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.
Google Adds Five AI Link Overlays to Search without New Click Metrics, Sparking SEO Concerns
Google rolled out five new AI-generated link overlays in Search this week but did not provide any additional click‑through data for publishers. The move intensifies a year‑long dispute as studies show click rates plunge when AI Overviews appear, while Google argues the remaining clicks are higher‑value.
OpenAI Rolls Out Self‑serve Ads Manager for ChatGPT, Adds CPC Bidding
OpenAI has launched a beta self‑serve Ads Manager for ChatGPT in the United States, letting advertisers buy placements directly and introducing cost‑per‑click pricing alongside its existing CPM model. The rollout brings major agency holding groups and tech partners into the...
Keep FAQs: They Still Boost SEO Without Rich Results
You may have heard by now that Google is dropping support for all FAQ rich results So, should you remove all FAQs from your content? No. No. And probably not. Google previously stopped showing FAQs for the vast majority of publishers in August...
TikTok Director Says 77% of Interested Shoppers Search for Product Info After Seeing Affiliate Content, with Comments Driving Purchases
TikTok’s North America director of beauty, wellness, and personal care, Donte Murry, revealed that 77% of shoppers who encounter affiliate content on the platform subsequently search for more product information. He emphasized that combining sponsored and affiliate videos meets shoppers...
Google Ends Support for FAQ Rich Results in Search, Removing Reporting From Search Console in June and August
Google announced that FAQ rich results will cease to appear in search results after May 7, 2024. Reporting for FAQ structured data will be removed from Search Console in June, and the related API endpoint will be disabled in August. Publishers...
S07.EP7 - Founder Branding with Amelia Sordell
In this episode, hosts Jacob Cass and Matt Davies interview Amelia Sordell, founder of the personal‑branding agency Clout, about the rise of founder‑led branding. Amelia explains how sharing a founder’s story builds trust in an era where 92% of consumers...
Heineken’s ‘The Clinker’ Smartband Creates Festival Friends
Heineken introduced "The Clinker" smartband at Coachella, a wearable that reads users' Spotify data and instantly creates a shared playlist when two bands touch. The device aims to turn strangers into instant music‑based connections, bypassing the awkwardness of approaching new...
Starz Posts $211M OTT Revenue, Boosts Margin Outlook Amid Pricing Push
Starz announced OTT revenue of $211 million for Q1 2026, a sequential rise from $210 million, as pricing discipline and a $11.99 price increase lifted ARPU. The company also cut content spend, exited its Pay‑Two deal and reaffirmed guidance for continued margin expansion.
DoubleVerify Flags 140% Jump in AI‑driven CTV Fraud, Warning Advertisers of Rising Risk
DoubleVerify’s 2026 Global Insights report reveals AI‑powered fraud schemes on connected TV grew 140% in Q1 2026 versus Q1 2025. The surge spans bot and data‑center attacks, hits both direct and programmatic buys, and underscores the need for verification tools...
Lenovo Appoints Sumir Bhatia as First Chief Commercial Officer for Asia Pacific
Lenovo has named Sumir Bhatia its first Chief Commercial Officer for Asia Pacific, reporting to President Amar Babu. The move follows a leadership transition and signals a push to integrate Lenovo’s full‑stack AI portfolio into a unified commercial strategy.
Kodak Puts CMO Denise Goldbard Front‑Center in Q1 Earnings, Touts Brand Revitalization
Eastman Kodak highlighted Chief Marketing Officer Denise Goldbard during its Q1 2026 earnings call, tying a 7% revenue increase to a refreshed brand narrative and new product rollouts. The company posted $265 million in revenue and a 24% jump in gross...
Adobe Finalizes Semrush Acquisition, Bolstering AI‑Driven SEO Suite
Adobe announced the completion of its acquisition of Semrush, integrating the SEO platform into its Customer Experience Orchestration suite. The move comes as AI‑generated traffic to U.S. retail sites jumped 269% year‑over‑year, underscoring the urgency for marketers to secure visibility...
It Seems Even Sony Thinks a New GTA 6 Trailer Is Right Above the Corner as Marketing Campaign Begins to...
Sony has begun emailing PlayStation 4 owners who wishlisted GTA 6, urging them to upgrade to a PlayStation 5 as the game will be next‑gen only. The outreach coincides with a confirmed marketing partnership between Sony and Rockstar, fueling speculation that a new...
Boost Revenue by Optimizing Offer, Not Ad Spend
If I had to take a Shopify store from $500K to $2M without increasing your % spent on ads, here's exactly what I'd do: 1. STOP OBSESSING OVER TRAFFIC. Brands pump money into ads and chase new channels. But if your site...
