What’s Really Happening with 2026 Marketing Budgets?

Last month, we wrote about where marketing budgets are heading in 2026—the shift to digital, AI adoption, privacy-first strategies, and all the trends we’re seeing play out.

But honestly? I want to know what’s actually happening in your shop.

Here’s What I’m Really Curious About

I’ve been in this business long enough to know that what consultants predict and what companies actually do can be two very different things. So I put together a quick survey (2-3 minutes, I promise) to find out:

• Where are you really putting your budget? Not where you “should” be—where are you actually increasing spend?
• What are you cutting? Let’s be honest about what’s not working anymore.
• Are you bringing marketing in-house or outsourcing more? I’m seeing mixed signals on whether companies are building internal teams or leaning back on agencies and consultants. 
• How much are you actually experimenting? Everyone says they’re testing new things, but are you really dedicating 15-20% of your budget to it?
• Can you measure your ROI? Because attribution is still a mess for a lot of companies.

Why I’m Asking

Look, I could keep writing about trends based on industry reports. But I’d rather hear from real marketers making real decisions right now. Your input helps all of us—including BroadBased—understand where the industry is actually going, not just where we think it’s going.

Plus, I’ll share the full results in January so you can benchmark yourself against other companies in your space.

📋 Take the Survey (3 Minutes)

Share Your 2026 Marketing Plans Here →

Once I get enough responses I’ll compile everything and share:

• Where most marketers are increasing and decreasing spend
• The real numbers on in-house vs. outsourced marketing
• How many companies are actually adopting AI tools (vs. just talking about it)
• Industry and company size breakdowns

If you want the results sent to you first, just drop your email at the end of the survey.

Survey closes December 31st, so don’t put it off.

Want to talk about your 2026 strategy? Let’s connect.