Today's Marketing Pulse
McKinsey predicts agentic AI will power two‑thirds of marketing activities
McKinsey’s new report forecasts that agentic AI could drive up to two‑thirds of marketing activities, shifting AI from a productivity add‑on to a core campaign engine. Early adopters are already using generative tools, while the next wave will involve autonomous agents that coordinate decisions across workflows. The firm outlines a five‑step roadmap for implementation.
Millennials and Gen Z Are Spending Smarter, Not Less, on Travel in 2026
Millennials and Gen Z are maintaining or expanding travel budgets in 2026, with 88 % planning to keep or increase spending despite economic headwinds. The Klook Travel Pulse 2026 report shows APAC leading growth, as travelers there are 50 % more likely than their European or U.S. peers to boost travel outlays. Multi‑destination itineraries are becoming the norm, and AI and social media now drive the discovery and planning process. Singapore exemplifies the trend, with travelers expecting $2,500 average spend on week‑long leisure trips and favoring immersive experiences over material purchases.
Perth Bears Adds Atlas Building in Landmark WA Jersey Partnership
Perth Bears have secured Atlas Building as their bottom back‑of‑jersey sponsor in a landmark three‑year partnership. The construction firm joins a growing list of foundation partners, including Cash Converters, IBM and New Balance, as the club prepares for its 2027...
Cheil India Creates “Many Me’s in Me” Campaign for Samsung Galaxy Book5
Cheil India unveiled a brand film for Samsung’s Galaxy Book5 titled “Many Me’s in Me,” portraying a Gen Z protagonist navigating multiple creative identities. The ad positions the laptop’s AI capabilities—AI Select, Photo Remaster, and Copilot—as seamless enablers rather than technical...
The One Centre Powers Bold New World360 Rewards Brand for Flight Centre Travel Group
Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) unveiled World360 Rewards, a global travel‑loyalty program created with branding agency The One Centre, at a blue‑carpet launch in Sydney on 19 February. The program promises faster point accumulation and redemption across more than 500...
Data: Champions League on Prime Video Attracting New Advertisers
Amazon Ads reports a surge in demand for UEFA Champions League advertising on Prime Video, attracting brands across automotive, financial services, lifestyle and travel. Brand‑lift studies show average lifts of 20% in favourability, 14% in familiarity and 21% in purchase...
Swaraj Tractors and MS Dhoni Extend Partnership Into Next Growth Phase
Swaraj Tractors, part of the Mahindra Group, has renewed its endorsement deal with former Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni, extending the partnership into a new growth phase. The agreement will see Dhoni front integrated campaigns, including the freshly launched "Bharosa" advertising...
New Study Identifies Three Behaviours Behind Health and Wellness Spend
Australia’s Growth Distillery released the “Signals of Intent: Health & Wellness” report, analyzing one million purchases and a survey of 3,000 consumers. The study identifies “high‑agency” shoppers—who believe daily choices affect health—as the most valuable segment, spending 50% more and...
Episode 135 - AI SEO with Gauge's Caelean Barnes
Episode 135 features Gauge’s Caelean Barnes discussing how artificial intelligence is reshaping SEO. Barnes explains Gauge’s AI‑driven keyword research, content optimization, and SERP forecasting tools. He shares case studies showing traffic lifts of 30‑50% after implementing AI recommendations. The episode...
X Plans to Combat AI-Generated Content While Promoting Grok
X announced new anti‑AI‑bot measures, including user‑added tags for AI‑generated posts and upgraded detection tools, while simultaneously promoting its Grok chatbot across the platform. Head of product Nikita Bier emphasized the need to protect the “human pulse” of X from synthetic...
NAACP Image Award Nom ‘HipHopGamer’ Gerard Williams on Launch of Gaming Content Category: ‘They Need to Be a Part of...
The NAACP Image Awards introduced an Outstanding Digital Content Creator – Gaming/Tech category for the first time, nominating five creators including Gerard Williams, known as HipHopGamer. Williams highlighted the NAACP’s intent to engage Black audiences in gaming, tech, and AI conversations....
