fragmentation translates to financial underperformance. Download the report
GenAI Investments and Optimism
CMOs are increasingly optimistic about GenAI, leading to aggressive investments. Around 80% of CMOs expressed optimism and confidence in the technology. A large majority (71%) plan to invest at least $10 million annually in GenAI over the next three years.
Image courtesy of BCG
Over a third of CMOs report significant improvements in customer experience and content due to GenAI. Read more
Content Generation with GenAI
CMOs are scaling content creation with GenAI, reallocating resources toward more advanced applications like video generation. Around 30% of respondents identified immersive formats such as video generation as their next area of focus. See how Google used its AI tools to enhance the original 1939 version of "The Wizard of Oz" for the Sphere in Las Vegas. Read more
Image courtesy of BCG
AI-Powered Personalization and Insight Generation
Personalization is a key lever for marketers balancing efficiency and growth. CMOs are widely deploying simple use cases such as product recommendations and personalized outreach.
Image courtesy of BCG
Tesco, the UK’s largest retail chain, enhanced its Clubcard program using predictive AI and GenAI. By combining GenAI’s power for content creation with precision targeting, marketers are orchestrating campaigns across multiple channels and generating higher returns.
The Rise of Agentic AI
Agentic AI is becoming a growing priority, especially for B2B companies. AI agents are being applied to generate insights, draft campaign briefs, and automate key steps in content creation. In B2B, agents are used for managing leads, assisting with customer support, and handling tasks such as returns and refunds.
Image courtesy of BCG
Delta recently announced Delta Concierge, a digital assistant embedded in the Fly Delta app, while L’Oréal is scaling Beauty Genius, its AI- and GenAI-powered personal beauty assistant.
Preparing for the AI Revolution
The challenge for CMOs is to integrate AI in a way that elevates human creativity, strategic thinking, and brand authenticity. Read more
From brand storyteller to brand systems designer:
The future CMO must think in systems, designing brand ecosystems that learn and adapt through AI without losing their soul. Read more
From insight interpreter to insight orchestrator:
It’s still the CMO’s job to ask the right questions, sense-check the outputs, and make the leap from numbers to narratives. Read more
The Novel Playbook for AI-Empowered Marketing Teams
A future-ready team needs three pillars:
- The data-driven strategist
- The human storyteller
- The AI operations specialist
Encourage your team to collaborate with AI rather than outsource thinking to it. Read more
Resource Management in the AI Age
Reserve at least 15–20% of your annual marketing budget for AI experimentation and training. Avoid “AI tool creep” by adopting a single source of truth approach. Read more
The Human Element
Overreliance on AI risks brands sounding automated, losing the imperfections and unpredictability that make human connections powerful. Read more
Recommendations for CMOs
- Audit your AI maturity
- Build dual skill pathways
- Implement ethical guidelines
- Measure human impact
- Lead with vision, not tools Read more
