DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 2, 2025--
Digital channels now account for 61.1% of total marketing spend, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc. This digital dominance is reshaping strategies across industries, with seven out of 10 sectors dedicating more than 60% of their budget to online channels.
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The annual Gartner 2025 CMO Spend Survey of 402 CMOs and other marketing leaders in North America, the United Kingdom and Europe between February and March 2025 found that paid online channels lead the digital mix, accounting for 69% of total digital spend (see Figure 1).
Gartner experts presented the findings today during the Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo, which is taking place here through Wednesday.
Paid search is the leading digital channel, increasing its share year-over-year from 13.6% to 13.9% of total digital spend. Digital display advertising has overtaken social advertising for the second spot, growing by 17% year-over-year (YoY) to 12.5%. Social advertising maintains its budget share at 12.2%, reflecting its continued importance in the digital mix.
Despite the growth in digital channels, budget allocations to owned and earned channels have decreased 9% YoY, with email being the exception. Email marketing remains resilient, experiencing a marginal increase and accounting for 7.4% of total digital spend for 2025.
“The increasing allocation towards digital channels reflects a strategic pivot as CMOs recognize the need to adapt to rapidly changing consumer behaviors and technological advancements,” said Ewan McIntyre, VP Analyst and Chief of Research in Gartner Marketing Practice. “With Google's postponement of cookie deprecation, the rise of GenAI, and uncertainties surrounding TikTok's future, marketers are navigating a dynamic digital landscape to keep their strategies effective and impactful.”
Navigating the Impact and Spend of Advertising Channels
CMOs recognize the importance of evaluating channel impact alongside spend (see Figure 2):
“As CMOs maneuver the evolving channel landscape, strategic implications of multichannel plans become paramount. Budget challenges and channel volatility will continue to shape priorities, emphasizing the need for performance-driven strategies,” said McIntyre.
Gartner clients can read more in Insights From the 2025 CMO Spend Survey.
About Gartner for Marketers
Gartner for Marketers provides the objective, expert advice, and proven tools that CMOs and other marketing leaders need to seize the right opportunities with clarity and confidence, and to stay ahead of the trends that matter. With in-depth research and analysis, Gartner for Marketers helps you focus on the opportunities with the greatest potential to deliver results. More information on Gartner for Marketers is available online at www.gartner.com/marketing. Follow news and updates from the Gartner Marketing practice on X and LinkedIn using #GartnerMKTG. Members of the media can find additional information and insights in the Gartner Marketing Newsroom.
About the Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo
The Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo is taking place June 2-4 in Denver, providing marketing leaders with actionable advice about the trends, tools and emerging technologies they need to deliver business results and exceed expectations. Gartner analysts address the biggest opportunities, challenges and priorities marketers face today, including marketing strategy development, marketing analytics and CX strategy. Follow news and updates coming out of the conference on the Gartner Newsroom and on X and LinkedIn using #GartnerMKTG.
About Gartner
Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) delivers actionable, objective insight that drives smarter decisions and stronger performance on an organization’s mission-critical priorities. To learn more, visit gartner.com.
Figure 2. Source: Gartner (May 2025)
Figure 1. Source: Gartner (May 2025)
Alaska's Republican governor has ordered an investigation in response to President Donald Trump 's demand for a criminal probe of whether Democratic Senate nominee Mary Peltola's campaign was involved in recruiting a spoiler candidate with the same name as Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Political parties often support extra candidates on the ballot to try to pull votes from their rivals. In Ohio’s Senate race, Republicans have been tied to an effort to boost a socialist to votes from Sherrod Brown, the Democratic candidate challenging Sen. Jon Husted.
A federal judge rejected a Trump administration request to stop California from processing the ballots of up to 20,000 people over allegations that they are likely noncitizens, warning it would “wreak havoc” on the midterm elections. The ruling comes as more than 3.7 million people have already voted in the state.
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When Democratic candidate David Crowley joined thousands of fans watching the Brewers win the World Series Wednesday night, the victory was particularly sweet: As the Milwaukee County executive, Crowley helped negotiate a deal in 2023 to have state, county and city money help pay for repairs at the Brewers’ stadium to keep them in Milwaukee through at least 2050.
“It’s not just brought together those who live in this community, but everybody across the state of Wisconsin,” Crowley told WISN-TV.
Crowley faces Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who celebrated the win by invoking the memory of Bob Uecker, the Brewers’ play-by-play announcer for 54 years.
“You know Ueck is smiling down on us tonight,” Tiffany posted on social media.
A parade celebrating the Brewers’ first World Series championship is set for Friday in Milwaukee, about five miles from where Crowley grew up.
While controversial, the situation in Alaska is not that unusual. Political parties often support extra candidates on the ballot to try to pull votes from their rivals. If state courts allow it, legal experts say, the federal government has no role challenging the results.
In Ohio’s Senate race, Republicans have been tied to an effort to boost a socialist on the ballot who would pull votes from Sherrod Brown, the Democratic candidate challenging Sen. Jon Husted.
And social media videos believed to be produced with artificial intelligence and linked to Russia are misusing real people’s names and photographs to spread disinformation about Brown and Texas Democrat James Talarico in the final stretch of midterm voting.
That’s what House Speaker Mike Johnson said Thursday morning on Fox News Channel when asked about state and federal probes over whether Peltola’s campaign recruited a candidate with the same name as the GOP incumbent.
“This is an evil tactic,” the Louisiana Republican said. “They’re trying to confuse people, and we’re going to expose that.”
“That’s not Texas,” GOP Senate nominee Ken Paxton said Thursday as he characterized the promises of Democratic opponent James Talarico.
Appearing on Fox News Channel from a diner in his home state, the Texas attorney general called Talarico “a socialist who wants government control.”
