bcg -智能体人工智能将让首席营销官的角色变得更为关键 Agentic AI Will Make the CMOs Role More Consequential

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MARKETINGANDSALES

AgenticAIWillMaketheCMO’sRoleMoreConsequential

ByRaviDhar,JonIwata,JennieLiu,

LaurenTaylor

,andJ

anetBalis

ARTICLEJULY16,202615MINREAD

Customersareincreasinglyturningto

AI

todiscoverproducts,evaluateoptions,makepurchasingdecisions,andcompletetransactions.TheseapplicationsofAImarkthebeginningofagentic

commerce,wheretraditionalcommerceshiftstoamodelinwhich

AIagents

becomeadditionalandactiveparticipantsincustomers’journeyfromintenttopurchase.

AsAIincreasinglyintermediatesbetweenbrandsandcustomers,companiesmustincreasinglyaccountfortwodecisionmakers:humansandtheAImodelsandinterfacesthatinfluencetheir

choices.ThroughtheirAIinteractions,customersnotonlyrevealintentastheywouldinasearch

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querybutalsotheirunderlyingmotivations,goals,andpreferences.Formarketers,thisdynamiccreatesanewclassofcustomerintelligencethatextendsbeyondtraditionaldatasourcesandcanhelpcompaniessharpentheirvalueproposition.ItalsocreatesanewimperativetomarkettobothAIandhumans.

Unquestionably,AIraisesthebarforend-to-endbrandstewardship.AIsystemscaninstantly

aggregateandevaluatereviews,complaints,serviceinteractions,andothersignalsfromacross

theweb,makinggapsbetweenabrand’spromiseandcustomers’experiencesfarmorevisible.AsAIincreasinglymediatesdecisions,brandsmustensurethatwhattheysay,whattheydo,andwhatcustomersexperienceremainconsistentlyalignedatscale.

CMOswhoensurethatthebrandpromiseisalignedandaccountablewithbrandperformance

willbewellpositionedtodrivesignificantgrowth.However,fewarepreparedtoseizethis

opportunitytoday.

CEOs

alreadyquestionmarketing’scontributiontogrowth:only14%ofCEOsandCFOsconsidertheirCMOhighlyeffectiveatdrivingmarketgrowth,accordingtoGartner.Evenso,withCMOsnowinvestingheavilyinAI,theyhaveanopportunitytodemonstratemarketing’sstrategicvalue.InBCG’s

annualsurveyofnearly300globalCMOs

,96%sayAIisdrivingend-to-endtransformationoftheirfunction,thoughonlyaboutathirdhavemovedbeyondthebasics.

(SeeExhibit1.)

Whilemuchoftoday’sAIinvestmentisaimedatmakingmarketingmoreefficient,thelarger

opportunityistomakeAI-drivenmarketingapowerfulgrowthengine.Tocapturethatopportunity,

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CMOswillneedtorethinkthreecorepillarsofmodernmarketingandbringthemtogethermoreholistically:brandstewardship,marketandcustomerintelligence,andcustomerexperience.

ReimaginingandintegratingthesecapabilitiesusingAIwillbeessentialtodrivegrowthintheagenticera.

BrandStewardship:FromNarrativetoPromise—

PerformanceAlignment

WhenCMOsthinkaboutAI-drivendiscovery,theyoftenfocusfirstonvisibility.Theypublishfact-basedcontent,structureproductdata,andexposeAPIssoagentscan“see”thebrand.ButbeingvisibletoAIisdifferentfrombeingcrediblyrecommendedbyAI.AIagentsdomorethanfind

brands;theyevaluatethem.Theyassessbrands’trustworthiness,comparealternatives,andmakerecommendationstoconsumersbasedonobservableperformance,notjustpersuasivemessaging.

Thus,AI’srolegoesfarbeyondjustansweringthequestiontheuserasks.AccordingtoresearchfromProfound,nearlyhalfofresponsesfrommajorAIplatformscontainunsolicitedinformation,suchasadditionalrationale,comparisons,andrecommendationsthatwereneverrequestedbytheuser.Thecompetitionisnotjustforbrandstobeincludedintheanswer,buttobetheoptiontheAIchoosestoendorse.

Forthisreason,brandpromiseandbrandperformancemustbefullyaligned.Thebrandpromisearticulatesemotionalandfunctionalbenefitsthatdistinguishacompanyfromitscompetitors.

Brandperformance,bycontrast,ishowthatpromiseisactuallydeliveredthroughtheproductandtheend-to-endcustomerexperienceacrosspricing,availability,fulfillment,service,and

resolution.CMOsandmarketersaretypicallyresponsiblefordefiningandstewardingthebrandpromise,buttheyhavehistoricallynothadfullresponsibilityforbrandperformance.While

narrative,storytelling,andpositioningareimportant,theycannotbridgethegapbetweenwhatcustomersexpectandwhattheorganizationconsistentlydelivers.

