In 2025, the digital marketing landscape is rapidly evolving, driven by advancements in AI, emerging media platforms, and stricter privacy laws. Marketers face the challenge of navigating this complex terrain while balancing brand awareness and customer acquisition efforts. Industry leaders from various sectors, including marketing, media, finance, retail, and manufacturing, are increasing their budgets to stay competitive.
However, the focus remains on cost efficiency and measurable returns. A key finding is that marketers seek a balanced approach combining performance marketing with brand-building efforts. While paid social media ads and paid search still dominate budget allocations at 87% and 84%, marketers are also diversifying into new channels to avoid growth plateaus.
Television advertising is experiencing a resurgence, with nearly two-thirds of surveyed marketing leaders currently advertising on TV. The medium now offers advanced targeting and ROI measurement tools, making it an integral part of brand and performance marketing strategies.
Balancing brand-building with performance
With 51% of the US population still watching traditional broadcast and cable and 49% tuning into streaming platforms, TV provides a broad reach. AI innovations are also changing the game for marketers. Tools like AI-powered chatbots and conversational AI generate excitement, with 38% of marketing teams already utilizing AI in daily tasks.
AI is employed for tasks ranging from writing ad copy to analyzing campaigns, signaling a shift towards more personalized and data-driven advertising. The primary metrics for measuring marketing success are Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) and Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC). Marketers increasingly know that sticking to tried-and-true channels alone is no longer sufficient.
They explore new advertising avenues to achieve growth and efficiency while relying on actionable data to guide their decisions. Looking forward, the future of marketing will be shaped by those who can effectively combine customer acquisition with brand awareness efforts while integrating traditional and digital channels. Marketers need to create the right mix of channels for their business and explore new opportunities outside their comfort zones to drive growth in 2025 and beyond.
