Advertising and marketing and inventive professionals are underneath rising stress to display their worth to enterprise outcomes, in keeping with Smartsheet’s 2025 Pulse of Advertising and marketing Report. The research, launched immediately by the AI-enhanced work administration platform, surveyed greater than 1,200 advertising and inventive professionals throughout the US to research how groups are navigating this problem and the function of know-how in addressing it.
The report reveals that over 80% of promoting and inventive professionals really feel rising stress to show the enterprise influence of their work, with 60% noting that this stress has grown considerably over the previous 12 months. Moreover, 78% of respondents imagine they’re required to display their worth greater than friends in different departments.
“Right this moment’s advertising and inventive groups typically battle to offer tangible proof of their strategic worth and enterprise influence,” mentioned John Newall, SVP of Advertising and marketing at Smartsheet. “The Pulse of Advertising and marketing Report underscores the significance of leveraging the precise instruments and applied sciences, comparable to AI and collaborative work administration platforms, to assist advertising and inventive groups keep aligned no matter challenge complexity or workforce distribution. It additionally emphasizes how vital it’s to make use of these identical applied sciences to offer a richer, extra correct view of those groups’ affect on enterprise outcomes and profitability.”
Challenges in Demonstrating Enterprise Impression
The report highlights that almost all advertising and inventive professionals (94%) face challenges when attempting to display the enterprise influence of their work. Over half (53%) cite an absence of visibility into obligatory info as a barrier to creating knowledgeable selections.
Excessive-quality information is vital to addressing this challenge. In accordance with the report, a robust correlation (57%) exists between workers who’ve constant entry to correct info and people who view advertising groups as strategic companions inside their organizations. Nevertheless, solely 51% of survey respondents imagine advertising is at the moment seen as a strategic associate.
Know-how and improved processes are seen as key options for overcoming these challenges. The report exhibits that 87% of pros imagine higher instruments would improve their effectivity and skill to indicate enterprise influence. Nevertheless, many advertising groups nonetheless battle with inefficiencies, as 72% of respondents report switching between instruments, dropping a mean of seven.3 hours per week within the course of.
AI is recognized as a vital productiveness booster. In accordance with Smartsheet’s analysis, advertising and inventive professionals save a mean of 9 hours per week by utilizing AI, with 84% of respondents saving a minimum of 5 hours weekly. Of those, 30% report saving over 10 hours per week.
The report outlines a number of methods for entrepreneurs to beat challenges in proving their worth:
- Leverage AI and challenge administration instruments: These applied sciences streamline workflows, enhance effectivity, and supply the insights wanted to display strategic influence.
- Standardize processes and improve visibility: Improved workflows and entry to information allow higher decision-making and make it simpler to showcase contributions to enterprise outcomes.