Close the Loop: Real Traffic Validates AI Experiments
You need to close the loop. Most of you aren't. Everyone's using AI to spin up 50 landing pages, 150 ad variations, entire feature sets in a weekend. It feels like you're testing everything. But you're not. You're just guessing at scale. If you...
Sony CEO Unveils AI‑Driven Game Development Strategy, Citing $700M Revenue Boost
Sony Interactive Entertainment president Hideaki Nishino announced an AI‑centric roadmap that promises to slash animation cycles, expand content volume and generate more than $700 million in incremental revenue, signaling a shift that will ripple through game marketing and creative pipelines.
Refresh Your E‑com Welcome Series with 5 Essential Tips
Most ecom welcome series were built a while ago and therefore are outdated. It's time to update yours. Here are 5 things you need to know: → Make email one carry most of the load → Lead with the offer the subscriber signed...
PubMatic Expands Agentic AI to Indirect Programmatic Deals, Sparking 80% YoY Revenue Surge
PubMatic announced that its AgenticAI platform will now handle end‑to‑end programmatic deals beyond direct publisher contracts. The move helped the company post an 80% year‑over‑year rise in its AI‑driven revenue segment, lifting total Q1 revenue to $62.6 million. Executives say the...
KPMG India Teams Up with CleverTap to Boost AI‑Driven Customer Engagement Consulting
KPMG India has entered a strategic alliance with AI‑first martech platform CleverTap, merging the firm’s transformation consulting with CleverTap’s real‑time analytics and AI‑driven engagement suite. The partnership targets reduced churn, higher lifetime value and compliance‑ready customer ecosystems for corporate clients...
Arhaus Promotes Jennifer Porter to Chief Marketing & eCommerce Officer
Arhaus named Jennifer Porter as its new Chief Marketing and eCommerce Officer during its May 7 earnings call. The move comes as the home‑furnishings chain reports record first‑quarter net revenue of $314 million and outlines a multi‑year digital transformation plan.
Eaton DC Teams with Ari Lennox for Limited‑Time “Weekend Vacancy” Hotel Experience
Eaton DC announced a partnership with Grammy‑nominated artist Ari Lennox to roll out “Weekend Vacancy,” a four‑day, limited‑time hotel stay that runs May 29–June 1, 2026. The package bundles an overnight boutique stay, a limited‑edition vinyl, exclusive cocktails and access...
Brands' Secret AI Use Tops Social Media Sins
Brands hiding their use of AI in social posts is their biggest social media sin, according to a Sprout Social survey. 28% Unlabeled AI-Generated Content 23% Engagement Bait 14% Political Commentary 13% Automated DMs 12% Posting Too Much
Instagram Pivots to Champion Long‑form Creators for Next Years
Instagram’s VP of Product says she’s thinking about how the platform can best support long-form creators over the next 1-2 years — a complete reversal of IG's previous focus on short-form, shareable content https://liahaberman.substack.com/p/icymi-instagrams-return-to-long-form
Jack Wolfskin Unveils 3,493‑km Wolf Trail, Europe’s Newest Thru‑Hiking Route
Jack Wolfskin announced the launch of the Wolf Trail, a 3,493‑km long-distance path that traverses multiple European countries. The route is designed for hikers of all experience levels and is expected to take four to six months to complete, positioning...
AI Will Separate Strategic Agencies From Basic Set‑ups
AI won’t kill Meta ad agencies. It will expose the ones that only sell basic setup work. Businesses still need humans for strategy, positioning, creative thinking, and profitable scaling. But agencies ignoring AI will absolutely fall behind, because speed and execution...
Walmart Launches $11 Exclusive Lindt Lindor Truffle Pack to Boost In‑Store Traffic
Walmart has rolled out an 8.7‑ounce, $10.97 exclusive Lindt Lindor Dessert Assorted Chocolate Candy Truffles pack, featuring Tiramisu, Cheesecake and Double Chocolate flavors. The limited‑time offering is designed to pull shoppers into stores and lift average basket size, echoing a...
BetMGM‑Fremantle Deal Yields Record $240K Win on ‘The Price Is Right’
Contestant Vanesa from Virginia walked away with more than $240,000 after playing the new “Lion’s Share” game on CBS’s The Price Is Right. The win, announced by BetMGM and Fremantle, marks the largest single‑game payout in the show’s daytime history...
Hasbro CEO Charts D&D’s Leap Into Video Games and Media
Hasbro chief executive Chris Cocks announced a multi‑year plan to expand Dungeons & Dragons into video games and other media, citing the success of Baldur’s Gate 3 and a new sci‑fi RPG called Exodus. The strategy leans on older fans, co‑creation...
