93% of 91 CMOs surveyed as part of the CMO Digital Benchmark Study said that they “felt the burden of linking their marketing efforts to financial results”. According to the report, a combination of internal silos, a resistance to change and limited expertise meant that their businesses lacked the ability to successfully make this link.

The survey also revealed that CMOs felt their websites, data tracking/analytics and mobile were the most important capabilities at their disposal, but that these were frequently among the least-developed.

“There’s a siloed nature of corporations in general, and it gets heightened when you work beyond the typical functions you’ve done in the past,” said Fred Ehle, managing partner of consultancy BrandApart, which worked on the study with Leapfrog Marketing Institute.