Everyone’s Using AI. Few Are Using It Well
The quiet revolution inside in-house agencies—and what it reveals about the future of marketing.
AI adoption is booming. Open any marketing report and you’ll see the stats:
“92% of marketers recognize AI has already transformed the way they work.” — HubSpot, 2025
But here’s the problem: most of it isn’t working.
According to Gartner, 27% of marketing teams report little or no AI adoption in active campaigns. And among those who have adopted AI, the majority use it for isolated creative tasks—copywriting, image generation, light automation. Helpful? Sure. Transformative? Not yet.
The Productivity Illusion
Many CMOs have found that it’s easy to add tools—but hard to unlock value.
Forrester’s latest benchmarks show that while AI can improve revenue per dollar spent, many teams still struggle to justify spend without clear attribution and integrated workflows.
That’s because simply producing more content, faster, doesn’t solve your real problem. The real opportunity is to ask better questions earlier—and align teams faster.
“Execution is no longer a differentiator. It’s a commodity. Your edge is the clarity of your thinking.”
Where the Real Shift Is Happening
The most transformative AI adoption isn’t coming from elite agencies or Silicon Valley darlings. It’s happening inside in-house agencies.
According to Cella’s 2024 Intelligence Report, creative teams working in-house are investing in AI at higher rates—and using it to reshape how they work, not just what they produce. Why? They have to. Tighter timelines. Higher volume. No buffer from clients. No room for fluff.
And while some external agencies see AI as a threat to billable hours, in-house teams see it for what it is: a catalyst for better work.
“AI isn’t just speeding up the work. It’s exposing what’s broken.”
From Automation to Strategic Impact
Gartner’s 2025 analysis found that high-performing teams—those integrating AI into strategy and collaboration, not just execution—were 1.3x more likely to outperform peers on profit growth. These teams use AI not just to execute ideas, but to test, validate, and align them before they scale.
They’re not optimizing broken processes. They’re rebuilding them.
“The most impactful campaigns result from the synergy of human ingenuity and machine speed.”
— Harvard Business Review
The CMO’s Dilemma
It’s no longer about picking the best AI tool. It’s about knowing how to deploy it—across workflows, departments, and decisions.
Valtech and CMSWire both highlight the pain points CMOs face today: disjointed stacks, slow ROI, and misalignment between strategy and execution. Everyone has AI tools. Few have systems.
“Almost 90% of marketers believe AI is necessary to stay competitive. Only half feel they’ve adopted it effectively.”
— Forrester / Marketing AI Institute
Why In-House Teams Are Winning
In-house teams don’t need to pitch ideas or protect margins. They just need to deliver. That’s why they’re often more willing to experiment, restructure, and upskill. They’re not just automating—they’re integrating. Not just generating—but validating.
And they’re showing us something important: AI isn’t a shortcut to better marketing. It’s a system for better decisions.
“If you’re not using AI to align product, marketing, and leadership—you’re leaving growth on the table.”
— Harvard Business Review
