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///CMO Outlook About

Learn the ins and outs of the CMO Outlook - what it is, why it exists, and how the insights are collected.
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What is the CMO Outlook?

The CMO Outlook survey is one of the largest surveys of its kind, with input from over 600 senior marketing leaders across the globe. It is regularly updated and includes the trends, views, and actions that marketers are taking to stay ahead of changing business needs. The results use a combination of both quantitative and qualitative data and delve into both global and regional trends, as well as marketing trends across all industries. 

Why does it exist?

Marketing, brand, and their impact on evolving business and consumer trends is highly complex and changing quickly. What you spend your time on, what you worry about, what you feel on top of, where you feel you need to improve skills. We seek to better understand the trends impacting your business to support you with solutions to overcome challenges and optimize for future growth. Our goal is to share results and engage with the CMOs, senior marketing leaders, and tomorrow’s future CMOs to ultimately help you make better data-driven business decisions.

How is the data collected?

We conducted a global quantitative study as well as qualitative, 1:1 interviews with CMOs at leading businesses across the globe. These findings will be updated regularly, and supplemented by ongoing pulse surveys to ensure findings remain relevant and actionable.

More information on the qualitative interviews

The interviews took place in March 2023 to explore and understand the issues currently faced by senior marketing personas. They were used to feed into the design of a large scale quantitative research study aimed at marketing leaders operating globally and regionally. The output formed the core element of thought leadership content to establish The CMO Outlook as a trusted source on topics relevant to CMOs.

The detailed approach:
GfK conducted seven 1:1 client interviews each lasting 1 hour. Across a mix of industries and regions, exploring issues and topics of relevance to senior marketers. Topics included:

More information on the quantitative survey

Following the qualitative research, we launched a global quantitative study based on a sample size of 633 global marketing leaders. The survey was completed online via a self-completion questionnaire.    

Global marketing leaders were defined as CMOs, Directors, VPs and team leads in Marketing, Marketing Operations and Customer Experience who work in companies with 250+ employees or $50m+ revenue. We surveyed leaders across all industries with B2B, B2C and hybrid business models. 

There is also a CMO Index which measures how marketing leaders see the overall health of marketing today. It is comprised of three pillars:
 
Impact:
  • I have a clear understanding of which activities, channels and marketing levers give the best ROI.
  • We have a strong team with all the skills we need to deliver our marketing strategy
Alignment:
  • Beyond our commercial goals, we have a clear mission/purpose as a brand.
  • Our brand is an asset that really helps us to deliver commercial success. 
Investment:
  • My CEO and CFO believe in the value of investing in our brand for the long-term.
  • We have the right balance between short-term return and long-term brand building in our marketing. 

633

marketing leaders worldwide

5

regions

3

pillars of success

A closer look at the sample

World map CMO insights v6-1

More on CMO

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