Paxton urged party unity after a “tough primary” for Texas Republicans, calling himself “a constitutional conservative that will fight for free market, will fight for opportunity for Texans.”
Trump has stumped in Texas three times this month, calling Paxton “a good man” as he competes in the tight race that’s become one of the most expensive in the country.
The Labor Department report Thursday suggests layoffs remain low and most Americans enjoy job security.
Applications for jobless benefits are a proxy for layoffs, and economists watch them closely because they can provide signs of where the job market is headed. So far this year, claims have remained at historically low levels, never topping 230,000 in a single week.
But hiring has been lackluster: So far this year, employers — companies, government agencies and nonprofits — have been adding an average of 68,000 jobs a month, including a disappointing 29,000 last month. It’s better than in 2025 when monthly job creation averaged 9,700 as high interest rates and Trump’s unpredictable trade policies discouraged hiring.
Consumer spending has remained resilient and a surge in investment in artificial intelligence has lifted the GDP.
An inflation gauge closely monitored by the Federal Reserve accelerated last month, showing that prices remain elevated as Americans go to vote with affordability concerns a central issue.
Consumer prices rose 3.6% in September compared with a year earlier, the Commerce Department said Thursday, up from 3.4% in August. On a monthly basis, prices climbed 0.5%, up from 0.3% in August and the highest figure since May.
Annual inflation has worsened since the Iran war spiked oil and gas prices. U.S. oil prices still top $100 a barrel, up from less than $70 before the war. Polls show the inflation has soured most voters on the president’s handling of the economy. Trump’s campaign promise was gas below $2 a gallon. It currently averages about $4.25.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s directive, posted early Thursday on social media, comes a day after Trump called for the criminal prosecution of Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola.
It all comes following revelations that Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting a candidate with the same name as Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan.
During a campaign stop on Wednesday, Peltola suggested the Times’ report was a “distraction” from issues such as Sen. Sullivan’s support of the war in Iran.
New Hampshire Republican John E. Sununu says his former Senate colleague Susan Collins has been a “great model” for standing up to Trump.
Sununu, who is trying to regain the seat he lost in 2008, was asked during a debate Wednesday night to name a Republican member of Congress who has done what he promises to do: Oppose Trump on a key issue and remain effective.
“Susan Collins is a great example, a great model,” said Sununu, who is facing Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas in the race for an open seat. “She stands up for what she believes in, I’ll stand up for what I believe in.”
Collins, who is being challenged by Democrat Troy Jackson, has broken with Trump over the years but Democrats argue she is still too close to him.
Pappas repeatedly linked Sununu to Trump during the debate, including after Sununu criticized him for campaigning with former Vice President Kamala Harris last weekend.
A federal judge rejected on Wednesday a Trump administration request to stop California from processing the ballots of up to 20,000 people over allegations they are likely noncitizens, warning it would “wreak havoc” on the midterm elections.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter comes as more than 3.7 million people have already voted in the state.
“Eroded trust in our democracy is irreparable. Once a vote is segregated, lasting harm has occurred,” Carter wrote. “If the Executive can discount votes and threaten an ongoing election due to unproven allegations, then our democracy is in danger. This Court declines to be a party to such process.”
Prosecutors for the Justice Department said they would immediately appeal the decision.
The decision is the latest legal setback for Trump in his efforts to expand federal control over state-run elections ahead of voting that will decide control of Congress for the rest of his term.
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Trump called for the criminal prosecution of the Democratic candidate running for Senate in Alaska on Wednesday after revelations that her campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting a candidate with the same name as Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan.
The race is among a handful of Senate contests this year expected to determine control of the chamber. Trump had previously directed his Department of Justice to sue to block certification of the Senate race should Democrat Mary Peltola defeat Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan.
“I think they should be prosecuted,” the Republican president said about Peltola and the other Sullivan, responding to questions about a report in The New York Times.
The newspaper obtained text messages between members of Peltola’s campaign discussing recruiting people with the same name as the two-term Republican before landing on a retired schoolteacher named Dan J. Sullivan, now one of four candidates on the ranked vote ballot in the general election.
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Georgia Democrats rallied with former President Barack Obama Wednesday night, at the same time President Donald Trump was in Ohio attempting to energize his base, as both parties began crystallizing their closing messages ahead of next week’s midterm elections.
Trump has been on a weekslong sprint around the country, doing 20-plus rallies this month alone while packing upcoming days with more travel. But as Americans confront record fuel prices, rising costs and an unpopular war in Iran, the president has been keeping his focus on states that he won handily two years ago.
“If you can get out to vote,” Trump told a raucous crowd in Chillicothe, south of Columbus, Ohio’s capital, “we’re going to have a tremendous victory.”
The last Democratic president to serve two terms, Obama is increasingly campaigning for his party and gleefully acting as a foil to Trump — including criticizing the Republican for spending too much time leading White House renovations and for becoming wealthier while in office.
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Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Adam Hamilton hugs a supporter of his campaign for the U.S. Senate against Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., after speaking at Washburn University, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Topeka, Kan. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
FILE - Mary Peltola, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate seat in Alaska, addresses supporters at an election watch party on Aug. 18, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)
FILE - This combination photo shows Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, left, in Palmer, Alaska, Aug. 17, 2026, and a candidate in Alaska's Senate race, Dan Sullivan, right, in Petersburg, Alaska, July 3, 2026. (AP Photos/Mark Thiessen/Becky Bohrer, File)
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, center, joined by former President Barack Obama and Democratic candidate Sen. Jon Ossoff, walk off stage after a rally ahead of the Georgia Primary Election on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, Morrow, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the Shoemaker Center at Ohio University Chillicothe in Chillicothe, Ohio, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
