Today's Digital Marketing Pulse
Updated 2h agoSpeed-to-Culture: Brands Win by Activating Creators in Hours
Brands that can activate creators within hours outpace competitors, relying on speed rather than larger spend. The article outlines a speed‑to‑culture framework built on pre‑vetted creator rosters, master contracts, and a single decision owner, which can be established in 30 days to enable real‑time engagement.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Levitate raises $16M in growth-stage funding
News•Jan 15, 2026
New Google AI Mode Ads: Explore Guides and Articles
Google has introduced a new ad format in its AI Mode search results that showcases "Explore guides and articles" alongside existing Direct Offer ads. The format was first spotted by analyst Glenn Gabe, who shared a screenshot of a guide‑type ad appearing for a user query. Early observations suggest these ads aim to capture traffic that organic AI results currently struggle to attract. Publishers may see this as a new channel, though reliance on paid placements raises sustainability questions.
By Search Engine Roundtable
News•Jan 15, 2026
Shopping Lists Ripped up for ‘in the Moment’ Purchases
Tesco Media’s "Moving Mindsets" study of 7,000 shoppers reveals that only 24% of grocery purchases are routine, while 70% of buying decisions occur "in the moment" during the store visit. Shoppers cycle through an average of 2.5 emotional mindsets, with...
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 15, 2026
WhatsApp Loyalty Programmes: The Future of Modern Retail
WhatsApp loyalty programmes are rapidly replacing traditional point‑based schemes as retailers tap into the platform’s 90% UK adult penetration and near‑instant open rates. By embedding rewards directly in a channel customers already use, retailers eliminate the friction of separate apps...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 15, 2026
Why Retail Brands Shouldn’t Overlook Corporate Sponsorships
Retailers are rediscovering corporate sponsorships as a strategic tool that complements digital advertising. By aligning with events, causes, or media partners, sponsors create authentic human connections that foster trust and credibility. When integrated with omnichannel campaigns, sponsorships amplify brand awareness,...
By The Retail Bulletin
Social•Jan 15, 2026
No Marketing Channel Remains as Reliably Trackable as Before
Is there any marketing channel or tactic that is as reliable / easy to track as it was 5 years ago?
By Wil Reynolds
News•Jan 15, 2026
Budgets on Life Support as Trump Gives Firms the Willies
The IPA Bellwether Report shows UK marketing budgets flat‑lined in Q4 2025, with 57.4% of firms keeping spend unchanged amid heightened economic and geopolitical uncertainty, including Donald Trump’s protectionist stance and a gloomy Autumn Budget. Direct‑marketing growth stalled and most categories...
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 15, 2026
Very Group Reports ‘Resilient’ Christmas
The Very Group posted a "resilient" holiday season, with Very brand sales rising 1.9% over the six weeks to 27 December. Strong demand drove double‑digit growth in home (7.9%) and toys and beauty (6.4%). Black Friday saw a record 209,000 items...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 15, 2026
Get Your Kicks in 2026… by Getting Audio in the Mix
Audio advertising is emerging from the background to become a central pillar of the 2026 media mix. In the UK, commercial radio reaches 40 million adults weekly, while streaming and smart speakers extend reach across daily environments. Radiocentre’s analysis shows radio...
By DecisionMarketing
Podcast•Jan 15, 2026•19 min
Ecommerce: The Year Ecommerce Got Back to Normal
Mark and Ian review 2025, declaring it the first post‑COVID year of "normal" ecommerce and highlighting how agile, lean brands outperformed larger incumbents. They note AI‑driven ad creative shifted from a novelty to a necessity, and that small "skeleton" teams...
By Ecommerce: The Hammersley Brothers Ecommerce Podcast
News•Jan 14, 2026
YouTube Adds More Promote Targeting Options, Image-To-Video AI
YouTube is expanding its Promote in‑stream boosting tool with interest‑based audience targeting, letting creators aim clips at gamers, beauty fans, travelers and more. The new flow, currently desktop‑only, will soon appear on mobile. Simultaneously, YouTube is testing “Ingredients,” an AI‑driven...
