In today’s Marketing Pulse, gain insight into how:

• Signals and AI help revenue teams proactively shape 70% of the B2B buying journey before sales enters the conversation.

• The merging responsibilities of CMOs and CIOs driven by AI could redefine executive leadership into a new role—the Chief Growth and Innovation Officer (CG&IO).

• Companies like Sephora and Netflix strategically leverage AI to solve real-world business challenges, creating superior customer experiences.

These articles are penned by members of Forbes Communications Council, key marketing and communications leaders shaping the future of these fields.

Let’s dive in!

How Signals & AI Are Transforming B2B Engagement 🚀

Today's B2B buyers are fiercely independent. 70% of their buying journey happens anonymously, and by the time contact is made, 80% have made their choice. But rather than a setback, this reality is the perfect opportunity to engage smarter and earlier—using signals and AI to influence decisions long before the sales call.

Discover real-world scenarios where signals plus AI drive results across marketing, sales, and customer success:

📍 Field Marketing: Leveraging signals and AI ensures your events attract the right guests, cover compelling topics, and deliver strong pipeline impact—yielding up to 56x ROI on field marketing efforts.

🔮 Customer Marketing: Signals proactively identify customer engagement dips, while AI recommends timely interventions like webinars or specialist check-ins, leading to better retention, loyalty, and cross-sell opportunities.

🎯 Sales Prospecting: AI-driven hyperpersonalized messages and signals-based intent identification streamline sales efforts. Reps perform fewer tasks (57% activity reduction) and unleash their full potential, increasing promotions from BDR to AE.

⚡ Inbound Lead Handling: AI agents instantly respond to high-intent inbound leads, slashing time-to-opportunity by 76% and meeting 100% of rapid-response SLAs—turning inquiries into immediate, high-quality interactions.

💎 Customer Success: Signals and AI uncover upsell and cross-sell opportunities, empowering customer success teams to engage proactively, build trust, and drive measurable growth in accounts.

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Could AI Turn the CMO & CIO Duo into a New Growth Powerhouse?💡

As AI reshapes businesses, the traditional roles of Chief Information Officers and Chief Marketing Officers converge.

Driven by the growing need for agile innovation, enhanced customer insights, and enterprise-wide growth, this partnership raises a provocative proposition: Could CIOs and CMOs evolve into a new combined entity—the Chief Growth and Innovation Officer (CG&IO)?

Here's why the CIO-CMO dynamic is changing—and how embracing combined leadership responsibilities can fuel future success:

🌐 CIOs Taking the AI Helm: According to Gartner, 57% of CIOs now lead AI strategy, making them crucial to integrated data governance, security, and adoption.

📈 CMOs Driving Growth Through AI: Charged increasingly with growth strategies and personalized customer journeys, CMOs leverage AI-driven insights and rapid innovation for competitive advantage.

🔗 Unified Approach Equals Competitive Edge: Merging insights (CIO) with customer vision (CMO) generates cohesive strategies rather than fragmented efforts.

🚀 Rise of a Potential "CG&IO" Role: Companies like Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, and Hershey’s experimented with growth-centric leaders, symbolizing the adjusted priorities reshaping leadership toward technology-driven, customer-centric growth.

🛡️ Integrating AI, Cloud, & Security: AI-driven growth requires seamless integration of security, cloud solutions, and customer data—a challenge best addressed through unified executive sponsorship and collaboration.

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Real-World AI Wins: Brands Making AI Impactful (& Profitable) 🎯

AI implementation isn't just hype—when used strategically, it delivers real results for growth. Companies succeeding with AI aren't chasing buzzwords; they're solving concrete business challenges and redefining customer experiences.

Here are some noteworthy examples proving AI’s strategic value:

👗 H&M (Fashion Trendspotter): Leverages AI to fine-tune inventory for different stores, accurately matching local tastes and forecasting new fashion trends, reducing waste, and boosting sales.

💳 Ping An (Insurance at Lightning Speed): Transformed traditional insurance with AI-driven claim processing, shrinking turnaround time from days to seconds, significantly lifting customer satisfaction and efficiency.

💄 Sephora (Virtual Artist): Combines AI with augmented reality, allowing customers to virtually try makeup products, confidently driving purchases and reducing returns online and in stores.

🍿 Netflix (Personalized Discovery & Investments): Builds sophisticated recommendation algorithms to increase engagement and retention, informing not just viewer preferences but also strategic content investment and development decisions.

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Wrapping Up

If these articles sparked your interest, we have a network that you will absolutely love: Forbes Communications Council.

This exclusive, vetted community brings together the brightest minds in marketing and communications — founders, CEOs, CCOs, CMOs, and other senior leaders of marketing and communications teams.

Put yourself at the forefront of innovation with access to publishing opportunities on Forbes.com, a personalized, SEO-friendly Executive Profile, and the chance to network with other respected leaders in the field.

Join Forbes Communications Council today, and become part of a group driving transformation in marketing.