6 Market Insights For 2024 Planning
Date: September 28, 2023
Time Reading: 8 min.
By Chrissy Koskovich, Product Marketing Manager
Businesses are in the thick of planning their budgets, marketing strategies, and investments for 2024 — a task that weighs heavy on marketing leaders.
Marketing through 2023 taught me that the only thing I can plan for with 100% confidence is that change will be inevitable. I wandered into the year with high hopes for economic recovery and bigger marketing budgets, both of which didn’t materialize as expected. And like all of us, a year ago, I had hardly considered the implications of accessing fully functioning and powerful gen-AI technologies like ChatGPT.
To meet the demands of the coming year, the most successful 2024 marketing plan will be rooted in insights that can withstand market changes and respond to advancing technology. To help lighten the load, I’ve pulled together a few of the trends and insights that I think will help withstand the winds of change as we navigate the demands of 2024 together.
1. The value of differentiation is increasing
As we enter an era where every business is touting AI-powered value, differentiation must be a critical focus for marketers going into 2024. Differentiating our offerings from competitors is the most critical and difficult work we can do for our brand, and it requires so much more than being AI-powered. It requires us to deeply know our value.
As Mark Ritson puts it, “There is a word for the ability to ignore the herd, especially when it is baaing at its peak. It is called ‘differentiation’. As more and more brands adopt more and more identikit, replicatory AI approaches its value will increase all the more. When they invent a zigging machine, the value of a zag goes into the stratosphere.”
Whether or not you agree with him, it’s hard to argue the risk of AI bringing a homogenization of content and messaging.
Read more: The value of differentiation will only increase as more brands follow the AI herd
2. We will see moderate growth in marketing budgets
How are other marketing teams fairing when it comes to their budget? In Sharyn Leaver’s article from Forrester, she predicts that while marketers might be looking at increased budgets, unfortunately, they will also be seeing increased expectations from stakeholders, shareholders, customers, and employees. So what will that mean for marketers? It means the pressure is still on.
“Outdated, short-term growth strategies will fail in a market driven by empowered digital customers who are hungry for new things. And as generative AI threatens to change every business at an unprecedented pace, now is not the time to hunker down. Now is the time to prioritize what creates customer value, cut inefficient complexity, and experiment aggressively to create differentiation.”
Read more: Planning Guides 2024: Budgeting Insights and advice from Forrester
3. Balance performance and brand marketing to drive growth
With increasing pressure on marketing budgets, the tension between spending to strengthen our brands and investing in revenue or performance marketing has become increasingly visible. However, many thought leaders in marketing are starting to acknowledge the importance of symbiosis and balance between these two seemingly opposed strategies.
A Harvard Business Review article from earlier this year explained it so well, “Pitting brand building and performance marketing against each other in a competition for budget unnecessarily damages the effectiveness of both.”
While performance marketing provides immediate insights and tactical advantages, long-term brand building remains indispensable for establishing and maintaining customer awareness and perception. Thus, prioritizing a harmonious balance between the two will be vital for marketing leaders to achieve comprehensive success in their strategies moving into 2024.
Read More: How Brand Building and Performance Marketing Can Work Together
4. Upskilling around AI is critical
AI upskilling is becoming paramount for marketers as AI technologies are implemented with increasing gusto across organizations. In the last six months, we’ve all heard countless times what has become an old adage “Marketers won’t be replaced by AI, they’ll be replaced by other marketers who know how to use AI.”
The Co-pilot team at Microsoft recently shared an interesting finding on LinkedIn: Surprisingly, more experienced people managers have an easier time adjusting to these new gen-AI technologies versus their less experienced counterparts. Despite the rising generation being “digital natives,” they found that their lack of managerial skills might leave them at a disadvantage. As it turns out, managing AI is very similar to managing people; it requires the ability to break down work into smaller pieces, assign work, evaluate work, and much more. And these skills must be honed by all marketers, not just leaders and managers.
In line with this perspective, BlueOcean’s guide “Building an AI Empowered Organization” identifies four pivotal skills for an AI-driven future: Data Literacy, Growth Mindset, Prompt Whispering, and Leading from the Heart. Embracing these skills will be crucial as we navigate the intricate intersection of human capabilities and AI potential.
Read more: Jared Spataro: LinkedIn Post and Guide to Building an AI-Empowered Marketing Organization
5. Invest in your tech stack
Rapid technological advancements necessitate a more strategic approach to infrastructure and operational investments. Marketers who can advocate for funds to modernize their tech stack will be at a strategic advantage. Your ideal stacks won’t just include generative AI tools – but should also consider how AI can help marketers analyze data, identify patterns, and make more solid predictions around what drives customer value.
Forrester says, “Our research shows that 88% of the most advanced organizations plan to significantly increase their infrastructure and operations investment, compared to 63% of their traditional peers.”
By aligning technology initiatives with core business strategies and emphasizing customer value, organizations can better position themselves for sustained growth and competitive differentiation in the coming year.
Read more: Technology Planning for 2024: Tech Leaders Reinvigorate Growth
6. Audience connection drives revenue growth
As has always been true, one of the highest callings of a brand leader is understanding and building the relationship a brand has with its audience.
Our team at BlueOcean published a data report, “The impact of audience connection on B2B brand health and revenue growth,” which underscores the importance of audience connection in driving revenue growth for B2B marketers heading into 2024. “When marketers go beyond optimizing for funnel metrics and short-term tactical goals and return to their roots of understanding, engaging, and inspiring customers, they can build lasting relationships that drive growth.”
As the digital landscape evolves, authentic relationships rooted in genuine understanding become the foundation of sustainable growth. It follows that marketers must prioritize strategies that foster genuine relationships with their audiences to ensure they are building durable brands that grow.
Read more: The Impact of Audience Connection on B2B Brand Health and Revenue Growth