AIagentsmakethesegapsfarmorevisible.Agentscanassessperformancethroughdata

sources,suchasserviceoutcomes,productavailability,pricingintegrity,andcustomerreviews,

thencomparealternativesinrealtime.Afinancialservicescompanymaypositionitselfontrust,forexample,butifAIagentsfindapatternofcomplaintsabouthighclaimrejectionrates,slow

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resolutiontimes,orexcessivedocumentationrequirements,thebrand’soperationalrealityunderminesitspromise.

ThesameAPIsandstructureddatafeedsthatmakeabrandfindablewillincreasinglymakeitsperformancemeasurable—bothwithinthecompanyandagainstitscompetitors.This

informationmayhaveasalutaryeffectonbothbrandpromiseandperformance.Theworkof

definingthebrandpromisebecomesmorerigorous,groundedinwhatthecompanycan

demonstrablydeliverandwhereitisgenuinelydifferentiatedfromcompetitors,ratherthanwhatitclaims.Wheregapsexist,CMOswillhavestrongerevidencetocollaborateacrossproduct,

operations,andservicefunctionsinordertosuccessfullyclosethesegaps.Inthisenvironment,brandstewardshipbecomesadisciplineofensuringthatwhatthecompanysays,whatitdoes,andwhatcustomersexperienceremainconsistentlyalignedatscale.

ForCMOs,thesearetheimplications:

AssessyourbrandthewayAIagentswill.MonitorhowAIagentscompare,rank,and

recommendyourofferingstoidentifywherethebrandpromisebreaksdownandwherecompetitorsaregainingadvantages.

Ensureyourbrandhasaclearlydifferentiatedanddefensiblebrandpromise.ClearlydefinewhatmakesyourbrandsuperiorandensuretheevidencesupportingthatclaimisaccessibletobothcustomersandAIagents.

Integrateoperationalperformanceintomarketingdecisions.Systematicallyincorporatereal-timesignals,suchaspricingintegrityandcustomersatisfaction,intomarketing

decisionsacrosspaidmedia,ownedmedia,andearnedmediateams.

Establishcross-enterprisegovernancetoclosepromise-performancegaps.Establish

sharedmetrics,jointaccountability,regularreviews,andnewincentivestoensuredeliveryfulfillsthebrandpromiseconsistentlyovertime.

MarketandCustomer

Intelligence:FromInsighttoEnterpriseValueCreation

TheodoreLevittfamouslyobservedthatcustomersdon’twantaquarter-inchdrill;theywantaquarter-inchhole.Despitethatinsight,thedatamostmarketersusehasremainedstubbornly

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stuckatthedrilllevel,trackingcategoriesandclicksratherthantheoutcomescustomersaretryingtoachieve.

Agentschangethat.WheninteractingwithAIsystems,peopletypicallyprovidefarrichercontextthantheyeverwouldinasearchquery.Theyexpressintent,needs,preferences,andtradeoffs.

“Planmyten-dayanniversarycelebrationtripinItalyandrememberIampescatarian.”“HelpmegetabetterdealonmyutilitypaymentssinceIamsavingforretirementandmychildrenarein

collegealready.”Theseinteractionsrevealwhatcustomersareactuallytryingtoaccomplishbypinpointingtheirunderlyingneedsratherthanjustproductcategories.

Thiscreatestwofundamentalshifts.BecauseAIsystemsrespondbycombiningproducts,

services,andrecommendationsfrommultiplecategoriestoaddresstheseexpressedneeds,theyalsorevealpatternsofco-mingleddemandthattraditionalresearchrarelyuncovers.What

appearsasseparatemarketsthroughthelensofproductsoftenemergesasasinglecustomer

outcomethroughthelensofintent.Competitionnowextendsbeyondtraditionalproductsilosasdifferenttechnologiescompetetomeetthesameunderlyingneed.

What’smore,consumersareusingAItohelpmakedecisionsfurtherupstream.Google’sdataonAIModeshowsthatqueriesarenowtriplethelengthoftraditionalsearches,andthefastest-

growingquerytypecontainsdecision-orientedlanguage,suchas“whichone”and“whichof.”(SeeExhibit2.)Consumersaren’tjustresearchingwithAI;they’reusingAItoaugmentdecision-making.Thebattleforinfluenceisnowwonorlostacrossafragmenteddecisionjourneythatincreasinglyrunsthroughchannelsthebranddoesnotownorcontrol.