Google Discover Update: Early Data Shows Fewer Domains In US via @Sejournal, @MattGSouthern
NewzDash’s early analysis of Google’s February 2026 Discover core update shows a shift toward locally relevant, in‑depth content and a drop in click‑bait style items. In California, local articles in the top 100 rose from 10 to 16, while Yahoo’s presence fell...
SEO Agency's AI Hype Hides Paid Self‑promotion Tactics
Another SEO agency that claims to be a great partner to lead clients into the AI search era This one not only uses self-promoting listicles, but clearly pays to be listed on everyone else's "best of" listicles too I'd be a bit...
Inside Blizzard Entertainment’s Lofty Goal to Wow the Gaming World Again
Blizzard Entertainment marked its 35th anniversary with a series of Showcase announcements, rebranding Overwatch 2 back to Overwatch and unveiling a year‑long narrative arc. World of Warcraft received a long‑awaited in‑game housing system, while Diablo II got its first update in 25...
Master These 5 Essentials to Boost Clothing Sales
If you’re going to sell clothing, you need to understand these 5 things. This is why your content flops and your sales stay stuck.
Simplify GTM: One Goal, One Audience, One Offer
If your GTM feels stuck, run this experiment. It will take you 30 days: 1. Pick ONE growth goal. Pipeline, activation, or expansion. Not all three. 2. Pick ONE audience. Not "SMB + mid-market + enterprise." One. 3. Pick ONE...
A Big Week For A Tex-Mex Fast Casual Giant
Chipotle topped spot‑cable advertising for the week of Feb 16‑22, 2026, ranking only behind NCAA basketball promos on iHeartMedia’s Media Monitors. The fast‑casual chain out‑performed traditional advertisers such as Liberty Mutual, Progressive, and Chase, which also posted strong activity. Spot‑television rankings...
AI Hype Overstates Marketing Team Replacement Potential
I am bullish on AI but let's call a spade a spade: these silicon valley pricks promoting "we replaced 80% of our marketing team with AI agents" are full of dog shit. Sure, this is a buzzy "cool" thing to...
The Anatomy of Perfect Content: How Marketers Can Reach Consumers in the AI Era
The Expedia Group Advertising "Science of Wanderlust" study surveyed over 7,000 consumers and used eye‑tracking to pinpoint the creative elements that cut through today’s AI‑saturated content stream. It found video drives purchase intent three times more than static images, while...
Health Sites Suffer Core Update; Multiple SEO Factors at Play
Quick update: Some of the biggest health and medical sites on the web got hammered by the December 2025 core update and some have dropped even more with the recent volatility. That said, most that dropped have many moving parts...
AmaWaterways Rolls Out 2027 Solo and Group Booking Incentives
AmaWaterways has launched limited‑time 2027 booking incentives aimed at solo travelers and groups, with a 10% reduced single supplement on over 500 sailings and a doubled group discount of $500 per person. The promotions are available for reservations made through...
In‑house Shifts Often Raise Costs, Lower Revenue—Keep Agency Insights
One of our brands we've been working with long-term moved to an internal person last month but they kept us on view access of the account(s). Since they took over? CPA is up 48% ncCPA is up 109% Spend is up 32% Revenue is down...
MANDARIN ORIENTAL APPOINTS SIMONE BILES AS THE BRANDS FIRST GLOBAL WELLNESS AMBASSADOR
Mandarin Oriental announced Simone Biles as its first global wellness ambassador, marking a strategic move to embed holistic wellbeing into its luxury hospitality portfolio. Biles will work with the brand’s Wellness Board to shape programs that blend physical, mental and recovery...
Waterloo Sparkling Water Names Dentsu Creative Social AOR as Brand Expands
Waterloo Sparkling Water has appointed Dentsu Creative as its social agency of record, coinciding with the rollout of new flavors Banana Berry Bliss, Melon Medley and a year‑round Lemon Italian Ice. The partnership is timed to the opening of the...
