Advertising and marketing is a wild journey – tendencies flip in a single day, and it’s a continuing recreation of catch-up. In 2025 , it’s essential to know the place to focus and what roadblocks would possibly lie forward.
That’s why I dug into the most important challenges entrepreneurs expect subsequent yr and how you can deal with them, utilizing insights from:
- 300+ international advertising leaders who took our Annual Advertising and marketing Technique & Developments survey
- 500+ U.S. advertising leaders who participated in our Government Advertising and marketing Management Survey
- Unique interviews and insights from Microsoft, ZoomInfo, and Sprout Social leaders.
Desk of Contents
The Greatest Challenges International Advertising and marketing Leaders Anticipate to Face in 2025
- Adopting a data-driven advertising technique.
- Integrating AI into advertising workflows.
- Mastering the transition to short-form video content material.
- Bridging the personalization hole in buyer experiences.
- Overcoming challenges with content material advertising.
- Aligning the proper influencers together with your viewers.
- Optimizing content material by means of strategic pruning for higher website positioning.
- Discovering the stability between creativity and information.
- Pivoting throughout sudden shifts in client habits.
- Adapting to information privateness rules.
- Aligning product positioning throughout groups.
- Synchronizing campaigns throughout a number of channels.
1. Adopting a data-driven advertising technique.
Why It is a Problem
Entrepreneurs are leaning extra towards behavioral information, like content material consumption and buying habits, but it surely’s robust to stability that with conventional demographic data.
With 33.43% specializing in content material habits and 31.77% on demographics, it’s clear that understanding not simply who your viewers is however how they act is getting extra difficult.
What are you able to do?
To remain forward, entrepreneurs have to combine each behavioral and demographic insights into their technique. Perceive how your viewers consumes content material and outlets.
Microsoft’s International Head of Programmatic Evangelist, Daniel Godoy, instructed me that it‘s essential entrepreneurs hold first-party information in thoughts in the event that they’re aiming to increase their attain in 2025.
“Entrepreneurs really feel the strain to win the advertisements race in a wild WWW. Throughout this race, it is price mentioning that client media habits is altering, and promoting methods, too,” he stated. “With the cookies deprecation coming (though it has been delayed by Google), it needs to be on our radar that not less than 40% of browsers right now do not get alerts.”
Godoy provides, “Shaping your technique by leveraging 1P or 3P trustable information turns into essential to increase potential attain and begin piloting your information technique for the long run.”
First-party data can finally assist you to make sure you’re reaching the proper audiences together with your advertisements and turning these audiences into high-quality leads.
When you‘ve outlined your audiences and correctly segmented them, you’ll have to develop distinctive messaging that resonates together with your prospects.
2. Integrating AI into advertising workflows.
Why It is a Problem
AI is a life-saver, however plenty of entrepreneurs are nonetheless determining how you can benefit from it.
Although 52.76% of respondents in our survey say they perceive how you can use AI and 53.73% can measure its impression, related percentages point out a big hole in each understanding and making use of AI successfully.
Moreover, SurveyMonkey found that 69% of promoting execs are pumped about AI and the way it’s altering their jobs, whereas 17% really feel a mixture of pleasure and fear.
On high of that, 60% are feeling actually good about the place the trade is headed, and simply 1% are tremendous pessimistic. General, the sensation is optimistic.
What are you able to do?
To shut the information hole, entrepreneurs have to sharpen each their technical know-how and their potential to trace and measure outcomes.
40% of companies have already made a proactive transfer by bringing in specialised AI consultants to enhance their advertising efforts.
Deal with studying how you can implement AI and analyze its impression.
3. Mastering the transition to short-form video content material.
Why It is a Problem
Video is stealing the highlight in advertising, particularly short-form content material on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. LinkedIn now not falls behind, too.
The actual problem for entrepreneurs is maintaining with the shift towards social video, the place youthful audiences are turning to interact with manufacturers greater than on serps. So that you’ve acquired to be fast and sensible about creating content material that captures consideration.
What are you able to do?
Ramp up your give attention to short-form video — it’s anticipated to see probably the most progress in 2025.
Use social listening and sentiment analyzing instruments to determine the questions your viewers is asking, and have your content material group develop content material that resonates.
Even higher, faucet into your model advocates to assist share the solutions, increasing your attain and credibility.
4. Bridging the personalization hole in buyer experiences.
Why It is a Problem
56.35% of marketers agree that advertising has modified extra prior to now three years than within the final fifty. That’s big.
The most important shift? The demand for personalised content material. Whereas 65% of shoppers say model content material feels relatable, solely 35% of entrepreneurs imagine their prospects are literally experiencing true personalization.
Although 65% of entrepreneurs declare to have high-quality viewers information, it’s clear many aren’t utilizing it successfully to construct stronger, extra significant connections with their audiences.
