Twelve years ago, 55% of Association of National Advertisers members ran an in-house operation. It is now 82%, a figure that came up at a Daily Maverick panel on 21 August alongside three people who have actually done it.
The interesting part is not the number. Nobody on the panel argued for one model.
Le-Anne Engelbrecht, Growth Director at RCL Foods, described running several models at once, with dedicated centres of excellence only where the category demands it. She named pet food as far more complex than she expected when she joined.
Jonty Fisher of Publicis Groupe made the diagnosis that the agency-of-record model was built for a simpler world of TV, print, outdoor and radio. Paul van den Berg of OLIVER argued AI is horizontal rather than another capability to bolt on, which is his case for embedding teams inside the client.
OLIVER markets around 30% average savings for moving in-house. That is a vendor claim in a debate about vendors, so hold it loosely.
Running multiple models in parallel has a cost of its own, and it is the one nobody budgets for.
TALK ON THE MARKET
Engelbrecht, at the same session:
AI for AI’s sake is not helpful unless you know what you’re solving for.
Put it on the wall of whichever room your AI steering committee meets in.
NUMBERS MATTER
Over 40%. That is the share of Google searches now triggering an AI Overview, per Similarweb data published 17 August, which also notes those overviews frequently carry ads. The organic result you optimised for is below the fold in four searches out of ten.
BEYOND MARKETING
Politicians are starting to ask a very old question: if the machines take our jobs, who owns the machines?
Check out Torsten’s last video about a direction in AI policy that has the unlikely support of Donald Trump, Sam Altman, and … Bernie Sanders. Quite a trio.
DAILY PROMPT
Our favorite Annual AI Marketing Strategy Framework prompt from our AI-Ready CMO Hub:
You are an expert marketing strategist helping me build a comprehensive annual marketing strategy that leverages AI capabilities. I need a structured framework that covers all critical areas.
## Context
Company: [COMPANY_NAME]
Industry: [INDUSTRY]
Current Annual Revenue: [REVENUE]
Target Growth Rate: [GROWTH_TARGET]%
Key Product/Service: [PRIMARY_OFFERING]
Primary Customer Persona: [TARGET_AUDIENCE]
Current Market Position: [MARKET_POSITION]
Main Competitors: [TOP_3_COMPETITORS]
## Strategic Objectives
List our top 3-5 business objectives for the next 12 months:
1. [OBJECTIVE_1]
2. [OBJECTIVE_2]
3. [OBJECTIVE_3]
## Current State Assessment
Current marketing channels in use: [CHANNELS]
Current marketing team size: [TEAM_SIZE]
Existing marketing technology stack: [MARTECH_TOOLS]
Key performance gaps: [GAPS]
## AI Integration Opportunities
Areas where we’re considering AI: [AI_AREAS]
Current AI adoption level: [ADOPTION_LEVEL]
Budget allocated for AI tools: [AI_BUDGET]
## Deliverables Needed
Based on this context, create a comprehensive annual marketing strategy that includes:
1. **Strategic Pillars**: 4-5 core marketing pillars aligned with business objectives, each with specific AI applications
2. **Channel Strategy**: Recommended marketing channels with AI-powered tactics for each (content, paid, organic, email, social)
3. **AI Tool Recommendations**: Specific AI tools for each channel with implementation timeline and expected ROI
4. **Content Strategy**: AI-assisted content production framework including topics, formats, publishing cadence, and automation opportunities
5. **Measurement Framework**: KPIs and metrics for each pillar with AI-powered analytics approach
6. **Resource Plan**: Team structure, skills needed, and hiring recommendations
7. **Budget Allocation**: Recommended budget distribution across channels and AI investments
8. **Implementation Timeline**: Quarterly milestones and quick wins for the first 90 days
9. **Risk Mitigation**: Potential challenges and contingency plans
10. **Success Metrics**: How we’ll measure overall strategy success
## Format Requirements
- Use clear headings and subheadings
- Include specific, actionable recommendations (not generic advice)
- Provide rationale for each recommendation
- Highlight quick wins achievable in the first 90 days
- Include estimated resource requirements and timelines
- Flag dependencies and critical success factors
Create a strategy that is ambitious but achievable, leverages AI to improve efficiency and effectiveness, and directly supports our business objectives.
Use this when the in-house question arrives as a cost conversation and you need to turn it into a capability conversation before somebody’s headcount becomes the answer.
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CMO CORNER
If your team needs constant reminders, your system lacks clarity.
In-housing exposes this faster than anything else. The agency had process, and when the work comes back inside, the process does not come with it. What arrives is the work, on people who already had jobs. Then you spend a year reminding everyone about approvals, brand rules and who signs off legal, and you call it a culture problem. It is not. It is the part of the agency you forgot to rebuild.
We provide CMOs with AI strategy consulting for marketing teams through our Teamless offering.
We run an interview series with marketing leaders about how AI actually changes their work. Real use cases, not predictions.
If you’re doing something worth talking about, the opportunity is free and available for anyone. Simply reply to this email with your pitch.
TOOL UPGRADE
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Or reply to this email and request a media kit.
LEARN THIS
In-housing usually fails on sequencing rather than ambition, which is what AI Roadmap 101 is for. It covers what to bring in first, what to leave outside, and how to phase it so you are not standing up four capabilities in one quarter with the same people who still have a day job. For the leader who has been told to do this by Q1.
We publish workshops, courses, guides, manuals, and more about AI marketing for free for everyone. Browse our learning resources for free.
That’s it for today!
See you next time,
— Peter & Torsten
