Last month, I participated in Tinuiti’s Bold Predictions & Bold Wines, a fun way to learn about wines before holidays with the family while also discussing opportunities for CMOs in 2024. I learned some really great tips, which are too good not to share.

When it comes to measurement, listen, learn, and lean in. We talked about how brand measurement is more possible because of digital media. But it isn’t necessarily easier to do, because data across channels may not be consistently tracked or accessible. Attendees recommended having an insights person on your team to run brand awareness studies and tie brand data directly to sales. Key here is to apply a mindset that is collaborative, adaptive, and receptive in order to develop accurate and useful measurement approaches in the face of data deprecation.

And we decided that the right time for market mix models is when you have myriad investments that don’t tie to obvious market signals. If your business is largely seasonal or highly influenced by macro market trends, then market mix models might be a waste of resources. Forrester’s B2C Marketing Measurement And Optimization Process outlines how to craft the right measurement approach for your particular situation.

Lastly, I was interested to learn that most attendees were still taking a “wait and see” approach to generative AI (genAI). CMOs in the discussion know and care about the disruptive potential of genAI. But they don’t yet have a reason or process for trying real applications, nor do they feel that they have reliable data inputs into potential models. The nugget of this conversation came from the CMO who coined the phrase human intelligence — using people to set strategy and vision and then relying on AI to help enable and make the strategy real. Get a jump start on your peers through institutional education about AI, establishing some ground rules to limit brand liability and leveraging partners.

How do the above observations resonate with what is going on in your businesses now? What bold moves do you anticipate in 2024? Or — if this is an easier question to answer — what bold wines made it into your cellar over the holidays??