Today's Digital Marketing Pulse
Consumer journeys go non‑linear, MiQ study finds
MiQ’s ‘From Funnel to Flexibility’ study, analyzing data from 53 million households and 700 trillion signals, shows 87 % of shoppers change digital activities at least hourly and 42 % describe their purchase path as random. The research, based on surveys of over 4,000 consumers and 600 marketers in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, challenges the traditional linear marketing funnel.
Also developing:
By the numbers: DOJO AI raises $6M Seed round
Hard Truths For Retail Media At The IAB Connected Commerce Summit
At the IAB’s 2026 Connected Commerce Summit, industry leaders warned that retail media is at a crossroads, noting the market cannot sustain hundreds of undifferentiated commerce media networks. The new IAB report stresses that future growth will come from tapping national brand advertising budgets rather than reallocating shopper spend. Retailers are urged to move beyond experimental pilots, focus on reliable revenue streams, and avoid the false promise of becoming full‑fledged media or technology firms. Consolidation and clear differentiation are positioned as the primary paths to long‑term viability.
As RFPs Shrink, Multicultural Publishers Fight For Dollars With First-Party Data
Multicultural publishers are seeing RFP volumes shrink and referral traffic dry up, pressuring them to prove scale for advertisers. To counteract the reach gap, firms like Q Digital and AURN are adopting AdGrid’s Audience Accelerator, a first‑party data platform that...
LinkedIn Video Secured $100k Brand Deal—Post More
I video on LinkedIn landed me a $100k brand deal. I should really be posting more there.
Wonderskin CEO Michael Malinsky on Turning a Viral Product Into a Thriving Beauty Brand
Wonderskin, founded by Michael Malinsky in 2020, turned a TikTok‑viral metallic blue lip‑stain into a multi‑category beauty brand. The $22 Wonder Blading Lip Stain Peel‑Off Mask has sold over 6 million units, fueling a 300% revenue surge that hit roughly $125 million...
Agencies Compete for SEO Talent as Client Demand for Zero-Click Expertise Surges
Ad agencies are racing to fill senior SEO positions as brands clamor for zero‑click and AI‑driven search expertise. Eight firms, from indie shops to large holding companies, posted roles with salaries ranging from $100,000 to $260,000. The hiring focus extends...
How Portland Leather Goods Did $1M in Sales in 20 Days on TikTok Shop Thanks to an Affiliate Blitz
Portland Leather Goods catapulted its TikTok Shop sales from roughly $1,200 a day to a $100,000 peak after launching a seven‑day affiliate blitz in March. By recruiting about 500 creators who posted 3,800 videos and amassed 13 million views, the brand...
Ogilvy APAC and Quad China Launch Tuborg’s New Global Campaign “You Don’t Have To”
Ogilvy APAC and Quad China have launched Tuborg's new global campaign “You Don’t Have To,” aimed at young people overwhelmed by social‑media pressure and performance anxiety. The rollout features two global films directed by Cannes Lions Grand Prix‑winning director Terence Neale,...
The AI Marketing Tools You’re Using Were Trained on Your Competitor’s Customer, Not Yours
Most AI‑powered marketing platforms used by APAC startups are built on datasets that reflect Western, English‑speaking consumers. As a result, the algorithms prioritize urban, smartphone‑native audiences that competitors already chase, driving higher customer‑acquisition costs for founders. The article argues that...
Pinterest’s New Ad Asks: When Did Watching Life Online Become Enough?
Pinterest unveiled a 60‑second in‑house film titled “How did they do it?” that stitches together employee home movies to argue the best thing found online is a reason to go offline. The ad, part of a broader brand campaign against...
Amazon Ads India Launches Generative AI Tools to Speed Ad Creation and Cut Costs
Amazon Ads India has rolled out generative AI capabilities that let brands produce and test multiple ad variants without large creative teams or external agencies. The move promises faster campaign cycles and lower spend, aligning with the platform’s full‑funnel strategy...
TROAS + Lowest Cost Drives Scalable Brand Growth
tROAS + Lowest cost has been crushing for us across brands. They target different audience segments in the auction and the target ROAS allows us to scale into upside with inflated budgets.
