Gartner Marketing Survey Finds Awareness and Conversion Account for 62.6% of Total Media Spend

Awareness and conversion now account for 62.6% of total media spend, as CMOs shift budget toward acquisition and digital channels in pursuit of growth, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc., a business and technology insights company. 

Gartner analysts are discussing the key issues facing CMOs during Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo, taking place here through Wednesday. The survey showed that labor is claiming a larger share of marketing budgets, underscoring that AI value depends on people, skills and execution, not just technology.

The annual Gartner 2026 CMO Spend Survey was conducted January through March 2026 among 401 CMOs and other marketing leaders in North America, the United Kingdom and Europe across different industries, company sizes and revenue, with the vast majority of respondents reporting annual revenue of over $1 billion. 

“As AI reshapes the marketing mix, many CMOs are channeling more investment into digital channels and customer acquisition in pursuit of growth,” said Ewan McIntyre, VP Analyst and Chief of Research in the Gartner Marketing practice. “However, AI is not a shortcut around marketing capability. The organizations that will pull ahead are those that pair AI investment with the people, processes and discipline required to turn it into business results.” 

AI Accelerates Shifts Toward Digital and Acquisition

CMOs are rapidly shifting budget from offline to digital channels, with digital media now representing more than two-thirds of total media investments in 2026, up 18% since 2024. AI is a key driver of this shift, with CMOs citing enhanced personalization and the need to prioritize channels that can be effectively AI-optimized among the biggest influences on their channel mix.

The survey also shows CMOs are prioritizing customer acquisition over loyalty and retention. As previously stated, awareness and conversion now account for 62.6% of total media spend, a rise of over 10% since 2024, while spending on customer loyalty and retention has declined 29% over the same period to less than 15% of total media spend.

However, the most AI-mature marketing organizations allocate a larger share of budget to customer loyalty and retention and a lower share to digital channels, suggesting that less mature organizations may be over-indexing on short-term optimization and channels that are easiest to measure and automate.

“AI can help marketers optimize faster, but optimization is not the same as strategy,” said McIntyre. “CMOs must guard against letting AI steer too much budget toward the channels and stages of the journey that are easiest to tune, while underinvesting in the touchpoints that build long-term customer value.”

Rising Labor Share Signals That AI Requires People, Not Just Platforms

Despite the assumption that AI should reduce people costs, labor is claiming a larger share of marketing budgets. Labor’s share of the total marketing budget rose from 21.9% in 2025 to 24.5% in 2026, suggesting CMOs increasingly recognize that AI value depends on people, skills and execution, not just technology.

This challenge is compounded by low organizational readiness. Seventy percent of CMOs say their internal marketing processes are not mature enough to effectively implement and scale AI, and only 30% report mature or fully developed AI readiness capabilities. In addition, lack of internal AI expertise and talent is the top barrier preventing CMOs from achieving AI-driven efficiency, cited by 38% of respondents.

“AI changes the kind of marketing capability organizations need, but it does not eliminate the need for capability,” said McIntyre. “As CMOs invest in AI-powered transformation, they must also invest in the talent, governance and operating maturity required to make those tools work in the real world.”