In 2026, CMOs aren’t being asked to “do more with less.”
They’re being asked to prove more with what they already have.
Boards are scrutinizing spending, CFOs are modeling risk, and private equity is pushing for EBITDA expansion. Marketing, often one of the largest discretionary line items, sits at the center of this pressure.
But what we see is that most companies aren’t underfunded, they’re inefficient.
And this inefficiency is costing teams hundreds of thousands (sometimes even millions) in potential growth from development to market. We know that many organizations struggle with misallocation and waste which eats at their ROI.
Across mid-market and growth stage companies, the same pattern emerges:
Let’s do some numbers, for organizations spending between $500,000 and $1 million annually, that represents $150,000 to $300,000 leaking out of the system. This happens not because teams lack effort or strategy, but because budgets are not engineered with ROI discipline.
Here is some good news, there is a crucial distinction between cutting budgets and transforming them.
Cost cutting is reactive; cost transformation is strategic.
We find that when companies audit both working and non-working spend, they typically unlock 10 to 30 percent of their budget. That capital can then be redirected into initiatives that truly drive growth. This shift enables organizations to:
The result isn’t smaller marketing. Better! It’s a more powerful approach to marketing in the modern age.
We hear from many CEOs, and they assume the problem is overspending.
More often, the problem is misalignment between strategy, operations, and financial outcomes.
We see a familiar cycle:
Let us restate: Most CEOs and founders underestimate the hidden costs associated with marketing inefficiency. These include:
That sneaky little guy known as “opportunity cost” is frequently greater than the visible expense. This is the $300,000 plus problem. The question is not whether marketing works; it is whether marketing is structured to drive enterprise value.
A meaningful audit goes well beyond media results. It evaluates:
Budget Allocation Efficiency: Working versus non-working spend, agency retainers, and vendor redundancies
Technology ROI: CRM, automation, analytics, AI systems, and whether they are configured for outcomes or simply installed
Commercial Impact Modeling: CAC, LTV, churn, pipeline velocity, and contribution margin
Organizational Alignment: Sales and marketing integration, revenue operations clarity, and accountability structures
Reinvestment Roadmap: Where unlocked capital should be directed to accelerate growth
Remember, this is not a cost-cutting exercise. It is a growth-reallocation strategy.
Economic pressure is not disappearing. AI investment continues to rise, privacy regulations are tightening, and customer acquisition costs remain volatile.
In this environment, the companies that win are not the ones spending the most. They are the ones allocating the smartest.
Marketing must evolve from a perceived cost center into a capital deployment function, accountable for growth, margin expansion, and enterprise value creation.
To achieve marketing success in the rapidly shifting technological landscape of the mid 2020’s, successful modern CMO’s are shedding the singular, straightforward identities of “brand stewards” and “demand engine leaders”. Instead, they must embrace both the title and leadership style of growth architects.
This means:
Research and trend projections point to a clear conclusion. Companies that lead with campaigns instead of commercial clarity will fade into irrelevance.
We do not view marketing as a set of tactics; we view it as a growth system.
Our Marketing Spend Optimization Diagnostic is designed to:
Growth does not come from spending more. It comes from spending strategically
Who owns marketing efficiency and where does accountability truly sit?
Are our budgets tied to revenue and margin or just activity and output?
How much of our tech stack is fully configured to drive growth and how much is shelf-ware?
If we reallocated 10 to 30 percent of spending tomorrow, would we know exactly where it would go?
Can marketing prove board level impact without narrative through commercial results?
If your marketing can’t prove growth, it’s overhead.
The CMO Syndicate exists to make sure it never is.
📩 Contact us here to learn more.
Ani Matson
Partner, The CMO Syndicate
Ani has extensive strategic marketing expertise. Before becoming a Founding Partner of The CMO Syndicate, she enjoyed a twenty-year career in a broad range of leadership positions that cut across marketing strategy, digital transformation, and data analytics.
Ani is a seasoned professional with current clients in the telecom, insurance, and biotechnology sectors. She has held executive positions at prestigious organizations such as the National Education Association’s Member Benefits Corporation and S&P Global’s Aviation Week Group.
Lisa Bratkovich
Partner, The CMO Syndicate
Lisa is an accomplished Chief Marketing Officer known for driving significant growth for e-commerce, direct-to- consumer, and omnichannel CPG brands. With an over 30-year track record of proven results, Lisa works with CEOS and CMOs to unlock revenue and profit for large-cap to early-stage start-up brands.
She has led the launch, optimization, and scale for many brands and is also an expert in subscription business models, DRTV, and celebrity-based brands. With her P&L, general management, and AI-focused experience, Lisa also helps companies better monetize their marketing efforts and internal expenditures.
Jennifer Welch
Partner, The CMO Syndicate
Jennifer Layne Welch is a growth architect for ambitious businesses. With 30+ years of experience, she helps companies scale faster, align smarter, and market with purpose. Her superpower: turning brand and marketing into a commercial growth engine.
Jennifer advises founders, C-suites, and PE-backed teams on how to move from reactive tactics to strategic systems. She brings clarity to the chaos—building marketing functions that drive revenue, elevate reputation, and accelerate results. Before co-founding The CMO Syndicate, Jennifer spent two decades inside one of the world’s largest companies—earning global leadership roles and building brands from the inside out. She now brings that enterprise rigor to scaling businesses across sectors.