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 14, 2026
Pinterest Highlights Trending Colors for 2026
Pinterest released its 2026 Palette report, highlighting five colors—Cool Blue, Jade, Plum Noir, Wasabi, and Persimmon—that it expects to dominate visual trends. The selections are based on a year‑long analysis of user searches and save activity within the platform. Pinterest...
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 14, 2026
Building an Integrated Marketing Plan Across All Online and Offline Channels: When 1 + 1 + 1 = 3 (and...
The article argues that retailers must replace siloed marketing efforts with an integrated omnichannel plan that treats digital and offline touchpoints as a single customer journey. It highlights the pitfalls of double‑counting conversions and the need for centralized reporting, consistent...
By Total Retail
News•Jan 14, 2026
YouTube Expands Monetization For Some Controversial Issues via @Sejournal, @MattGSouthern
YouTube has revised its advertiser‑friendly content guidelines to allow full ad revenue on videos that discuss or dramatize certain controversial topics, provided the material is non‑graphic. The updated policy now includes subjects such as abortion, self‑harm, suicide, domestic and sexual...
By Search Engine Journal
![How We Built a Content Optimization Tool for AI Search [Study]](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://static.semrush.com/blog/uploads/media/e2/2f/e22f51dd255b84e2a38e3e195b8150ad/e56eb1f7f1e194543547bb51a29886b7/how-we-built-a-content-optimization-tool-for-ai-search-study-sm.png)
News•Jan 14, 2026
How We Built a Content Optimization Tool for AI Search [Study]
A Semrush study examined over 300,000 URLs to pinpoint which text‑only attributes drive citations in AI‑powered search tools such as ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity. The analysis revealed five content qualities—clarity, E‑E‑A‑T signals, Q&A formatting, section structure, and structured...
By Semrush Blog
Podcast•Jan 14, 2026•31 min
#487 - AI Amazon Product Images in Minutes
In this episode Shivali Patel and AI expert Kamaljit Singh discuss how sellers can transform a few phone photos into a full Amazon image stack and A+ Content using AI-driven systems. Kamaljit outlines his "Image Framework" for crafting effective prompts—covering...
By AM/PM Podcast
News•Jan 14, 2026
Lidl GB Promotes Insider to Lead Its Customer Business
Lidl GB has elevated long‑time insider Louise Weise to chief customer officer, adding her to the board of directors. In her new role she will steer brand, marketing, loyalty, customer insight, in‑store experience and care. The promotion follows Lidl's strongest...
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 14, 2026
What Is the Google 3 Pack? And How to Rank in It
The Google 3‑pack, also known as the local or map pack, displays the three most relevant local business listings for location‑based queries. It shows the business name, rating, price range, address, hours and a clickable map, often outranking traditional organic...
By Semrush Blog
News•Jan 14, 2026
4 Ways to Increase Your Website Authority in 2026
Website authority—how trustworthy a site appears to search engines and AI models—directly influences visibility in both traditional and generative search results. Semrush’s Authority Score (0‑100) quantifies this trust, with top‑industry averages ranging from 53 in construction to 75 in finance....