What are you able to do?
To shut this hole, double down on utilizing your information extra successfully:
- Enhance viewers segmentation by dividing customers into micro-segments.
- Scale up personalization — craft advert messages that talk to micro-segments’ needs and fears.
- A/B check and refine creatives.
5. Overcoming challenges with content material advertising.
Why It is a Problem
Discovering recent concepts for brand new content material tops the listing of struggles, with 16% of entrepreneurs agreeing on it. In flip, 16% of entrepreneurs outline it difficult to create content material that drives excessive ranges of on-line engagement — like clicks, shares, and feedback.
For 15% of entrepreneurs, creating content material that draws extra visitors to their web site is a serious problem.
What are you able to do?
Tip #1: Lean into E-E-A-T
To obtain extra clicks, “Your content material technique should begin with what customers want, not what’s most effective for you. For those who have a look at current Google updates, you’ll discover that Google has been refining what “useful content material” means and prioritizing the “E” for “expertise” in E-E-A-T.
Your content material have to be private, reveal expertise, and handle actual wants. And also you’re already enjoying catch-up.” — Ben Steele, Senior Editor at Search Engine Journal
Tip #2: Create higher headlines.
To drive preliminary visitors from the net, work in your headline sharpness. A Danish information outlet, TV 2 Fyn, carried out A/B checks to enhance CTR utilizing ChatGPT to generate headlines. Over three weeks, they ran 46 A/B checks. AI-generated headlines received 46% of the checks, whereas human-created headlines received 24%.
An amazing learn: Is AI-Generated Content Good for SEO?: 300+ Web Strategists Weigh In
Tip #3: Social listening.
To idiate, lean into social listening (aka examine thematic subreddits, X, Threads, LinkedIn feedback, and many others). It’s also possible to automate this work with AI instruments.
Plus, put your viewers’s wants first — a single subject will be coated in a number of methods with distinctive angles for every.
Take a look at new content material codecs with video embeds, infographics, or interactive quizzes.
6. Aligning the proper influencers together with your viewers.
Why It is a Problem
Influencer advertising can backfire if the influencer doesn’t align together with your viewers’s wants. Maris Laatre, CMO of Bully Max, recounts a marketing campaign:
“Whereas we acquired good engagement, the gross sales didn’t match up … we realized that the influencers weren’t talking on to our core viewers.”
The suitable message paired with the proper viewers is essential for conversions.
What are you able to do?
Maris emphasizes the significance of specializing in influencers whose viewers matches your goal market, moderately than simply the scale of their following.
Additionally, the influencer’s message needs to be genuine and resonate with their followers in any other case it’ll simply be a waste of cash and power.
And bear in mind, micro-influencers will usually convey you far more advantages than the large ones.
7. Optimizing content material by means of strategic pruning for higher website positioning.
Why is it a problem?
Deciding to prune or merge a good portion of your content material is a high-stakes choice for any advertising group. It’s not nearly slicing low-performing pages — it’s about taking a calculated danger. Entrepreneurs should weigh the lack of present visitors (even when small) towards the potential for long-term progress.
Emilia Korczynska shared a great post on this topic. Userpilot eliminated 23% of their weblog content material, equal to $261,443 in manufacturing prices, and pages that drove over 24,000 guests in 2024 alone. But, this led to a 16% improve in customer’s rely.
What are you able to do?
Take a data-driven strategy to determine what content material to prune. Emilia’s technique highlights key steps:
- Deal with underperforming content material — posts with low conversions, minimal visitors, or outdated relevance.
- Consolidate duplicate or redundant posts to scale back cannibalization and enhance search intent alignment.
- Take away content material optimized for key phrases with zero or low search quantity.
- Consider backlinks and prioritize pages that add measurable worth.
8. Discovering the stability between creativity and information.
Why It is a Problem
The strain between creativity and information is a problem many entrepreneurs face. Roland Jakob from BlazeKin.Media explains: “Early on, I leaned closely into analytics, pondering numbers alone would paved the way. However I noticed that creativity usually speaks a language information can’t quantify — not less than not instantly.”
What are you able to do?
Mix information with storytelling. “Throughout my time at Pagnolia, our marketing campaign with a refined message didn’t resonate with the viewers till we pivoted to a extra uncooked, story-driven strategy. This shift turned the marketing campaign into one in all our most participating, leading to a 30% increase inside six months” continues Roland.
He additionally suggests utilizing so-called “buyer co-creation.” By bringing prospects into the method — not simply as patrons, however as collaborators — manufacturers can construct stronger loyalty and create campaigns that resonate extra deeply.
9. Pivoting throughout sudden shifts in client habits.
Why It is a Problem
17.54% of entrepreneurs say maintaining with quickly altering buyer behaviors is one in all their largest challenges.