GrowthLoop Unveils Composable AI Platform for Real‑Time Causal Marketing
GrowthLoop announced the launch of its Composable AI Decisioning platform, a data‑cloud native system that gives marketers causal insight and real‑time optimization. The New York‑based firm says the tool replaces correlation‑based AI with outcome‑driven decisioning, promising higher revenue and lifetime‑value...
Chang Robotics Names Brian Keith CMO to Drive Growth and Operations
Chang Robotics announced the appointment of Brian Keith as chief marketing officer, tasking him with steering both marketing strategy and operational execution. The move comes as the Jacksonville‑based firm accelerates its acquisition pipeline and expands AI‑driven automation solutions for manufacturers.
Semrush Warns Attribution Gap Erodes SEO Reporting Accuracy
Semrush’s chief marketing officer, Andrew Warden, says the growing attribution gap is breaking SEO reporting. With more than 50% of Google searches ending without a click and AI Overviews appearing in roughly one in five queries, traditional click‑based metrics no...
#ThisWeek on MarkLives MEDIA: WhatsApp Open Rates Hard to Ignore • #NextWeek: OOH & SA Consumers
WhatsApp is emerging as a powerhouse marketing channel, delivering roughly 98% open rates and strong conversion metrics that eclipse traditional email campaigns. Experts caution that the platform’s effectiveness hinges on disciplined execution, including strict opt‑in practices and tailored messaging. Marketers...
How Often Should One Post to Attract More Followers?
Instagram marketers often wonder how many times to post to attract new followers. The article stresses that content quality should trump sheer volume, as over‑posting low‑quality material can fatigue audiences. Consistency and timing are equally crucial; using Instagram Insights to...
Amazon Sellers Boycott Ads
Amazon announced that, beginning April 15, 2026, advertising fees will be automatically deducted from sellers' retail proceeds, prompting a 24‑hour boycott by the Million Dollar Sellers community, which represents over 700 vendors and $14 billion in revenue. After strong pushback, Amazon...
The FTC Ordered WPP, Publicis, and Dentsu to Stop Coordinating on Brand Safety Standards It Says Led to a Boycott...
The Federal Trade Commission, joined by several states, issued a consent order prohibiting WPP, Publicis and Dentsu from coordinating brand‑safety standards that diverted advertising spend from conservative media. The action follows a similar order on Omnicom tied to its $13.5 billion...
Meta's New Link‑click Focus Inflates Traffic, Drops CVR
Traffic up and CVR down lately? Here are 2 of the causes: 1. Meta made ads more link-clicky. Swiping up to view comments on reels (see post below) or tapping to expand feed ads can now drive link clicks to site....
OpenAI Is Moving Toward Click-Based and Conversion-Focused ChatGPT Ad Pricing as Its Early Ad Pilot Struggles to Gain Traction
OpenAI announced it will switch its ChatGPT ad pilot to cost‑per‑click (CPC) pricing within days and begin testing conversion‑focused campaigns. The early experiment has lagged, with advertisers hesitant to exceed modest test budgets due to limited measurement tools and low...
‘The Gatekeepers Have Changed’: Glu Says AI Now Decides Which Brands Get Seen
Glu.ai, a Shopify‑native platform, has introduced its Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) service in Australia to help brands appear in AI‑generated answer engines such as ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Perplexity. The offering targets mid‑market merchants, promising that clear, structured...
Meta Simplifies Ad Performance Elements
Meta introduced AI‑enhanced tools to simplify its Pixel and a one‑click setup for the Conversions API. The new Pixel feature automatically adds product names, availability and business details to event data, reducing manual coding. The Conversions API can now be...
Spotify Names DEELA Its April EQUAL Africa Artist, Spotlighting African Women in Rap
Spotify has selected Lagos‑born, UK‑based rapper DEELA as its April EQUAL Africa artist, giving her a high‑visibility platform under the company’s gender‑focused initiative. The move highlights the streaming giant’s strategy to amplify African women’s voices in a market traditionally dominated...
