• by Elizabeth Planek , Yesterday

AI is no longer a buzzword; it’s a business priority. Conversation across the industry has evolved from automation to activation, from efficiency to outcomes. For CRM teams, the opportunity lies in turning AI and data into growth engines—powering smarter connections, deeper trust, and measurable results.

Here are five trends shaping the future of CRM.

AI Should Drive Value, Not Just Efficiency

AI continues to dominate marketing conversations. The conversation is shifting from efficiency to value creation. AI should be a growth engine, not just a cost reducer. CRM teams can use AI to unlock new audiences, eliminate waste, and build a growth loop that’s intelligent and repeatable.

Looking forward: Teams should pay attention to opportunities within agentic commerce, which is gaining traction but still largely underutilized.

Customer Expectations Are Higher Than Ever

today’s customers expect brands to know them and connect with them. Having all the data isn’t enough; it must be clean, connected, and actionable. Siloed systems create challenges for internal teams, and the resulting friction can be obvious to customers. A strong data foundation enables marketers to pace campaigns with agility while maintaining control over personalization efforts along the customer journey. 

Looking forward: The brands winning today treat data as a strategic asset and use it to meet rising expectations with relevance and consistency.

Creativity Is Shaping the Marketing Mix

With tighter budgets and fierce competition, creative channel strategies are essential for differentiation. Brands are expanding beyond traditional channels to meet customers where they are, physically and digitally. From experiential out-of-home activations to Reddit communities to gaming integrations, marketers are finding new ways to stay top of mind, build brand affinity, and drive engagement.

Looking forward: The marketing mix has evolved, and success now depends on how creatively (and authentically) a brand can connect in the customer’s world.

Success Is Measured by Business Outcomes, Not KPIs

Marketing success must be tied to business impact. As the purchase funnel collapses, brands need to evaluate channels holistically with closed-loop measurement. Channel-specific KPIs mean nothing if not correlated to outcomes like increases in market share or lifetime value. This requires a connected data foundation that captures cross-channel behavior and links it to real business results.

Looking forward: Teams should ask: Are we driving incremental revenue? Retaining customers? Growing share of wallet?

Brand Trust Is Everything

Customer trust is a critical component of brand strategy. Today it is harder than ever for brands to obtain, bringing two efforts top of mind:

• Data stewardship: Customers expect brands to handle their data responsibly and use it meaningfully from the very first transaction. Brands that activate relevant data-driven retention strategies at that initial signal are successful.
• AI authenticity: Customers can spot generic AI-generated content from a mile away, and feeling “duped” quickly erodes trust. Being upfront about where AI is leveraged and maintaining a human-in-the-loop approach is essential not just for ethical AI use, but for preserving loyalty.

Looking forward: Listening to customer signals and responding with relevance builds trust over time. Trusted data leads to trusted relationships, the foundation of long-term brand success.