80% of Marketers Say Planning, Budgeting Have Been Impacted by COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is having an impact on the way marketers do business, and new research shows that its effects are farther reaching than previously thought.

The Trade Desk recently published its “Measuring Success in Digital Advertising” report, and statistics found most marketers (80%) agree that their planning or budgeting process has been significantly impacted by the pandemic. About 50% said that the marketing KPIs they have been using for years are now being challenged, and 43% claimed that they have had to justify investments that were never questioned before.

Over the past six months, the onset of the pandemic has created more pressure for the majority (48%) of marketers. Nearly 36% stated that they are under more pressure than ever before, while only 14% said they are under the same amount of pressure as they were before the pandemic.

The Impact of COVID-19 on CMOs

Many marketers are feeling the increased pressure from their CMOs, and previous research suggests that CMOs, specifically, have been negatively affected by the pandemic.

Dentsu conducted its 2020 CMO Survey, and the results found that 24% of CMOs based in the U.S. have been “significantly affected” by COVID-19. Globally, this percentage was 25%, and about 7% are facing an existential threat.

In the U.S., marketers have been struggling as they attempt to focus on growth and short-term performance to ride out the pandemic. Over the next six to 12 months, the majority of CMOs in the U.S. (43%) predict their top challenge to be understanding what customer behavior is temporary versus what is permanent.


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