Four in Ten Marketing Executives Unprepared to Meet Objectives Due to Lack of Funding and Internal Inefficiencies, Accenture Study Finds
Four in 10 top marketing executives say they are not well prepared to
meet their objectives, citing a lack of funding and inefficient business
practices as the main impediments to improved performance, according to
global research by Accenture (NYSE:ACN). The research also reveals a
growing commitment to digital marketing and analytics capabilities to
tackle an increasingly complex customer environment.
According to the Accenture Interactive report, Turbulence
for the CMO, 70 percent of the executives believe that corporate
marketing will undergo a dramatic overhaul within the next five years
and that their organizations must create a digital direction that will
help them achieve higher revenue and increase market share.
“Marketing executives are growing increasingly concerned that tight
budgets and the lack of a clear strategy for implementing digital
technologies – are hurting their company’s ability to compete in the
digital age,” said Brian Whipple, global managing director of Accenture
Interactive. “There is a clear performance gap between the demands of
the marketplace and the ability of marketing organizations to apply the
digital technology talent required to be more effective.”
The report shows that the need for change is being driven by
increasingly demanding customers who expect more relevant interactions
with brands. According to survey respondents, consumers’ expectations
for relevant, targeted experiences are having the greatest long-term
impact on marketing strategy (65 percent).
Rising Investment in Digital Capabilities
As a response to these issues, significant steps are being taken to
close the digital performance gap. The survey results show that
two-thirds (66 percent) of marketing executives will be allocating at
least one quarter of their budget to digital marketing next year, and
nearly one-quarter (23 percent) say that more than half of their spend
will be on digital marketing.
The survey shows that marketing executives also plan to invest more in
their analytics capabilities, which are especially useful as the demand
for multichannel marketing continues to increase. To help retain and
grow their customer base, nearly half (48 percent) of the executives say
they will spend more on managing customer data, 40 percent will increase
budget spend on web analytics and 39 percent will spend more on
marketing analytics. They are also taking a closer look at their use of
marketing channels, ranking in-person contact with front-line employees,
corporate website, media coverage and social media as the most important
channels.
In order to obtain the greatest results, marketing executives say they
are looking for more innovators – both by adding to their full-time
staffs. Half of the executives said they would begin an internal
reorganization to become more digitally focused, and more than half said
they would be hiring more people with the necessary digital skills (52
percent) or providing their existing staff with digital training (55
percent).
“The growing investment in digital capabilities will help marketing
executives improve their understanding of changing consumer needs and
manage multiple channels,” said Whipple. “However, improved performance
will require more than new digital and analytics talent. The challenge
of digital transformation is how to implement beyond marketing and
across the entire enterprise.”
Improved internal and agency collaboration
While a majority (55 percent) of marketing executives said they were
satisfied with the level of collaboration with their outside agencies,
there is a disconnect between their expectations and results. Only
one-third (36 percent) of marketing executives said that their agencies
execute flawlessly, and 36 percent said that the agencies are not able
to deliver what they promised. Additionally, only 44 percent said that
agency partners help marketing executives transform their marketing
organization, which is a clear goal for marketing executives in 2013.
The study indicates that for many marketers, improving collaboration
between business units can help them achieve their targets. Nearly one
in five executives (19 percent) said that inefficient business practices
currently hinder their ability to improve marketing performance and
return on investment, while 17 percent said a lack of funding hurts
these efforts.
Learn more at: www.accenture.com/cmo_insights.
Methodology
The 2012 CMO Insights Survey is the third in a series of global surveys
sponsored by Accenture aimed at understanding the opinions, challenges
and points of view of senior marketing executives from around the world.
The results are based on 405 surveys across 10 countries with senior
marketing executives. All respondents are from companies with at least
$1 billion in annual revenues, with companies in France Australia,
Singapore and Brazil all having an annual revenue of at least $500
million. Accenture conducted an online survey in August and September of
2012.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and
outsourcing company, with approximately 261,000 people serving clients
in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience,
comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions,
and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies,
Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance
businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of
US$27.9 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2012. Its home page
is www.accenture.com.
Accenture Interactive helps the world’s leading brands drive superior
marketing performance across the full multichannel customer experience.
Working with over 4,000 Accenture professionals dedicated to serving the
marketing function, Accenture Interactive offers integrated,
industrialized and industry-driven marketing solutions and services
across consulting, technology and outsourcing powered by analytics.
Follow @AccentureSocial or visit Accenture
Interactive.
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Editor Notes
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Geography Analysis Global:
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Geography
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Count
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Percentage
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USA
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145
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36%
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Canada
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15
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4%
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France
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40
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10%
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Germany
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42
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10%
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Italy
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41
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10%
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UK
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40
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10%
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Brazil
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20
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5%
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Australia
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21
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5%
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China
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21
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5%
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Singapore
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20
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|
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5%
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Total
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405
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100%
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Functional Title Analysis Global:
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Functional Title
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Percentage
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Other Vice President/Marketing
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40%
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Chief Marketing Officer
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32%
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Head of Brand
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15%
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Head of Digital
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7%
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Head of Communications
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5%
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Other
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1%
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Total
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100%
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Business Model Analysis Global:
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Type
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Percentage
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Business to Consumer Company
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37%
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Business to Business Consumer Company
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37%
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Business to Business Company
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26%
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Total
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100%
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Industry Analysis Global:
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Industry
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Count
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Percentage of Value
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Consumer Goods & Services
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29
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7%
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Pharma/Medical Products/Biotech
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24
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6%
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Retail
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23
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6%
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Transportation & Travel
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24
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6%
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Industrial Equipment
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15
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4%
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Automotive
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6
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1%
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Banking
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102
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25%
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Insurance
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26
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6%
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Capital Markets
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12
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3%
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Electronics & High Tech
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32
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8%
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Telecom
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19
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5%
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Media & Entertainment
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14
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3%
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Energy
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10
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2%
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Metals & Mining
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10
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2%
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Utilities
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7
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2%
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Chemicals
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5
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1%
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Other
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34
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8%
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Health Providers
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12
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3%
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Health Payers
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1
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0%
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Forest Products
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0
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0%
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Total
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405
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100%
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