Generative AI is bringing revolutionary change to the corporate world, reshaping how businesses approach numerous functions, including marketing. As companies grapple with the sheer potential of generative AI, it’s inevitable that there will be hiring shifts as well: in the marketing world, it seems likelt that there will be a pivot towards the employment of fractional CMOs over their full-time counterparts. This shift is rooted in efficiency, adaptability, and the promise of achieving more in less time.
Generative AI, at its core, refers to the ability of artificial intelligence systems to create content, be it written, visual, or auditory. Its implications for marketing are profound. For instance, it can generate ad copies, craft promotional content, or even analyze of market data in moments, effectively outpacing traditional methods. The swiftness and adaptability that generative AI brings to the table mean that businesses can now implement and iterate on marketing strategies at unprecedented speeds.
This newfound efficiency challenges the conventional role of the full-time CMO. Historically, CMOs managed large teams to brainstorm, create, test, and modify marketing content – a process that was both time-intensive and laborious. But as AI reduces the time and human input required for these tasks, the hands-on operational role of the CMO diminishes. Teams may be smaller, or more content like video creation that required the management of outsourced vendors or agencies may now be created in-house. This doesn’t mean that the strategic expertise of a CMO becomes redundant. On the contrary, it becomes even more crucial. What changes, however, is the duration and continuity of their involvement.
Enter the fractional CMO.
A fractional CMO brings strategic depth, experience, and leadership to a company without being tied down by the day-to-day operations, especially when many of those operational tasks are now streamlined by AI. They provide high-level guidance, craft overarching marketing strategies, and ensure alignment with business objectives, all within a flexible working model. In essence, they offer the best of both worlds: the expertise of a seasoned CMO without the long-term commitment of a full-time executive role.
Moreover, as generative AI systems continue to evolve, the learning curve remains steep. It becomes increasingly challenging for a full-time CMO to keep abreast of every innovation while managing daily operations. A fractional CMO, by virtue of their engagement with multiple companies and projects, is often better positioned to stay updated with the rapid advancements in AI, making their insights and expertise even more valuable.
And finally, from a financial standpoint, the rise of generative AI systems will lead to cost savings in content creation and data analysis. These savings make the proposition of hiring a fractional CMO more attractive. Businesses can allocate budgets more efficiently, investing in high-level strategic expertise without the financial commitment of a full-time salary. This is a massive boon for startups and small businesses in particular. With fractional CMO leadership and AI assistance, they will be poised to grow much faster than they would have in the past with a singular marketing employee and no budget for a true marketing leader.
As generative AI reshapes the operational landscape of marketing, the strategic nature of the role of the CMO will remain undiminished. However, the way in which companies engage CMOs appears likely to shift. Fractional CMOs, with their flexibility, diverse experience, and adaptability, are poised well to guide marketing teams in the strategic use of the powerful tools that are now broadly democratizing content creation. In a world where more can be done faster, the fractional CMO emerges as the nexus of efficiency and expertise.