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What’snewisn’tsimplymoredata.It’safundamentallydifferenttypeofcustomerintelligence

thatrevealsbothcross-categorycompetitivedynamicsandthecontextualfactorsdriving

customerchoices.Whenmarketerscanseethegreatercontextaroundcustomerintentand

decisionmaking,theycanidentifywhereexistingofferingsfailtomeetcustomerneedsandwherenewvaluecanbecreated.Theseinsightsinformnotonlypositioningandgo-to-marketstrategy

butalsoproductdevelopment,bundling,partnerships,and

newbusinessmodels

.Thisnewintelligencecandirectlyinfluencewhatthecompanybuilds,notjusthowitmarketswhatitalreadysells.

Yetmanycompanieshaveacustomer-shapedholeatthecenteroftheirstrategy,notbecauseofalackofdatabutbecausetheylacktheorganizationalwiringtotranslateconsumerintelligence

intodecisions.

BCGresearch

showsafamiliarsetofbarriers:siloeddataandteams,disconnectedincentives,technologygaps,andintelligencethatreachesdecisionmakerstoolatetomatter.

WithagenticAIdata,marketingcanbecomethesystemthroughwhichcustomerintentdirectly

informsenterprisedecision-making.Forperhapsthefirsttime,thecustomercanhaveatrueseatatthetablethroughcontinuouslyupdatedsignalsthatshapewhattheorganizationbuilds,

delivers,andprioritizes.

ForCMOs,thesearetheimplications:

Buildanewmarketintelligencecapabilityaroundcustomerjobs-to-be-done.BroadenthefocusofmarketingtotrackcustomerqueriesandneedsthatcaninformR&Dandoperationsadjustments.

Translatecustomerintentintoenterprisestrategy.Usetheseinsightstodesignofferingbundles,forgecross-categorypartnerships,andparticipateinecosystemsthataddress

broadercustomeroutcomes.

Movemarketingupstream.Leveragenewintelligencetoidentifyunmetneeds,operationalgaps,andadjacentopportunitiesthatcanshapenewproducts,services,andbusiness

modelsalignedwiththeoutcomescustomersareseeking—bothwithintheenterpriseandthroughexternalpartnerships.

Reinventyourintelligence-to-actionprocess.Manyorganizationscaptureenterprisedatabutfailtoactonit.UseAItoolstodemocratizeaccesstocustomerintelligence,synthesizecustomerinsights,andconnectdecisionmakersacrosstheenterprisetoasharedviewof

customerneeds.

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CustomerExperience:RethinkingtheArchitectureoftheAttentionEconomy

Forthepasttwodecades,marketinghasbeenbuiltaroundthelogicofthe“attentioneconomy.”Inthissetting,companiescompetetoappearatthetopofsearchresults,reachconsumers

throughadvertisingastheyconsumeorstream,andrefinecustomerjourneysandbehavioralnudgestocaptureattentionanddriveaction.Thesepracticesshareacommonassumption:ahumanisontheotherend,withashortattentionspan,limitedpatienceforcomplexity,andsusceptibilitytowell-craftedframing.

Thatassumptionnolongerholdsuniformly.Thecustomer

influencepathway

isstillnonlinear,butitisincreasinglyagent-mediatedoragent-enhanced,andthedynamicbetweenpeopleandAI

variesbycustomer,market,andmomentofdemand.

BCGresearchunderscoresthescaleofthisshift:

43%ofconsumerjourneysarenowresearch-led

,meaningconsumersenterwithoutapredeterminedbrandchoiceandactivelycompareproductsacrossanexpandingecosystemoftouchpoints,fromsocialmediatoAI-generatedresponses.Theaverageconsumernowencountersmorethan15touchpointsbeforepurchasing,upfromroughly5adecadeago.AndamongconsumerswhouseAItoolsintheirresearch,85%rankthemamongtheirtopfivemostinfluentialtouchpointsinthepurchasedecision,onparwithsocialmediaandsignificantlyaheadoftraditionalmedia.BCG’sGlobalConsumerRadarshowsoverallGenAI

usageup40%injustoverayear,withshopping-relateduse—includingresearchintoand

recommendationsforbrands,products,andservices—amongthefastest-growingapplications.(SeeExhibit3.)

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AsAItakesonalargerroleinevaluatingandrecommendingoptions,marketersfaceanew

question:Whoexactlyarewedesigningfor?Whencustomersaremakingdecisionsontheirown,traditionalmarketingstrengthsapply:clearvaluepropositions,behavioralinsights,andthetrustthatcomesfromaconsistentbrandexperience.However,whendecisionsareheavilyinfluencedbyAI,evidencethatthebrandconsistentlydeliversonitspromisebecomesincreasingly

important,withAIagentsevaluatingandcomparingthatevidenceatascalenohumancan

match.Inmanycases,acustomerandagentareworkingtogether,withthecustomerformingaviewwhiletheagentinformsandtestsitinrealtime.Eachconfigurationdemandsdifferent

thinking.

