Over half (55%) of U.S. marketers reported budget increases in 2026, while 37% were asked to make cuts - most of them under 10%, according to 10Fold's "The 2026 Marketing Budget Blueprint, Part II." But even with the largest budgets of any region, U.S. marketers reported the lowest confidence in meeting growth targets. The data suggests that after aggressive investment in 2025, some marketing programs may have outpaced market demand.
In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Jamie Dimon explained why JPMorgan Chase is spending billions more on AI. He was making a long-term bet. The same kind of leaders make when they build headquarters, factories or infrastructure that won't "pay off" this quarter but will define competitiveness for decades. It's exactly how marketers should think about and position differentiation in the eyes of the C-Suite.
Marketing budgets in 2025 have stayed the same, yet expectations keep rising. CMOs report budgets stuck at roughly 7.7% of company revenue, which means teams are expected to do more with the same dollars. In that context, the most practical use of AI is not a moonshot, but a set of clear fixes to everyday bottlenecks that slow teams down and drive costs up.
Communications can no longer rely on rigid quarterly plans or static message calendars. The most resilient organizations are building what can be called "adaptive communications"-a system that continuously learns from audience signals, cultural shifts and algorithmic trends. To plan effectively, you should: Structure modular budgets that can be reallocated across earned, owned and paid channels depending on performance. Embed data interpretation into day-to-day operations so that insights directly shape messaging.
