In a recent survey SBI conducted of nearly 150 CEOs, we asked how they anticipate commercial spending in 2023 relative to 2022 with a positive shift, negative shift, or no shift. Most revealed that they still plan to increase their commercial budgets in 2023, but with a more conservative approach by spending 50% as much as they did in 2022. This was consistent across Marketing, Sales and Customer Success.
While we see a trend in adopting a less aggressive growth investment strategy, as compared to ‘22, this adoption is dependent on a few key factors. Certainly, recessionary conditions are affecting investment strategies. Other contributing factors include raising compensation costs and a focus on retaining A-players in the face of The Great Resignation. For example, Marketing's budget increase in 2023 is anticipated to drop from a 10% increase to a 5% increase. The drop in budget increases specifically for Sales and Marketing shows that many CEOs are still emphasizing growth, but they are taking a more measured approach in 2023. High-growth CEOs understand that they won’t hit their targets by cost-cutting alone. They are reallocating savings from operating expenses, gained from a fundamentally changed work environment as virtual or hybrid, into go-to-market investments with a focus to accelerate growth.
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