Later Names Mohsin Hussain as CTO to Accelerate AI‑Driven Influencer Platform
Later announced the appointment of Mohsin Hussain, former LiveRamp CTO, as its new chief technology officer. Hussain will steer the development of the company’s EdgeAI predictive engine, a move aimed at capitalizing on Later’s $2.7 billion in verified influencer‑driven purchases and...
Pandora Appoints Jennie Farmer as CMO to Drive Cultural Relevance and Brand Modernization
Pandora has promoted Jennie Farmer to chief marketing officer, tasking her with modernising the heritage brand and making it culturally relevant. Farmer will shift spend from traditional TV to creators, influencers and in‑store experiences to win younger consumers.
Oxford Road Shares The Secrets To True Crime Podcast Ad Effectiveness
Oxford Road released its ORBIT ranking of the top‑performing true‑crime podcasts, drawing on more than $1.6 billion in campaign data from over 500 advertisers. The analysis shows true‑crime is the second‑largest spend genre, ranking in the top 20 % for ad efficiency, yet...
Bluefish Secures $43M Series B to Scale Agentic Marketing for Fortune 500
Bluefish announced a $43 million Series B round co‑led by Threshold Ventures and NEA, lifting its total capital to $68 million. The funding will accelerate rollout of its Agentic Marketing Platform (AMP) to roughly 10% of Fortune 500 companies, positioning the startup at the...
MeasureBoard Debuts AI‑Powered SEO, Automation and Analytics Suite
MeasureBoard announced the launch of an AI‑driven platform that merges SEO, marketing automation and analytics into a single solution. The new suite aims to help marketers streamline campaigns and improve performance as AI adoption accelerates across the industry.
Platform Culture Dictates Content Performance Across Networks
Each platform has its own culture, its own audience behaviors, and its own unspoken rules. You can publish the same piece of content across platforms... it doesn't mean it will always perform the same.
Trilliad Appoints Rob Gold as President, EMEA to Drive European B2B Expansion
Trilliad announced the appointment of Rob Gold as President, EMEA, tasking him with scaling the company's B2B growth services across Europe. The move follows a series of senior hires aimed at unifying sales, marketing and customer success for enterprise clients.
Clips Have Become the Primary Product Driving Reach
Clips are no longer the byproduct of the main product — they’re the main product. No matter the size of the show, they drive the ultimate reach 👇 More in my latest newsletter, "The Clip Economy": bit.ly/ClipEconomy
YouTube Tests Showing Creator Posts in Your Shorts Feed
YouTube is piloting a new format that places creator Posts—image carousels with up to ten pictures, text overlays, and royalty‑free music—directly inside the Shorts feed on its mobile app. The test, rolling out globally to a limited user group, aims...
March 2026 Core Update Far Less Volatile Than December
I think they are smoking something over at SEL 🤣 -> March 2026 Google core update more volatile than December — here’s what changed The March 2026 core update wasn't even close to the power of the December 2025 core update....
![How To Become The AI Search Authority In Your Company [Webinar] via @Sejournal, @Lorenbaker](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://cdn.searchenginejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/1-812.png)
How To Become The AI Search Authority In Your Company [Webinar] via @Sejournal, @Lorenbaker
Search Engine Journal is hosting a webinar that teaches SEO leaders how to become the authority on AI‑driven search within their organizations. The session will show how to steer cross‑functional teams—PR, product, and content—to influence the data AI models trust,...
Instant AI Answers Turn Traffic Into Conversions
If your website isn’t powered by AI yet, you’re leaving opportunities on the table. Visitors come with questions. If no one answers instantly, they leave. AI chatbots turn: traffic → conversations → conversions
FTC Pushes Ad Agencies Into Dropping Brand Safety Rules
The Federal Trade Commission, joined by eight states, has filed a proposed settlement that would bar major ad agencies—WPP, Publicis and Dentsu—from coordinating brand‑safety rules that exclude platforms based on political viewpoints. The order stems from an antitrust complaint alleging...
Hightouch Reaches $100M ARR Fueled by Marketing Tools Powered by AI
Hightouch, a seven‑year‑old startup, announced it has reached $100 million in annualized recurring revenue after launching an AI‑powered marketing content service in late 2024. The platform integrates directly with brand assets in tools like Figma and CMSs to generate on‑brand images and...
