Why app-first transformations fail (and what actually works)
It is easy to say ‘we want to be app first’ but this is not easy to deliver, says Vladimir Pronin, principal product developer at Holland & Barrett. Apps have changed how human needs are met and the context where this happens but have not changed human needs. Apps need to be first about the customer, not the channel. Separate tech stacks mean limited product scalability making it worse and harder showing the difference of web and app. Companies can use the wrong legacy tech and operating model which can also make it harder. Therefore, to become ‘app first’ app needs to be treated as the main, not the side project.
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Trust in Digital Marketing: Why building brand trust is key to successful search, AI and social discovery
Trust is the theme throughout everything, AI visibility influences the purchasing journey thus the quantity and quality of backlinks is key. SEO is dead!? AI overviews mean more zero clicks with 60% customers now using CLMs instead of search with visits to google dropping massively. Gareth Morgan, Founder at Liberty argued that people now search in a more conversational style via chatgpt with the average word count 8 versus 3 with google. Gareth argued this means businesses need to adapt with new content that isn’t AI generated, build associations with keywords and seeking editorial guides. This will enable the AI overview to include your business and customers will be directed to your site. Therefore, trust needs to be built for AI and social discovery.
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No clicks? No Problem
Don’t fret! Search is still the number one global source of brand and product discovery, AI is number 18. But, click through rates are declining, showing a change in user behaviour says Laura Mclmley, Content Strategist at Oban International. Site referrals are down 24% with social media on the rise, especially the amount of time spent on it. Clicks are a good indication of how well your information matches what users are looking for, thus you need visibility with, for example being in an AI overview. To understand visibility you need to understand your audience. Answering key questions such as; what is your site fore? What actions do you want users to take? Are those actions measurable? By answering these questions you can find strength in no clicks.
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The new rules of CRM & Email in 2026
There are new rules for CRM for 2026 says Beth O’Malley, Founder at Astral Digital. CRM is not a tool but a function, a central business function that connects every teams tall data about the customer, thus needs to be used as a tool to speak to eachother. Email is broken and killing customer relationships. Personalisation is dead, rather the intent over this, through delciing behavioural and negative intent. Therefore, following these new rules, brands can win at CRM and email in 2026.
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People still buy from people – GEO just filters the room
AI, SEO and GEO are changing marketing but human connection still matters the most says Alex Vinall, Founder at Air Social. AI is useful for efficiency and content creation but generic AI generated content lacks emotion and originality. Brands stand out through authenticity, lived experience and emotional connection. Traditional SEO still matters but GEO also requires content to feel credible and human. Human led content like personal videos, employees voices and relatable messaging performs better than overly polished corporate content. Successful campaigns connect emotionally with audiences by understanding their real experiences and concerns. Marketers should use AI as tool to support creativity, not replace human insight and personality. Brands win when they feel the most human, trustworthy and relatable.
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Building and protecting brand reputation. Corporate social responsibility and reputation
Ethical and sustainable business practices improve both reputation and long term profits says Dasha Melyushkina, Chief Marketing Officer at Naturismo. Ethical branding matters to consumers especially Gen Z caring about brand values. Showing the increasing importance to do this in modern marketing. Ethical businesses need to be transparent and governance, care about employee wellbeing, build customer trust, care about their impact on the community and environmental sustainability. Brands that have done this well such as Patagonia and Nike show that ethical positioning can support growth. Ethical reputation is a valuable business asset that needs to be consistently built, communicated and protected.
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The next chapter of AI
AI in advertising has moved from experimentation to expectation. Meta and google have built powerful ‘black box’ ad systems focused on outcomes over transparency. Wider industry has copied this model creating fragmented ‘walled gardens’ and less data interoperability. This rise has pushed companies to adopt AI quickly, often without proper data foundation. This has led to poor AI output with human insight called ‘AI slop’. Brands should prioritise transparent, interoperable data systems before layering AI says Katie Bradshaw, Sales Strategy Lead EMEA at Innovid. The end goal is fuelling marketers and creatives to focus on strategy, creativity and better decision making.
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DTC is Dead – Start over, do it right
D2C is fragmented across many channels says Sello Aglamaz. This causes businesses to be siloed cueing conflicting decisions across teams. The old metrics are failing. Focus should shift to customers and unit economics, not channels. Context AI matters as it distinguishes internal issues from market trends. AI can help connect data and explain performance faster. The key change brands should start is to plan around customers, not channels. The bottom line is D2C is not dead, just more complex and misaligned internally.
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