The study, Marketing is a (Buyer) Journey, Not a Destination, also found that CMOs are increasing their budgets and allocating a greater portion across the entire customer journey rather than into individual channels. More than half ( 57%) said they expect their marketing budgets to increase over the next two to three years.

This shift in spending comes as consumers increasingly connect with businesses across multiple channels with the customer journey often involving them researching products on their mobile device, purchasing from their tablet and then picking up in the store. According to this study, marketers are beginning to shift priorities toward retention and loyalty and building customer advocacy across each interaction point, beginning with discovery.

As a consequence social and digital channels are emerging as top areas of investment and 53% of respondents said the main reason for spreading their budgets across the entire customer journey is the need to generate higher revenue.

Deepak Advani, general manager, IBM Commerce said: “The brand/customer dynamic is no longer built on isolated interactions. It’s an ongoing relationship that must span all touch points in the customer’s journey. The shifting dynamic and the changing role of the CMO also illuminates a tremendous opportunity for CMOs to further expand their influence, cut through organisational silos, and make an impact beyond just marketing by owning the overall customer experience.”

The study questioned more than 100 CMO Club members, all with budgets of $1 million and above.