---
title: "CDMO Marketing Trends Report 2026: survey data"
publisher: Altitude, a B2B marketing agency serving life sciences and contract development and manufacturing organizations
source_url: https://altitudemarketing.com/cdmo-marketing-trends-2026
fielded: 2025
respondents: 149 U.S.-based marketing leaders at contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs)
data_csv: cdmo-marketing-trends-2026-data.csv
license: Free to quote and cite with attribution to Altitude and a link to the source URL.
---

# CDMO Marketing Trends Report 2026: survey data

Altitude Marketing surveyed 149 U.S.-based marketing leaders at contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) in 2025. This file contains the aggregate results for every published question. Full report and analysis: https://altitudemarketing.com/cdmo-marketing-trends-2026

**How to cite:** Altitude, "CDMO Marketing Trends Report 2026" survey (n=149, 2025), https://altitudemarketing.com/cdmo-marketing-trends-2026

## About the data

- 149 respondents. More than 80% hold director, VP or CMO titles.
- Aggregate results only. Results cannot be split by role, budget or team size.
- "Select all that apply" questions add up to more than 100%.
- Percentages are shares of respondents who answered the question. Most are rounded to whole numbers, so some single-response questions do not add up to exactly 100%.
- Counts are included for questions where exact figures were published (Q9, Q10, Q11, Q13, Q14).
- Q13 and Q14 were answered by 148 respondents.
- The survey was fielded in 2025, so "this year" refers to 2025 and "next year" to 2026.

## Key findings

- **Organic SEO / AI search leads on results and budget.** 36% named it their top source of qualified leads in 2025, well ahead of paid search and paid social (15% each). 36% also plan to put their largest share of 2026 budget there, followed by marketing technology (11%).
- **Lead generation is the top 2026 goal.** 45 of 149 respondents ranked it first, and it has the highest average priority score (3.46 of 5), ahead of brand awareness (3.27). Improving lead quality ranks last (2.30).
- **Growth is steady, not dramatic.** 79% expect their department to grow in 2026, most of them slightly (63%). 80% expect their budget to increase and 75% expect to use more outsourced marketing.
- **Budgets cluster in the middle.** 38% had a 2025 marketing budget of $101k to $500k and 29% had $501k to $1M.
- **Agencies take a meaningful share.** 47% spent 11% to 25% of their 2025 budget on agencies and another 34% spent 26% to 50%. Half (50%) outsource primarily for expertise and 24% for speed.
- **The most outsourced tactics are digital.** Marketing technology (45%), SEO / AI search (43%), display advertising (39%) and paid search (37%) top the list.
- **AI is part of the daily workflow.** 70% use AI tools daily and another 27% weekly. Analyzing data delivers the most ROI (25.7%), and 52.7% of AI users save 5 to 10 hours a week.
- **External pressures cut both ways.** Profitability was the area most often positively affected by both federal funding cuts (60.4%) and tariffs (54.4%). Contract size is split almost evenly, with 38.9% positive and 40.9% negative for funding cuts and 39.6% positive and 40.3% negative for tariffs.

## Results by question

### Q1. Which best describes your role?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| CMO | 11% |  |
| VP of Marketing | 33% |  |
| Director of Marketing | 36% |  |
| Marketing Manager | 11% |  |
| Product Marketing | 2% |  |
| Other | 6% |  |

Note: "Other" includes project management, contract management, operations, business intelligence within marketing, and additional C-suite titles.

### Q2. What is the current size of your marketing department?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 team member | 1% |  |
| 2-5 team members | 11% |  |
| 6-10 team members | 35% |  |
| 11-15 team members | 25% |  |
| 15+ team members | 28% |  |

Note: Department size based on employee headcount.

### Q3. How do you expect the size of your marketing department to change in 2026?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Increase significantly | 16% |  |
| Increase slightly | 63% |  |
| Stay the same | 15% |  |
| Decrease slightly | 5% |  |
| Decrease significantly | 0% |  |

### Q4. What was your total annual marketing budget in 2025?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Less than $10k | 1% |  |
| $11k - $50k | 1% |  |
| $51k - $100k | 17% |  |
| $101k - $500k | 38% |  |
| $501k - $1M | 29% |  |
| More than $1M | 11% |  |
| Unsure | 3% |  |

### Q5. How do you expect your total annual marketing budget to change in 2026?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Increase greatly | 23% |  |
| Increase somewhat | 57% |  |
| Stay the same | 17% |  |
| Decrease somewhat | 3% |  |
| Decrease greatly | 0% |  |

### Q6. How do you expect your use of outsourced marketing to change next year compared to this year?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Increase greatly | 15% |  |
| Increase somewhat | 60% |  |
| Stay the same | 20% |  |
| Decrease somewhat | 5% |  |
| Decrease greatly | 0% |  |

### Q7. Which source generated the most qualified leads in 2025?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Organic SEO / AI search | 36% |  |
| Paid search | 15% |  |
| Paid social | 15% |  |
| Tradeshows / Events | 11% |  |
| Account-based marketing (ABM) | 9% |  |
| Display advertising | 9% |  |
| Trade publication advertising | 3% |  |
| Other | 2% |  |

Note: "Other" includes direct interactions and LinkedIn connections.

