To be an Inbound CMO, you have to sell the rest of the C-blank-O's.

Key excerpt...

[The] first challenge is one of self-education, and when you're the only thing standing in your own way, it's easy enough to get out of your own way, too. But it doesn't end there. Inbound CMOs, even if they understand the dire need for a shift in perspective, need to get the buy-in from the rest of their C-suite. The vision has to come from the top-down, and that can't come from Marketing alone.

It turns out, many C-level executives know there's a shift taking place, it's just not clear in exactly what -- which is why it's even more important than ever for the marketing executives to possess a crystal clear understanding of it.

The CMOs that can convince their C-Suite that the leap of faith is worth it will still encounter resistance on practical matters, like the headcount and resources necessary to make the shift. The Inbound CMO will have an advantage, getting access to data quickly that can justify these investments. 41% of marketers, for example, secured more budget for more inbound marketing initiatives because of the ability to prove past ROI. Additionally, CMOs report that they plan to allocate 10% of their budget to Big Data -- up from 6% -- over the next three years. This investment in gaining insights around the ROI of their marketing activities will help make the case for inbound to their C-Suite even smoother.