Working With More: Why Marketing Budget Increases Are Best Directed Toward Tech

A recent report about marketing budgets in the new year found that 3 in 4 marketers were expecting increases, with almost a quarter expecting that increase to exceed 20%.

Those numbers don’t exactly match those uncovered by Sagefrog in its 2025 B2B Marketing Mix Report, however, which found that only 41% of surveyed marketers were expecting an increased budget.

“Businesses are carefully balancing cost control and growth strategies in response to ongoing market uncertainties,” the report says, which found that 25% were keeping their budget the same. “This shift in expenditure reflects a diverse range of financial strategies for third-party spend, highlighting how businesses are adapting their financial plans to support operations and growth in alignment with their unique needs and circumstances.”

(Source: Sagefrog)

More than half (54%) said marketing technology was going to be their top area of spend, followed by direct marketing (36%), content marketing (34%), branding (29%), and AI (22%). 71% of those surveyed were optimistic about AI in B2B marketing (20% being “very optimistic”) as their companies “strive to maximize efficiency and effectiveness in their marketing efforts.”

“As AI adoption grows, 2025 sees a significant increase in AI-driven content generation, now taking the top spot in marketing strategies,” the report says. “Marketers are increasingly leveraging AI for coding and web development purposes as well.”

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