By Semrush Blog
![What Google SERPs Will Reward in 2026 [Webinar] via @Sejournal, @Lorenbaker](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://cdn.searchenginejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/2-1-397.png)
News•Jan 14, 2026
What Google SERPs Will Reward in 2026 [Webinar] via @Sejournal, @Lorenbaker
The Search Engine Journal webinar, hosted by Loren Baker on January 14, 2026, will feature Tom Capper, Senior Search Scientist at STAT Search Analytics, presenting data‑driven insights into Google’s evolving SERP landscape. The session will dissect AI Overviews, the new AI Mode...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 14, 2026
Conversation with… People in Retail Awards Judge Shane Ashby-Roche
Shane Ashby‑Roche, Head of Organisational Development and Culture at The White Company, returns as a judge for the 2026 People in Retail Awards. He reflects on a decade of L&D experience, including a two‑year IBM secondment, and how his role...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 14, 2026
5 Ways To Reduce CPL, Improve Conversion Rates & Capture More Demand In 2026 via @Sejournal, @CallRail
The article outlines five actionable myths to bust for 2026 paid‑media marketers, focusing on smarter MQL scoring, richer attribution, and untapped conversational data. It recommends rebuilding lead‑qualification models around genuine intent signals, layering self‑reported sources onto digital tracking, and mining...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 14, 2026
Wellness Briefing: The Collabs and Campaigns Winning ‘New Year, New You’ Marketing, Plus News
The wellness sector’s January push centers on high‑impact "new year, new you" collaborations, notably fast‑casual restaurant tie‑ins and the quirky "Quitters’ Day" anti‑resolution campaign. Brands are leveraging these seasonal moments to capture early‑year consumer spend and differentiate in a crowded...
By Glossy
News•Jan 13, 2026
Should Your Sales Team Be on Social Media? A Strategic Evaluation of Modern Social Selling vs Automated Outreach
The piece argues that sales teams must move beyond the binary of “on or off” social media to a disciplined, value‑first approach. It contrasts high‑volume, automated outreach—characterized by generic DMs and template pitches—with meaningful social selling that listens, contributes insight,...
By Martech Zone Interviews
News•Jan 13, 2026
Tools for Fast Search-Query Analysis
Ann Smarty highlights three Chrome extensions that streamline Google Search Console query analysis. Query Scout overlays page‑level query data and offers a $29 upgrade with pre‑built intent filters. Find Real Prompts extracts longer, AI‑style queries and can feed them to ChatGPT for...
By Practical Ecommerce
News•Jan 13, 2026
How Inviting Consumers to ‘Ask Ralph’ Deepens Their Connection to the Ralph Lauren Brand
Ralph Lauren unveiled "Ask Ralph," an AI‑driven styling assistant now live on the Polo brand’s mobile app, built with Microsoft Azure AI and Copilot Studio. The agent taps real‑time inventory to deliver personalized outfit recommendations that echo the company’s timeless...
By Retail TouchPoints
News•Jan 13, 2026
Search Marketing’s Insight Gap: When Automation Replaces Understanding via @Sejournal, @Coreydmorris
Search marketing has rapidly adopted automation—from AI‑generated content to automated bidding—boosting efficiency and scale. However, leaders now face an "insights gap" where performance shifts are visible but their causes remain unclear, eroding confidence in decision‑making. The article argues the problem...
By Search Engine Journal
Blog•Jan 13, 2026
How to Post on Pinterest: Complete Step-by-Step Guide (2026)
The guide walks marketers through posting on Pinterest, detailing step‑by‑step creation of standard, video and carousel Pins on desktop and mobile. It highlights essential specs—vertical 1000 × 1500 px images, keyword‑rich titles under 60 characters, and up to 500‑character descriptions. The article cites...
By Neal Schaffer’s Blog
Blog•Jan 13, 2026
The Best Time To Post Reels On Instagram In 2026
The blog outlines when to post Instagram Reels for maximum reach, highlighting RivalIQ’s finding that the optimal window is 10 PM‑7 AM, especially on Saturdays. It compares several studies—DemandSage, SocialPilot, Later, and Influencer Marketing Hub—showing a wide range of suggested times across...
By BloggingWizard
News•Jan 13, 2026
Home Depot Launches Creator Portal
Home Depot unveiled the Home Depot Creator Portal, a centralized hub that links digital content creators with the retailer’s DIY and décor ecosystem. The platform offers creators campaign opportunities, training resources, product catalogs, and storefront capabilities to monetize their home‑improvement...