Absurd? AI-Made Fruit Telenovelas and What They’re Really Telling the Industry
AI‑generated fruit telenovelas—short, absurd micro‑series built entirely with diffusion video, lip‑sync and voice‑synthesis models—have amassed millions of views on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Their ultra‑low‑cost, single‑creator workflow compresses a traditional TV pipeline from eleven steps to three, proving fully AI‑assisted...
Ad Companies Settle With F.T.C. Over Claims of Harm to Conservative Sites
Three of the world’s largest ad holding firms—WPP, Dentsu and Publicis—reached settlements with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations they coordinated policies that limited ads on conservative‑leaning sites. The FTC complaint said the collusion reduced revenue for publishers deemed to...
How Creators Are Transforming Marketing Strategy: From Campaigns to Infrastructure with Monica Khan
Monica Khan argues that creators have moved from a campaign‑centric channel to a core piece of marketing infrastructure. Brands that embed creators in an always‑on, cross‑functional model can harvest real‑time audience insights and build lasting trust. The conversation also highlights...
Scale Budgets Gradually for Stable ROAS Gains
Almost every week, I see accounts increasing budget too fast. From $70/day to $250/day in a few days. Then performance drops. There’s always that question — “Why did scaling break it?” Because the system didn’t have stable learning. We scaled in controlled phases. ROAS recovered to...
AI Theater to Trojan Horse: Surviving the AI Adoption Pressure Cooker
Martech teams face mounting pressure to deliver AI strategies as AI spending is projected to explode from $1.4 billion in 2023 to $1.48 trillion by 2025. Gartner warns that at least 30% of generative‑AI pilots will be abandoned after proof‑of‑concept, highlighting a...
3 Practical Ways to Identify Keywords That Help Customers Find You
The article outlines three practical steps for identifying keywords that drive customer discovery: brainstorming industry‑specific and local terms, using keyword research tools, and studying competitor websites. It emphasizes that precise keyword selection underpins successful SEO, PPC, and social media campaigns....
From Zero to 10K Followers in 3 Months
I grew the 𝕏 account of @vitaliidodonov from 0 to 10K followers in just 3 months. Lots of people have asked me how I did it. So I just wrote up an entire PDF explaining my strategy. If you want the full case...
Explore 2024 Digital Design Trends in Upcoming Webinar
Campaign design is constantly evolving. Join Zeta Global’s design experts for this Apr. 29 webinar as they discuss current #digitalmarketing design trends, share their favorite campaigns, and highlight opportunities for marketers to be more impactful >> https://t.co/ys1p7m2vNo https://t.co/wqzpl9u0Gv
Meta Last-Click CVR Drops 50%, Hurting Sales
Meta last click CVR is now down 50% from Sunday for one brand that's the most impacted by this in my portfolio. Whatever is going on it's multiple things and it's not only impacting reporting, it's impacting hard sales.
Track Gift‑With‑Purchase Attach Rates Like Ad CTR
Running a Gift with Purchase promo without tracking attach rate is like running ads without tracking CTR. So we added analytics to @promopartypro today. Now you can see attach rate by campaign, product, and variant, and tell which gift is...
Sock‑puppet Trend Simulators Are Mostly Empty Hype
Is it creepy that there are companies like Chaotic Good Projects out there promising to "simulate trends" with sock puppet accounts. Yes, sure. But, in my experience, they're almost always completely full of shit. https://t.co/GD97cCghhP https://t.co/33zVwVyoVG
Get Ready for AI Shopping and SEO Evolution
How to Prepare for AI Shopping & the Future of E-commerce SEO with Tim Resnik Post: https://t.co/yXnT36Bq2w https://t.co/UjNxYRqOrx
Prepare Your Store for AI-Driven Shopping and SEO
New: How to Prepare for AI Shopping & the Future of E-commerce SEO Google, OpenAI, Amazon, and seemingly every platform are introducing new protocols + data feed attributes for folks who sell things online But what should folks in e-commerce do now?...