Trends and Technology

As brands and organizations gear up for Women's History Month in March, marketers are viewing the celebration though a long lens and delivering ad campaigns showing women succeeding in roles traditionally associated with men.

Marketers continue to be dogged by all the data they collect. Nearly two-thirds of marketers lack confidence in their data analytics and insights systems, a new survey reveals. Building (and sustaining) cross-functional teams encompassing both marketing and technology is key to remedying the situation.

With Black History Month around the corner, a growing number of brands are moving beyond a four-week window tied to the celebration to forge deeper relationships with Black-owned businesses and Black communities. The efforts range from hands-on training to help companies go to market faster to making people aware of rapidly changing demographics in the U.S.

On the road to a streaming universe, linear TV continues to offer advertisers a still-reliable marketing vehicle with broad reach. The next frontier for marketers is how to optimize their ads across both streaming and linear platforms.

A growing number of brands are cutting the CMO role altogether and shifting marketing responsibilities to other members of the C-suite. The churn rate is also accelerating. Kirsten Allegri Williams, CMO at Optimizely, says the overriding challenge for CMOs is closing the gap between the expectations among their customers and what marketers can deliver — and then effectively communicating the process back to the C-suite.

The pandemic jolted many brands into beefing up their digital marketing and some into switching their ad agencies. But while the tumult caused by COVID-19 has subsided, the pace of account reviews has only accelerated.

Christmas in July? Not quite. But the shopping season, previously relegated to the last several weeks of the year, is now in perpetual motion due to online shopping. What's more, amid a creaky economy and the potential for a recession later this year, consumers are gathering up their gifts earlier than ever.

Fraud in digital advertising remains an issue, and while the exact scale of the problem is a matter of dispute, there's widespread agreement that as the market grows, so will the need for brands to take an active role in protecting their investments.

Companies that break up into smaller companies create challenges for marketers. At the same time, breakups can enable brand marketers to align more closely with the goals of the new entity and compete more effectively against scrappier brands.

As a hot job market continues and the Great Resignation lingers, companies such as Denny's, Pearle Vision, and EOS Products are turning to DEI and other meaningful initiatives to lure and retain top talent.

Celebrity-run ad agencies continue to proliferate, offering brands an unorthodox approach to marketing and advertising strategies. But while celebrity shops run by the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade, and Tony Hawk bring a certain glow to the table, brand managers need to approach such agencies with eyes wide open and make sure they're in sync with the brand's goals and objectives.

While one in three Americans suffer from sleep deprivation, consumers remain skeptical about the benefits of devices designed to help people get a better night's rest. To assuage concerns, marketers are moving their focus to how sleep tech can help in improving one's overall health.

The acceleration in scent marketing is being fueled by consumers' post-pandemic thirst for real-world experiences. A powerful driver for human emotion, scent provides food brands with unique ways to stir engagement and fuel sales. As with other brand extensions, context is critical.

Amid a dizzying amount of change, CMOs who collaborate effectively with their CTOs are likely to generate better returns. Establishing strategic alliances with chief technology officers is fast becoming a cost of entry for marketers who want to ascend in their organization.

As marketers’ roles expand to encompass customer experience, product innovation, content marketing, and data analytics, among other areas, how one manages their time will be increasingly important to keeping crucial goals on track. There are a handful of steps marketers can take to beat the clock, some of them hiding in plain sight.

The upcoming school year will be tricky for brands to navigate. On the one hand, there's a sense of newness as kids return to in-class learning full-time, with expectations for that to continue uninterrupted, for the first time since COVID-19 hit two-plus years ago. On the other, there are major headwinds from soaring prices, with shoppers combating the worst inflation in 40 years and the Consumer Price Index hitting in 8.6 percent in May.

Despite the growing power of the “silver economy” and traditional notions of aging being constantly upended, advertisers continue to give the 50-plus market short shrift. As the size of this market — and its immense wealth — grows, can brands continue to afford to ignore them?

A growing number of brands, including Edelman, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Volkswagen, are hiring chief experience officers. The moves come as tolerance for a bad or mediocre consumer experience continues to plummet, with more than half of brands reporting that those who are dissatisfied with the company will switch brands, per a recent survey.

The retail world looks a lot different following two years of tumult due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Brick-and-mortar sales are expected to grow up to 3.4 percent through 2025, per eMarketer. As consumers head back to stores, brands will need to sharpen the ways they weave their messaging between the physical and digital worlds.

Several major companies have embarked on rebranding efforts over the past several months, spurred in part by global events and shifting mores in society. The temptation to rebrand can be powerful for marketers, as it represents an opportunity to hit the reset button. However, for a rebrand to work, CMOs must have a deep understanding of their core audience.