Brand Strategy Leads As CMO Most Vital Marketing Capability

It’s no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted marketing priorities, but just how they’ve been impacted tells an interesting story. When tasked with picking the three most crucial marketing capabilities in 2020, 33% of more than 400 marketing professionals surveyed by Gartner around the globe said brand strategy was the most important. That’s a huge change from where brand strategy ranked in 2019. Facing marketing budget cuts in light of lean economic markets, marketing professionals are focusing on market analytics (29%), marketing operations (28%) and digital commerce (26%), all of which report metrics that make it easy to define success.

Successful brand strategy is harder to quantify. Understanding where your customers are and how your business can help infuses an invaluable sense of empathy in operations. The hardest part will be understanding how elevating your brand strategy impacts the bottom line.

Chart Source: Gartner