CMOs - Trends to WatchThe new year has brought new challenges for CMOs and their marketing teams. International Data Corporation predicts 25 percent of high tech CMOs will be replaced every year through 2018. Those who don’t get on board with the latest in marketing — especially tracking ROI and cooperating with CIOs — will see their jobs most at risk.

To help you do your best this year, I’ve found articles on 2015 marketing trends, CMOs to watch this year, the relationship between CIOs and CMOs, and essential marketing technology.

  • IDC Predicts Turmoil for CMOs in 2015. Forbes:By 2017 25% of CMOs and CIOs will have a shared roadmap for marketing technology. Why isn’t this 100% in 2015? It should be! No excuses for waiting until 2017. By 2018 20% of B2B CMOs will drive budget increases by attributing campaign results to revenue performance. Yikes! Only 20%. Sure building measurement systems isn’t easy, but the tools do exist to help you learn what works and doesn’t. For the CMOs who don’t make progress on multi-channel program attribution in 2015, re-read prediction #1. Your job will be in jeopardy.”
  • The Economics of Content Marketing in 2015 — Investment Tipping Point. The Huffington Post: “The CMOs amongst us will hopefully be aware of the virtues of content given today’s content ecosystem (source Digital Relevance) a recognition that content can truly provide the holy grail in what organizations can achieve. Our task is consequently to communicate this across the organization, cross-pollinating contents’ virtues as we go and gaining access to budget to maintain and develop this. We are on the right track for this, but doing so will be denied if we do not pay lip service to the importance of the economics of content.”
  • The 5 CMOs to Watch in 2015. The Wall Street Journal: “The marketing world is so laden with jargon — from “DSP” to “programmatic” — that it is possible to forget that real people are still behind major marketing decisions. With an average job tenure roughly half that of their CEO superiors, chief marketing officers tend to have a short shelf life in the C-suite. A handful of CMOs will be under an especially bright spotlight this coming year. CMO Today is bringing you our top five CMOs to watch in 2015.”
  • Making the CIO-CMO Relationship a Success in 2015. CXOtoday: “Organizations succeed only when CMOs and CIOs share a single, customer-focused business technology agenda, says a Forrester report, and hails the CMO and CIO as the two roles that matter most for 2015. Forrester analyst and Chief Research Officer, Cliff Condon, explains in his blog that unlike before it makes little sense for CMOs to focus only on marketing and promotion. In the age of the customer, the CMO of 2015 must own the most important driver of business success — the customer experience — and represent the customer’s perspective in corporate strategy.”
  • What Does The Future Hold For Marketers? 16 CMOs Share Their Predictions For 2015. Marketing Land: “Jeff Rohrs, VP Marketing Insights, Salesforce: 2015 will be the year of collaboration. In the age of ubiquitous connectivity, mobility, and social media, CMOs and their C-Suite brethren can no longer afford to remain siloed in organizational towers. They must reach across the aisle in order to best serve consumers no matter the device, channel or location their journey takes them. This means marketing, sales, and service will have to become more interconnected than ever – both generating and sharing common data about each customer that boosts sales, brand loyalty, and customer satisfaction with every touch.”