More than half (58%) of B2B marketing leaders in Australia are already using generative AI applications in their marketing activities, and they say it has helped improve productivity (40%), accelerate content creation (39%), and create cost efficiencies (30%), according to research from LinkedIn.
LinkedIn data finds there has been a 142x increase in LinkedIn members globally adding AI literacy skills to their profiles, with marketers topping this list.
Artificial Intelligence is the fastest-growing digital skill for CMOs globally, based on the skills CMOs have added to their LinkedIn profiles in the past year.
LinkedIn’s ‘2024 B2B Marketing Benchmark’, a study of 2,000+ B2B marketing leaders from across the globe, also found that nine in 10 (90%) B2B marketing leaders are bullish on their team’s ability to drive revenue in the year ahead, and around three-quarters (72%) expect budgets to increase.
While 71% of B2B CMOs in Australia have found it challenging to focus on reaching buyers due to so many competing demands, the majority (93%) agree that relationship building is key to success. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of Australian B2B marketing leaders have focused on developing bolder creative and 57% agree that it is helping them improve brand engagement and drive conversions.
LinkedIn's director of marketing solutions, Amy Mills, said B2B decision-makers buy from brands they’ve heard of, which is why brand building is essential in B2B – it helps improve memorability.
“After feeling the pressure to continuously prove ROI over the past year, B2B marketing leaders are now making the case for brand building and taking it to the next level. Doing so will enable them to uncover new audience segments and improve memorability and campaign performance," she said.
To help B2B marketers reach and engage all members of the buying group and build collective confidence, LinkedIn is introducing a number of tools and programs.
With video uploads on LinkedIn increasing 45% year-over-year, LinkedIn is testing the Wire Program – an initiative that allows brands to promote in-stream video ads alongside trusted publisher content on LinkedIn.
In Accelerate, LinkedIn's AI campaign creation and optimisation offering, marketers can draft creative with Microsoft Designer and refine their targeting by allowing marketers to exclude companies and third-party lists. They can also get guidance on their campaign creation from LinkedIn's AI marketing assistant.
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