By Retail Customer Experience
News•Jan 13, 2026
How to Make Every Shopping Experience Memorable
Retailers must move beyond product focus to craft memorable, emotion‑driven shopping journeys across both physical and digital channels. Consumers now expect seamless integration of in‑store tactile experiences with online interactivity such as virtual try‑ons and live demos. Personalized gestures, loyalty...
By Retail Customer Experience
News•Jan 13, 2026
The 8 Best AI Visibility Tools to Win in AI Search (2026)
AI visibility tools now let brands monitor how they appear in AI‑generated answers from platforms like ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity. The guide evaluates eight solutions, ranging from lightweight monitors such as Otterly AI to enterprise‑grade suites like Semrush...
By Semrush Blog
Podcast•Jan 13, 2026•22 min
What Sustainable Marketing Looks Like in 2026
In this episode, host Andréa Jones outlines a sustainable 2026 marketing plan built around a personal point of view and a single piece of signature content that anchors the entire ecosystem. She emphasizes authentic storytelling, leveraging supporting content to funnel...
By The Mindful Marketing Podcast
News•Jan 13, 2026
Limited Inventory and Thoughtful Partnerships: How Brands at NRF Are Making the Most of TikTok Shop
Brands at the NRF Big Show highlighted how TikTok Shop is reshaping fashion and beauty commerce, with U.S. sales soaring over 400% and now accounting for more than 20% of social commerce. Success stories like Pacsun’s 11,000 pairs of jeans...
By Glossy
Blog•Jan 12, 2026
How To Start A Blog That Works While You Sleep (2026 Guide)
The guide walks beginners through launching a self‑hosted WordPress blog in under 30 minutes, covering domain registration, hosting, theme selection, essential plugins, and first post creation. It emphasizes low startup costs—under $50 for the first year—and the importance of choosing...
By BloggingWizard
Blog•Jan 12, 2026
The BACM Framework: How To Position Your Blog For Impact And Profit
The post introduces the BACM framework—Business Model, Audience, Content, Marketing—as a systematic way for established bloggers to turn their sites into profitable, sustainable businesses. It stresses that a crystal‑clear niche is the foundation, then walks through defining a core revenue...
By BloggingWizard
Blog•Jan 12, 2026
What Happened When We Stopped Selling (And Started Giving)
Smart Marketer replaced its typical holiday sales push with a "12 Days of Giving" campaign, delivering full‑price courses and SOPs for free each day of December. The generosity‑first approach generated 371 new email opt‑ins, 360 new accounts, and 25 first‑time...
By Smart Marketer
News•Jan 12, 2026
‘Instagram Is the Leading Social Commerce Platform in Germany’
Instagram has emerged as Germany’s top social commerce platform, with 15% of consumers purchasing directly on the app or via redirects. Overall, three in ten Germans shop through social media, while Facebook (14%) and YouTube (11%) follow. Bitkom’s research shows...
By Ecommerce News Europe
Blog•Jan 12, 2026
What Is Shopify? How It Works + Pricing Guide (2026)
Shopify is a cloud‑based e‑commerce platform that lets merchants launch and run online stores without coding, offering design, payments, inventory, and shipping tools in a single dashboard. The service supports more than 5.6 million live stores and over 875 million customers worldwide,...
By Neal Schaffer’s Blog
News•Jan 12, 2026
Hanna Andersson Hires Kacey Sharrett as Chief Digital Officer
Hanna Andersson announced the appointment of Kacey Sharrett as chief digital officer. Sharrett will steer the brand’s digital ecosystem and customer experience. She arrives with nearly two decades of leadership in e‑commerce, direct‑to‑consumer, and performance‑marketing, most recently heading GoPro’s global DTC...
By Retail Customer Experience
Blog•Jan 12, 2026
How to Pitch To Speak at MozCon New York 2026
MozCon New York 2026 has opened its speaker pitch window, with a January 30 deadline. Organizers stress a concise, value‑focused title and a bullet‑point outline that directly solves SEO marketers’ pain points. Preferred topics include AI‑driven visibility, practical AI workflow hacks,...