IHOP Goes Analog to Celebrate National Pancake Day
IHOP announced its first National Pancake Day on March 3, offering a free short stack of buttermilk pancakes at participating locations from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The event includes an in‑person appearance by social‑media influencer Mr. Fantasy at the Hollywood restaurant. IHOP...
Start with Bottom‑of‑Funnel, Flip Funnel, 44× SQL Growth
A cybersecurity SaaS came to us with a problem 👇 - Pipeline flat - About 1 demo per month - Marketing basically paused 12 months later: - 44x SQL volume - 1200% more opportunities - Deals closing 3x faster than...
Dentsu Entertainment, Iconic Arts Partner to Create Brand-Oriented IP
Dentsu Entertainment announced a strategic partnership with Iconic Arts to develop original, brand‑centric intellectual property, emphasizing anime and serialized formats. The collaboration will initially serve Dentsu’s Japan‑US synergy initiatives, helping Japanese and global brands launch cross‑market franchises. Leveraging Iconic Arts’...
KFC Is Piloting Two Value Platforms
KFC is testing two distinct value platforms in Ohio and Florida from late February through March, offering flat‑rate bundles at $8 and $10 respectively. The Ohio market provides an everyday all‑day menu with choices of tenders, wings or nuggets, while...
What UGC Content Moderation Means for Brands and Marketers
User‑generated content (UGC) is reshaping modern marketing by leveraging authentic consumer voices across platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and review sites. Brands that showcase real experiences see higher engagement, expanded reach, and improved SEO, as search engines favor fresh, user‑authored material....
Three Realities About B2B Buying Networks
Forrester’s 2025 Buyers’ Journey Survey shows B2B purchases are increasingly chaotic, with 73 % involving three or more departments and an average of 13 internal and nine external participants. Buyers now turn to peers, industry communities, and generative AI tools long...
AI Pricing Is Product Strategy: Five Questions Every Product Manager Must Answer Early
AI pricing is no longer a post‑launch add‑on; it must be baked into product strategy from day one. Traditional seat‑based SaaS models falter under AI’s variable compute costs and usage spikes, forcing firms to rethink pricing structures. The article outlines...
Customers Buy Core Needs, Not Feature Overload
"We're the all-in-one solution." Cool. But that's not why they bought you. QuickBooks has 1,000 features. But people didn't hire it for 1,000 features. They hired it because of a few core struggles: they needed to get paid, pay others,...
What Amazon’s Big-Box Move Means for Retail Media and Brands
Amazon is opening its largest ever big‑box store, a move framed as a physical challenge to Walmart and Costco but primarily a data play. The new footprint expands Amazon’s ability to observe shopper behavior, serve retail media ads, and claim...
How to Optimize Your Content for LLMs With Semrush
Semrush’s AI Search Optimizer helps marketers re‑engineer existing pages so large language models can cite them confidently. The tool scans a chosen URL, evaluates structure, clarity, E‑E‑A‑T signals and schema markup, then delivers a prioritized list of rewrite actions. Semrush’s...
Shared GTM Ownership Undermines Momentum and Accountability
Why fragmented ownership quietly kills momentum There’s a moment in many companies where growth doesn’t stall — it dissolves. Nothing is obviously broken. The team is capable. Leaders are engaged. Everyone agrees growth matters. And yet, decisions feel heavier. Execution...
Rewarded UA Unlocked
Rewarded user acquisition (RUA) is a mobile marketing strategy that grants players in‑game rewards for completing post‑install tasks such as tutorials or level milestones. By tying incentives to meaningful actions, RUA drives higher engagement, retention, and ultimately better return on...
Own the Problem: Think Like Owner, Empower People
My first podcast conversation in over 2 years. I couldn’t have done it without Lee Odden ’s insightful questions and thoughtful coverage of today’s hottest B2B Marketing topics. My biggest takeaways for marketers: - think like a business owner not...
