Observed Signal · May 15, 2026 · Market Research Report · Source: https://martechseries.com/feed/ · Impact: 3/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Survey: AI Search Rapidly Shifts Marketing Budgets
Branch’s AI Search and Discovery: Enterprise Benchmark Report, based on a survey of 300 enterprise senior marketing executives, finds rapid adoption and budget reallocation toward AI-driven search. Respondents report AI search increased traffic share (15%) while traditional SEO rose 8% year-over-year; 89% said AI search improved overall marketing performance. In 2026, 65% of surveyed teams plan to dedicate at least 25% of marketing budgets to AI search (28% plan >50%), and 87% expect to be selling via AI within the year. The report also highlights notable concerns—data privacy, accuracy, workforce impact and long-term economics—despite broadly positive sentiment.
Provides empirical metrics showing rapid budget reallocation and adoption of AI search, with measurable traffic and performance impacts that could reshape search/SEO strategies and media spend.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Branch surveyed 300 enterprise senior marketing executives in the AI Search and Discovery: Enterprise Benchmark Report.
- 89% of respondents reported an overall improvement in marketing performance from AI search.
- Respondents reported traditional SEO increased website traffic share by 8% and AI search traffic increased by 15% over the last year.
- 65% of respondents are dedicating at least 25% of their marketing budget to AI search in 2026; 28% are allocating over half.
- 87% of senior leaders think their company will be selling via AI within the year.
Connected Companies & Entities
2 Entities mappedRelated Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Survey: AI Increases Marketing Budgets, Teams, and Stacks
A Semrush survey of 1,008 U.S. marketing budget decision-makers finds AI is driving increased investment and organizational change rather than widespread cost-cutting. About 42% of marketers report budget increases attributed to AI while 16% report decreases and 28% report no meaningful impact. Many respondents say AI has prompted reallocation of spend, with over 40% reporting major changes in where money is directed. Martech stacks are still growing: roughly one-third say their stacks increased slightly and another quarter say they grew significantly, even as many organizations replace certain point tools with AI. Headcount trends show expansion too — about a third report significant team growth and another quarter report smaller increases. Larger-budget teams (>$500,000) are more likely to have replaced many tools with AI. The study frames AI as redistributing resources and accelerating marketing operations rather than primarily reducing costs.
AI Search Concerns Drive Higher Media Budgets, CMOs Say
Marketers are leveraging concerns about AI search's impact on consumer behavior to justify increased media budgets and brand-building investments. A survey by Dept found 61% of US consumers used AI assistants for shopping research in the past three months. Advertisers in high-consideration categories like insurance, autos, and running shoes are particularly vulnerable to AI-driven shifts in search behavior. Instead of focusing solely on GEO tactics, CMOs are arguing for bigger upper-funnel budgets to shore up brand equity and awareness, which they see as crucial for maintaining visibility in AI-generated results. The IAB revised its US ad spend growth forecast upward to 12.3%, partly due to marketers investing more in AI search performance. Examples include State Farm's sports campaign, Mercedes-Benz's tennis-focused ads, and Hoka's marathon sponsorship.
Marketers Build Infrastructure for AI Search Visibility
Marketers are reallocating search and content budgets and reorganizing teams to win visibility within AI-powered search and answer engines. Multiple industry surveys show brands are dedicating meaningful budget — Fractl reports roughly 24% of search/content budgets routed to AI visibility and 82% of marketers allocating some funds — while B2B firms increasingly view AI-generated answers as a distribution channel. However, execution lags: many brands have only a minority of content optimized for AI discovery, and most do not track AI share-of-voice, sentiment, or bot traffic. Platform fragmentation and opaque LLM sourcing (Semrush data shows differing source mixes across ChatGPT, Google AI Mode and Gemini) mean marketers need varied strategies for different AI systems.
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