Client habits can change in a single day, and the pandemic was an ideal instance. Maris from Bully Max remembers: “When the pandemic hit, we noticed an sudden rise in pet adoption… we needed to pivot rapidly and scale up our messaging.”
What are you able to do?
Keep agile throughout such shifts to grab new alternatives and scrutinize behavioral analytics.
10. Adapting to information privateness rules.
Why It is a Problem
Data privacy regulations are consistently evolving as properly, making it difficult for entrepreneurs to remain compliant.
One of the best instance is a current state of affairs that happened in one Belgian company. A former worker requested for her picture to be faraway from the corporate web site six months after leaving.
The picture included her title, place, and a gaggle shot. Below GDPR Article 17, folks have the proper to have their private information, together with images, deleted when there’s no legitimate purpose for protecting them or if consent is withdrawn.
The employer didn’t comply, so the information safety authority stepped in and ordered the picture to be eliminated instantly.
What are you able to do?
Keep knowledgeable on new rules unfolding and be additional cautious with campaigns. Large articles will likely be buzzed about on social media, so your job is to get the gist and act on it.
Fines are excessive for violating these guidelines, so it is essential to remain vigilant.
11. Aligning product positioning throughout groups.
Why It is a Problem
I wager this level provides you shivers. Cus who hasn’t suffered from gross sales and advertising groups clashing over lead high quality, lead nurturing, you title it?
Our analysis additionally highlights that firms with aligned sales and marketing teams are 103% more likely to beat their goals than firms that aren’t aligned.
However wait, there’s extra. Product groups also can have their very own perspective, including insult to damage.
Altogether results in discrepancies in messaging and creates confusion each internally and externally.
What are you able to do?
A easy remedy is to have all groups on the identical web page by sharing insights, marketing campaign efficiency and gross sales outcomes and refining the message collectively.
12. Synchronizing campaigns throughout a number of channels.
Why It is a Problem
A significant setback in advertising campaigns usually occurs when different advertising channels don’t align with the first marketing campaign goals, which occurred to Kognic.
“Our web site marketing campaign designed to drive conversions didn’t succeed as a result of we hadn’t constructed concurrent messaging with sufficient scale on our earned and paid channels on the similar time,” shares Steven Spieczny, VP of Advertising and marketing at Kognic.
Briefly, this lack of synchronization meant missed alternatives to create a seamless expertise throughout all touchpoints.
What are you able to do?
Whether or not it’s paid advertisements, social media, or electronic mail campaigns, every channel ought to ship the identical message with unified targets.
Second, coordinate the timing and messaging throughout all touchpoints to construct a stronger, extra constant buyer expertise.
High U.S. Advertising and marketing Government Challenges
Whereas international and U.S.-based members from each of our current research anticipate the same listing of challenges, the way in which they’re prioritizing them shifts when sampling simply U.S.-based executives.
Strategic blockers like making data-driven selections, maintaining with tendencies, and content material pivots are top-of-mind for entrepreneurs.
In the meantime, U.S. leaders polled in our Government Advertising and marketing survey are targeted on the underside line. They’re getting ready for monetary challenges like producing income, securing finances, and sales-marketing alignment.
This isn’t stunning. Whereas many nations are in a time of monetary uncertainty following the pandemic, the U.S. has confronted a number of contradicting information experiences about whether or not we’re or aren’t in a recession.
With this in thoughts, advertising leaders are targeted on saving assets, guaranteeing they get the cash they want, and justifying their work, headcount, or investments by exhibiting income attribution or business-wide impression.
Fortunately, whether or not you are coping with any of the worldwide or U.S.-based challenges, a lot of them will be navigated with the insights and takeaways above, resembling:
- Gathering one of the best analytics attainable to make data-backed selections, ideally by merging first-party information and GDPR-approved third-party information.
- Realizing how your purchaser is continuous to evolve. It’s also possible to use information and sales-marketing alignment to remain in contact with what your prospects and audiences are specializing in.
- Guaranteeing that you just strategy advertising methods or investments strategically by asking your self, “What’s the ROI, enterprise impression, or income alternative right here?”
- Making ready to pivot. The one fixed factor in advertising is change and many people have already began working backup or pivot-planning into our methods for when tendencies or circumstances round us change all of a sudden.
- Constructing an awesome employer model. By doing so, you will appeal to all types of promoting expertise who can navigate most of the challenges above.
Get Contained in the Minds of At present’s Advertising and marketing Leaders
As a marketer and partnership supervisor myself, I can inform you that there’s no scarcity of challenges. However, we’re employed to unravel the riddles.
Enthusiastic about different high challenges, tendencies, and alternatives that advertising leaders are specializing in, or need to learn to construct ways that can get you visibility by fixing their ache factors? Verify our our newest report on government management priorities.
Editor’s notice: This submit was initially printed in October 2022 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.
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