On Thursday 21st November, I attended a fascinating breakfast event titled 'All Change: 2025 Financial MarComms Leaders’ Planning Special,' organized by Financial Narrative. The marketing and communications community gathered to discuss the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in 2025.

The event adhered to Chatham House rules, so I won’t quote anyone specifically from the panel — which included Mastercard’s Suman Hughes, Impax Asset Management’s Neville Yvas, Opinium’s Jordan Wood, and expertly moderated by Vested’s Elspeth Rothwell — but there were some intriguing themes that I'd like to explore.

The phrase that resonated with me was ‘Be Creative’. Normally, the word "creative" might make you think of the graphic design team or a new advertising banner, but here it emerged in different contexts. Here are four ways for FS marketers to be creative in 2025:

1. Stretch your budget and embrace tech

The old refrain ‘do more with less’ reared its head as marketers must once again adapt to tighter budgets and increasing demands in 2025. To thrive amidst budget cuts, marketing teams need to get creative with their spending. This might mean finding new, cost-effective ways to achieve business goals or leveraging technology like AI to speed up content creation and streamline workflows.

One approach is to explore ‘cheaper’ marketing channels such as social media and thought leadership content marketing (with the emphasis on the ‘leadership’), which can yield high engagement without the hefty price tag of traditional advertising. Additionally, investing in automation tools can help streamline repetitive tasks, allowing teams to focus on strategic initiatives. Marketers should also consider reallocating budgets towards more measurable and impactful activities, ensuring every penny spent drives tangible results.

Proving ROI in marketing, however, remains a perennial challenge, particularly in B2B contexts where long sales cycles make it difficult to attribute outcomes directly to marketing efforts. Despite the availability of digital tools to track social media engagement, website traffic, and lead generation, the complete picture of marketing effectiveness is often elusive. At the event, it was emphasized that the goal is to support the sales team by driving engagement and securing quality meetings, even if the direct impact of marketing activities isn't always immediately clear.

2. Motivate your team in many ways

Creativity also extends to managing teams. In the face of limited financial incentives, marketing leaders can motivate their employees by offering flexible working conditions and recognizing their contributions in non-monetary ways, such as new titles or responsibilities.

For example, remote work options and flexible schedules can greatly enhance job satisfaction and productivity. Recognizing and celebrating achievements through awards, public acknowledgment, or additional responsibilities can also boost morale. Personalizing these rewards to align with individual preferences can make them more meaningful and impactful. The key is to foster a culture of appreciation and engagement, ensuring that team members feel valued and motivated even when financial rewards are not feasible.

3. Consider all views and stay strategic

As budgets are limited and deadlines approach, there’s no time for anyone to be making one hundred changes to a short video. Management and all concerned need to recognise that the strategic brief for any project needs to be taken seriously – and not to immediately dive into the detail of which wine to choose at an event.

Another topic discussed was the difference in perspective between communications and marketing teams regarding media strategies. Communications professionals tend to prioritize earned media, valuing the credibility and organic reach of coverage secured through relationships with journalists. Tools like Signal.ai can help track earned media performance. However, marketers often take a more pragmatic approach, utilizing paid media such as sponsored ads and articles to ensure their message reaches the target audience. This can sometimes lead to friction, but ultimately, both earned and paid media play crucial roles in a comprehensive marketing strategy that maximizes reach and impact.

To bridge the gap, it’s essential to foster collaboration and mutual understanding between different teams and key stakeholders. Joining team meetings, having brainstorming sessions, regular communication, and aligning on common goals can help unify efforts.

4. Stay flexible: plan to pivot

Panelists also shared insights on navigating an uncertain world in 2025. With geopolitical shifts, many elections in 2024 where the incumbents were displaced, and macroeconomic changes on the horizon, marketers need to stay flexible and ready to pivot strategies as circumstances shift. Often, one should stick to the business goals rather than being needlessly sucked into a particular news cycle—established financial services firms have more to lose than new startups that might like to say something controversial to get more media attention.

Being proactive involves planning for potential disruptions and having contingency plans in place. This means staying informed about global events, industry trends, and emerging technologies that could impact marketing strategies. On the other hand, being reactive is about being agile and responsive to sudden changes or opportunities. By balancing both approaches, marketers can better navigate the uncertainties of 2025 and seize opportunities as they arise.

Looking ahead, the consensus at the event was that adaptability is key. Planning for change and building flexibility into marketing plans will be essential to navigate the uncertainties of the coming year. Let’s get creative!