### Q8. Where do you plan to invest the greatest percentage of your marketing dollars in 2026?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Organic SEO / AI search | 36% |  |
| Marketing technology | 11% |  |
| Paid search | 10% |  |
| Paid social | 10% |  |
| Account-based marketing (ABM) | 7% |  |
| Display advertising | 7% |  |
| Tradeshows / Events | 7% |  |
| Other | 12% |  |

Note: "Other" includes content creation, organic social, email marketing, website development and market research.

### Q9. How are you prioritizing the following marketing goals in 2026?

n = 149, ranked 1 to 5. Average score: higher means higher priority (5 max).

| Goal | Avg score | #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lead generation | 3.46 | 45 | 34 | 29 | 26 | 15 |
| Brand awareness | 3.27 | 38 | 36 | 28 | 22 | 25 |
| Building trust / credibility | 3.04 | 31 | 32 | 24 | 36 | 26 |
| Thought leadership | 2.94 | 22 | 33 | 38 | 26 | 30 |
| Improving lead quality | 2.30 | 13 | 14 | 30 | 39 | 53 |

### Q10. How did the federal-level funding cuts impact your business this year?

n = 149, each business area rated as a positive impact, no impact or negative impact

| Business area | Positive impact | No impact | Negative impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profitability | 60.4% (90) | 10.1% (15) | 29.5% (44) |
| New business opportunities | 55.7% (83) | 21.5% (32) | 22.8% (34) |
| Marketing budget | 53.7% (80) | 18.8% (28) | 27.5% (41) |
| Customer retention | 49.7% (74) | 26.2% (39) | 24.2% (36) |
| Close rate | 49.7% (74) | 20.8% (31) | 29.5% (44) |
| Marketing effectiveness | 45% (67) | 24.2% (36) | 30.9% (46) |
| Contract size | 38.9% (58) | 20.1% (30) | 40.9% (61) |

### Q11. How did tariffs impact your business this year?

n = 149, each business area rated as a positive impact, no impact or negative impact

| Business area | Positive impact | No impact | Negative impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profitability | 54.4% (81) | 8.1% (12) | 37.6% (56) |
| Marketing budget | 52.3% (78) | 18.8% (28) | 28.9% (43) |
| Marketing effectiveness | 48.3% (72) | 22.8% (34) | 28.9% (43) |
| Customer retention | 47% (70) | 27.5% (41) | 25.5% (38) |
| New business opportunities | 47.7% (71) | 18.8% (28) | 33.6% (50) |
| Close rate | 44.3% (66) | 22.8% (34) | 32.9% (49) |
| Contract size | 39.6% (59) | 20.1% (30) | 40.3% (60) |

### Q12. How often do you use AI tools?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Daily | 70% |  |
| Weekly | 27% |  |
| Monthly, less than monthly or never (combined) | 3% |  |

### Q13. Which use of AI delivers the most ROI for you?

n = 148, single response, 1 skipped

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Analyzing data | 25.7% | 38 |
| Finding information | 22.3% | 33 |
| Repurposing existing content | 21.6% | 32 |
| Generating original content | 18.9% | 28 |
| Generating images or illustrations | 8.1% | 12 |
| Creating video | 3.4% | 5 |

### Q14. How many hours per week are you personally saving by using AI?

n = 148, single response, 1 skipped

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 1 hour | 1.4% | 2 |
| 1-4 hours | 20.9% | 31 |
| 5-10 hours | 52.7% | 78 |
| 11-20 hours | 16.9% | 25 |
| More than 20 hours | 8.1% | 12 |

### Q15. What percentage of your marketing budget did you spend on outsourced marketing agencies in 2025?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 10% | 4% |  |
| 11% - 25% | 47% |  |
| 26% - 50% | 34% |  |
| More than 50% | 13% |  |
| Unsure | 2% | 3 |

### Q16. What is your primary reason for outsourcing to a marketing agency?

n = 149, single response

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| More expertise | 50% |  |
| Increased speed | 24% |  |
| Better audience reach | 14% |  |
| Additional bandwidth | 13% |  |
| Cost savings | 1% |  |

### Q17. In the last 12 months, which marketing tactics did you outsource to agency partners?

n = 149, select all that apply

| Answer | Percent | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Marketing technology | 45% |  |
| SEO / AI search | 43% |  |
| Display advertising | 39% |  |
| Paid search | 37% |  |
| Email marketing | 32% |  |
| Paid social | 31% |  |
| Account-based marketing (ABM) | 30% |  |
| Trade publication advertising | 29% |  |
| Tradeshows / Events | 28% |  |
| Organic social | 28% |  |
| Website development | 24% |  |
| Content creation | 14% |  |
| Market research | 14% |  |
| Video development | 13% |  |
| Graphic design | 10% |  |

---

Source: Altitude, CDMO Marketing Trends Report 2026 survey. https://altitudemarketing.com/cdmo-marketing-trends-2026