By Moz
News•Jan 12, 2026
Brazil’s Oldest Perfumery Is Making a Play for US Fragrance Consumers. And No, It’s Not Sol De Janeiro
Brazilian heritage brand Granado, founded in 1870, is accelerating its U.S. expansion after posting 12% revenue growth in 2025 and 95% year‑over‑year sales growth in the United States. The company opened its first New York store in January 2024 and...
By Glossy
News•Jan 11, 2026
Early AI Signals From Holiday Sales
Adobe reported a record $257.8 billion in U.S. online holiday sales in 2025, with mobile commerce exceeding 50% of transactions. AI‑driven traffic to ecommerce sites surged 693% year‑over‑year, yet it still represented a tiny fraction of total visits. Salesforce estimates AI...
By Practical Ecommerce
News•Jan 9, 2026
Pacsun Looks Beyond the Standard App with New Co-Creation Platform
Pacsun unveiled the PS Community Hub, a digital platform that blends social interaction, creator monetization, and co‑creation with traditional shopping. Launched in early January, the hub lets everyday users and influencers collaborate on fashion ideas, earn affiliate commissions, and shop...
By Retail TouchPoints
Blog•Jan 9, 2026
Why Your Social Media Growth Stalled (And The Algorithm Isn’t The Problem)
The article debunks the myth that social‑media algorithms are solely to blame for stagnant growth, pointing instead to strategic missteps. It outlines 20 common pitfalls—from creating algorithm‑centric content to inconsistent posting and weak community engagement—and offers concrete fixes such as...
By BloggingWizard
Blog•Jan 9, 2026
Baker Hughes Invites Brian Solis to Keynote Its Annual Meeting in Florence, Italy
Baker Hughes has invited digital futurist Brian Solis to deliver the keynote at its 2026 Annual Meeting in Florence, Italy. The event, now in its 27th year, will spotlight "The Next Industrial Renaissance: Unlocking Human Potential in the Age of...
By Brian Solis
News•Jan 9, 2026
From Collectible AR Cards to Blockchain Games: How to Revitalize Loyalty Programs
Loyalty programs still generate strong ROI, yet consumer satisfaction remains under 50% in the U.S. and Canada. Traditional point‑based schemes convert only about 5% of shoppers, leaving the majority disengaged. Retailers are turning to gamified experiences that blend augmented reality...
By Retail TouchPoints
Blog•Jan 9, 2026
How To Prepare Your Blog For The New Year: The Definitive Guide
The article outlines an 18‑step roadmap for readying a blog for the new year, covering technical clean‑up, content revitalization, and revenue‑generation tactics. It advises decluttering plugins and UI, fixing broken links, and updating underperforming posts to boost SEO and user...
By BloggingWizard
News•Jan 9, 2026
Creative Realities Launches Digital Drive-Thru 2.0
Creative Realities unveiled Digital Drive‑Thru 2.0, a modular digital menu‑board platform designed to streamline installation, maintenance, and scaling for quick‑service restaurants and other drive‑thru venues. The system reduces installation complexity, complies with municipal regulations, and lets operators add or adjust components...
By Retail Customer Experience
Podcast•Jan 9, 2026•1h 10m
Instagram Puts Burden of AI Slop on Creators (514)
Joe and Robert discuss a stabilizing U.S. labor market and the impact of permanent corporate tax cuts on 2026 profits, then turn to Instagram's stance on AI-generated content, arguing the platform is shifting the burden of authenticity onto creators. They...
By This Old Marketing
News•Jan 9, 2026
United Supermarkets Brings Back Interactive Loyalty
United Supermarkets, together with TCC Global, has relaunched its interactive "28-Day Challenge" loyalty campaign across the United, Albertsons Market, Market Street and Amigos banners. The program delivers weekly shopping challenges, digital coupons and personalized rewards through a mobile interface. TCC...
By Retail Technology (Magazine)