InaworldwhereAIincreasinglymediatesandexpediteshumandecisions,manyCMOsarealso

askingwhethertheyshoulddevelopanddeploytheirowncustomer-facingagents.Thetemptationisreal.Aproprietaryagentgeneratesintelligencethatbelongstothebrand,notathird-party

platform,andgivesthebrandcontroloftheexperienceatthemomentofinteraction.Butwhatmakesanagentattractivetoabranddoesnotnecessarilymakeitattractivetoacustomer.

Customersmakingdecisionsacrossmultiplecategorieswillhave

moretrustinagentsthatcan

compareoptionsbroadly

ratherthanthosetiedtoasingleprovider.Customersseekingneutral

guidancemaybeskepticalofanagentwithastakeintheoutcome.Brandedagentsaremost

likelytoearngenuinecustomerpreferenceincategorieswheretrustandprivacymatterdeeply,orlong-termrelationshipscreatemeaningfuladvantages.Abankthatknowsacustomer’s

financialhistory,forexample,maybewellpositionedtoprovideadvicethatageneral-purpose

agentcannot.Formostcompanies,thestrategicquestioniswhethertheyhavealreadyearnedthekindofrelationshipthatwouldmakecustomerswanttostartthere.

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ForCMOs,thesearetheimplications:

MaphowyourcustomersinteractwithAIagents.Buildtheanalyticalcapabilityto

understandwhatcustomersdelegate,whattheydecidethemselves,andwhattheydoincollaboration—byproductcategory,decisiontype,andcustomersegment.

Redesigncustomerinfluencepathwaysforagentmediation.Adaptthesequence,timing,

andcontentofthecustomerjourney,designingforhumanattentionwherecustomersarethedecisionmakersandformachineevaluationwhereagentsshapedecisions.Thetwo

influencepathways—humansandagents—mustalwaysbeconsideredinparallel.

Measure

outcomes

withagents.Trackvisibility,evaluation,andcredibilitywithAIagents

throughmonitoringshareofmentionsforrelevantneeds,shareofcitations,recommendationrates,andotheremergingindicatorsofagent-mediatedinfluence.

Considerwhetherandhowtodeployabrandedagent.Theformidabletechnical,financial,andcompetitiveimplications,includingtheriskofdisintermediatingexistingchannelsandrelationships,makethisadecisionthatwarrantscarefuldeliberationatthehighestlevelsoftheenterprise.KeycontributionsoftheCMOincludedeterminingwhetherthebrandhas

earnedthetrustandrelationshipdepththatwouldmakecustomersgenuinelyprefera

brandedagentoveraneutralalternative.Further,ifanagentisdeployed,CMOscanhelpdeterminehowtobestdesignittoreflectitsroleasatrusteddecisionmakerorkey

influencerinaugmenteddecision-making.

BuildingtheMarketingOperatingModelfortheAgenticEra

Noneoftheopportunitiesdiscussedabovecanbeexecutedeffectivelywithintheexisting

operatingmodelsformarketing,andnoneisanendinitself.Paid,owned,andearnedoftensitindifferentpartsofthemarketingstructureandbegtobereimaginedtocapitalizeonthesenew

dynamics.Thepurposeofanyredesignistounlockthepowerofnewdataandturnitintogrowth.Thelargeropportunityliesinredesigninghowthebusinessoperates:howworkisorganized,howpeopleandAIshareresponsibility,howopportunitiesflowacrossfunctions,andhowperformanceisdefinedandmeasured.

Themarketingorganizationsbestpositionedtowinintheagenticeraarethosethathave

deliberatelyredesignedtheiroperatingmodelstoturnAI-enabledmarketingintelligenceinto

profitablegrowth.Thatmeansmovingfromchannel-basedstructuresoptimizedforcampaign

executiontointelligence-ledoperatingmodelswhereinsightflowsseamlesslyacrossfunctional

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areastoenablesmarthandoffsindecisionsfocusedonthesingularoutcomeofgrowth.Theaimistodirectscarceresources—peopleandbudget—towardtheareaswherevalueiscreatedmore

effectivelyandefficiently.

ImperativeandOpportunity

MostCMOs,likemostbusinessleaders,arecurrentlyfocusedonapplyingAItoimproveproductivity.Thatgoalisnecessaryandchallenginginitsownright,butitisnotwherethegreatestopportunitylies.

TheinteractionbetweencustomersandAIwillgenerateanewclassofdatathatisricherand

morerevealingthananythi