Even with the growing use of artificial intelligence, 64% of marketing departments lack an AI plan or strategy, as revealed by a recent report from the AI Marketing Institute. This indicates a broader issue within organizations. Over half of businesses deploying AI technologies do not have adequate guidelines, processes, or monitoring in place to ensure safe operation of these tools.
Based on the 2025 State of Marketing AI Report:
- 55% of those surveyed mentioned that their organization lacks guidelines for using AI.
- 51% lack an AI ethics policy or responsible AI guidelines.
- 59% don’t have AI councils charged with developing policies and practices.
It’s crucial to highlight the encouraging upward trajectory: These figures are all increasing. To illustrate, 25% of marketers reported having a strategic plan in place, marking a rise of six percentage points compared to last year. Additionally, the proportion of businesses adopting an AI ethics framework has almost doubled, jumping from 23% in 2023 to 41% currently. Furthermore, the share of organizations establishing an AI council stands at 29%, which is an increase from 25% recorded earlier in 2024.
Signs of improvement
More marketers are recognizing the significance of AI to their field and overall marketing strategies. Seventy-five percent believe AI will be "highly significant" over the coming year, marking an increase of eight percentage points compared to last year. The number of people viewing it as "essential" has risen by twenty percentage points since 2021.
These figures demonstrate the increasing adoption of AI in marketing. This year, 40% of participants report experimenting with AI technologies. An additional 26% have incorporated AI use into their regular tasks. On the more sophisticated side of this continuum, 17% indicate that AI has transformed how they tackle their roles. Equally, 17% express initial interest or preliminary comprehension stages regarding AI applications.
For entire marketing teams, 46% report initiating early AI projects. Meanwhile, 14% are expanding the usage of AI more broadly within their teams. This combined percentage of 60% marks an 18-point rise from 2023, where only 42% indicated similar progress.
Dig deeper: If your teams aren't prepared for AI, then having the right tools will be irrelevant.
With marketers constantly asked to do more with less, it’s no surprise that 82% say what they want the most from AI is saving them time on repetitive, data-driven tasks. Getting more actionable insights from data (65%) and accelerating revenue growth (63%) were next on the priority list.
Lack of AI training remains the biggest problem
Marketers would be further along in adopting AI if they had more education and training. The lack of those was cited by 62% as the biggest hurdle they face, the fifth consecutive year it led the list. Sixty-eight percent said they have received no AI training from their companies. The situation seems unlikely to change, as 51% of CEOs/founders/presidents say the lack of training isn’t a problem.
The importance of AI skills is likely weighing heavily on marketers, with 53% of them believe the technology will eliminate more jobs than it creates, up from 40% only two years ago.
What do you believe the net effect of AI will be on marketing jobs over the next 3 years?
Paul Roetzer, AI Marketing Institute’s CEO, called out this issue in his introduction to the report.
We are now observing growing indications that widespread job displacement caused by AI is imminent," he stated. "For the last six to twelve months, we've witnessed 'stealthy AI downsizing'...where businesses substitute employees with artificial intelligence or, at the very least, hold off on recruiting new personnel because of AI. ... These changes have been cloaked behind measures such as work-from-office mandates to prevent negative publicity.
It's evident that the most forward-thinking businesses will be those providing AI training. By doing so, not just do these firms enhance their proficiency in critical technologies, but they also sidestep substantial expenses and missed chances associated with staff turnover.
Methodology
The survey covered approximately 1,900 marketing and business leaders in key digital marketing sectors such as content marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, analytics, advertising, and SEO. This research took place between February and April of 2025. You can find the complete report here. here . ( Registration required.)
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