AI & Marketing: The Questions Leaders Can’t Afford to Ignore

As AI reshapes marketing at speed, many CMOs and brand leaders are being pulled in different directions: pressure to experiment, pressure to cut costs, pressure to transform.

In my recent AI Readiness Framework, marketing came out clearly in the “Act Now” category—not because of hype, but because the tools, use cases, and expectations are already here.

• Generative content tools are changing how teams produce campaigns at scale.

• AI-driven media optimisation is already cutting costs and boosting performance in real time.

• Customers increasingly expect personalisation—something AI can now deliver more affordably and consistently.

And many leading organisations are already acting:

• Unilever is using generative AI to localise global campaigns across markets—reducing production time while maintaining brand consistency.

• Coca-Cola has launched AI-driven creative initiatives like “Create Real Magic” to engage consumers and accelerate experimentation.

• L’Oréal is integrating AI across its digital channels to deliver hyper-personalised product recommendations and content.

• WPP has rolled out WPP Open, an AI-powered platform now used by over 40,000 employees to streamline creative and media execution at scale.

AI in marketing isn’t a future play. It’s a now play.

But beneath the urgency and ambition lies something even more critical:

the practical questions that marketing leaders need to answer in the next 6–12 months.

Not theory. Not trend-watching. Just real decisions—about:

• Who to hire (and who not to)

• Which teams to reorganise

• How to work with agencies

• Where to spend (and save)

• And how to lead the function through change

I’ll be exploring these and other questions in a series of short reflections over the coming weeks—based on what I’m hearing from clients, partners, and peers.

If you’d like to follow the conversation, you can join me on LinkedIn—or feel free to message me directly.

What AI-related question is top of mind for you right now?

Let’s start from the questions that matter most.

The AI path is no longer theoretical—it’s here, and the decisions you make now will shape your route ahead