Cortex Code CLI Expands Towards Supporting Any Data, Anywhere
Snowflake announced that its Cortex Code CLI, initially built for Snowflake‑native workflows, now supports external data‑engineering tools dbt and Apache Airflow, allowing developers to generate, optimize, and debug pipelines with AI‑driven, context‑aware assistance. The company also launched a self‑serve subscription...
Turn One Proof Asset Into Two Claim Formats
Hot take: your audience isn’t consuming your content. They’re consuming someone else’s screenshot of it. Or a creator recap. Or an AI answer stitched from whatever looked most consistent online at the time. So “we posted 5 times this week”...
Know Your Vision First, Then Let AI Amplify
🔥 Hot take: AI won't be effective if you don't know what "good" looks like. You can't simply prompt your way to wisdom—if you lack an understanding of your audience, your goals, or your craft, AI will only amplify the...
From Good to Better: The Real Focus Required to Scale Profitably
The article highlights the often‑ignored "good‑to‑better" stage where businesses are healthy but growth stalls without intentional focus. It argues that founders must shift from reactive fixes to strategic clarity, carving out dedicated thinking time. By concentrating on one of three...
AI-Generated Review Spam Overwhelms Feeds—Proceed with Caution
Interesting find and I wasn't even looking for it... Pathetic over-optimized review shows up in my feedly. Gobs of content. Too much. No author listed... Sets off my internal "this looks AI-generated content" flag. Check the page, yep, 99% probability...
Sitemaps Don't Guarantee Indexing Without Valuable Content
Sitemaps aren't a directive. You still need to prove a site's worth to Google... -> From John: "One part of sitemaps is that Google has to be keen on indexing more content from the site. If Google's not convinced that...
SaaS Evolves Into Skills-as-a-Service, Delivering Outcomes Fast
SaaS will evolve to mean Skills as a Service. Selling the outcomes and results of a product. Cheaper and faster. It'll look archaic that we used to give people software that took days to setup and hopefully get results.
New Brand Boosts Profitability, Prepares March Scale
First month on with a new brand - already improving profitability overall and looking to scale moving into March. New Offer + New account Strategy. Next week we launch first round of UGC we curated and first large batch of ad creative....
Big $400M Firm Forgets Favicon, Obvious SEO Slip
$400M software company. No favicon in the SERPs. Took me 3 seconds to find the problem. 🤣🤦♂️ https://t.co/KAHXJpjGXY
Google’s AI Detection Triggers Ongoing Traffic Drops
Wow, the Jan 21 unconfirmed update was a bloodbath, and impacted sites are still dropping to this day This is another one in the marketing space; lots of AI-assisted content, self-promotional listicles, who/what/when content, etc. I think Google is getting better at...
Influencers Drove Gymshark’s $128M Growth, Not Ads
Gymshark went from $0 to $128M in 6 years using influencer marketing. No TV ads. No billboards. Just athletes who genuinely wore the brand. Meanwhile you're running cold Facebook ads with zero social proof. That's the gap.
New Updates: Google Cooling, Indexing Bug, Bing AI Praised
It’s New 2/23: Google cooling, page indexing report bug, @mordyoberstein likes the new Bing AI links, @gregfinn tries to make sense of Google Ads budget pacing and @TheMarketingAnu covered a new Meridian tool https://t.co/Ee9widt6Wd
GSC Indexing Report Bug Omits Pre‑Dec 15 Data
Google Search Console page indexing report bug is missing data earlier than Dec 15 https://t.co/y7yTnWMPqo https://t.co/12gwQoqnWm
Weekly SEO Recap: Google Volatility, Review Disappearances, AI Updates
Catch up on last week with the SEO Video Recap covering the week long super heated Google volatility, Google reviews are disappearing again, links in AI Mode and AI Overviews are updated, Google Ads news and more https://t.co/e9yXgyFhbD