• Adweek, Wednesday, August 11, 2010 11:29 PM

The focus on corporate budget cuts has changed to a demand for sales growth, and to achieve that goal, CMOs must transform their communications to address consumer mind-set shifts, often with flat or declining budgets, says Adweek.

In fact, "expectations for marketing have never been higher" at a time when "the challenges have never been greater," according to a new Accenture survey of global marketers. Three in five execs believe the marketing function will "fundamentally change during the next five years" because of the battering consumers have taken in the economic downturn. The most lasting impact will be on customers' expectations for product quality, value, price and customer service, Accenture said.

Businesses can no longer afford to spend marketing dollars based on gut instincts. This means CMOs must take the reins of their department and find new ways to marry creativity with well-grounded ROI analysis, advises 1-to-1 Media. Marketers are also facing a proliferation of marketing channels with the meteoric rise of social media sites and loss of control of the brand as customers take control of the online airwaves. These increased pressures to deliver ROI and the proliferation of new media channels have created the perfect storm for marketers. And this storm is forcing the CMO to lead a revolutionary change or risk being pushed aside into irrelevancy as a new guard takes the helm.

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