Substack UK Paid Subscriptions Top 500,000, Signaling Creator Economy Surge
Substack disclosed that paid subscriptions to U.K.-based creators have crossed the half‑million mark, cementing the market as its second‑largest after the United States. The milestone reflects a broader shift toward paid, creator‑driven content as the platform expands beyond newsletters into...
ASI Study Finds Promo Products Yield $0.006 Impressions, Beats Digital Ads
The Advertising Specialty Institute released a 2026 Global Advertising Impressions Study showing promotional products generate brand impressions at just $0.006 each, a fraction of the cost of TV and digital media. The findings, based on surveys of nearly 5,000 consumers,...
Sprout Social Posts 11% YoY Revenue Rise, Beats Q1 2026 Forecast
Sprout Social posted $121.5 million in Q1 2026 revenue, an 11.2% year‑over‑year increase, surpassing analyst forecasts. The company highlighted strong AI‑driven product adoption, a record $24.7 million non‑GAAP free cash flow, and an inaugural $50 million share‑repurchase program.
Maruti Suzuki Extends WPP Media’s Rs 1,200 Crore Media Mandate
Maruti Suzuki India has extended its partnership with WPP Media for another year, retaining a media mandate valued at roughly ₹1,200 crore (about $145 million). The automaker’s FY2025 advertising spend climbed to ₹1,127.5 crore ($136 million) as it leaned on marketing to counter slowing...
Dreamsetgo Campaign Turns Sports FOMO Into Comedy Gold
Dreamsetgo’s new campaign pairs comedian Tanmay Bhatt with cricket legend Sourav Ganguly and actor Ayush Mehra to dramatise premium sports‑travel experiences ranging from Formula 1 paddocks to Wimbledon courts. The film leans on banter and creator‑led storytelling rather than hard‑sell messaging,...
AI Writes Clear, Conversion‑Focused Copy for Free
I built a skill that writes conversion-focused marketing copy — headlines, CTAs, value propositions, and full page copy for homepages, landing pages, pricing pages, and feature pages. You describe your product and audience, and it writes copy that's clear over clever,...
Organic Search Still Dominates, But Zero-Click Surge Reduces CTR
100 SEO insights for 2026: 1. Organic search drives 53% of all website traffic. 2. U.S. organic traffic was down 2.5% YoY. 3. Zero-click searches reached 60%, with mobile at 77%. 4. AI Overview appearance rose from 6.49% to 13.14%. 5. Organic CTR fell to...
JioHotstar, Swiggy Turn Live Cricket Into an In-App Food Court
JioHotstar and Swiggy have rolled out an in‑app food‑ordering feature that lets cricket fans order meals without leaving the live stream, already used by more than 37 million users across 690 cities. The mobile‑only experience lets viewers browse restaurants, unlock match‑triggered offers,...
Target Launches 2-Tier Creator Program: One For Superfans, One For Pros
Target unveiled a two‑tier creator initiative aimed at boosting social commerce. Club Target rewards everyday creators and superfans with weekly challenges and gift‑card incentives, while Target Ambassadors, built on the LTK platform, courts professional creators with higher commissions and deeper...
Google Adds More AI Search Links, Still No Click Data For SEOs via @Sejournal, @MattGSouthern
Google rolled out five new link features for its generative AI search, shifting inline links closer to the supporting text, adding an "Explore new angles" section, expanding source quotes, introducing hover previews, and labeling subscription content. The changes aim to...
Create Content that Answers Questions Before Buying
Great content doesn't chase searches. It answers the questions people ask before they're ready to buy.
Ferrari's 2-Year Waitlist Boosts Brand Desirability
Ferrari manages desirability by capping availability with a waitlist of about 20-24 months. Ferrari believes that this is the sweet spot between it being too long that clients move on and long enough that they keep desirability high by making...
Day 18: The Quiz That Turned A Live Audience Into 2,300 Subscribers
Ellen Yin of Cubicle to CEO turned a simple live quiz into a high‑conversion list‑building engine. By displaying a QR code early in her talks, she guides the audience through a 10‑question personality quiz that doubles as a buyer‑persona classifier....
Investing in Employees, Not Efficiency, Boosted Starbucks $20B
Misunderstood Marketing - : Starbucks Spent $500 Million on Employees Instead of Efficiency. The Stock Added $20 Billion. https://t.co/df0XXKkAMi
OpenAI Skips Agency-First Mistake, Learns From Google
OpenAI Read the Google Playbook. The Question Is Whether Marketers Did Too. Misunderstood Marketing - : Every Ad Platform That Went Agency-First Had to Walk It Back. OpenAI Didn't Wait. https://t.co/4yvevGcvYH
Maury Povich Came Out of Retirement to Star in a New Campaign for This AI Tool for Creatives
Maury Povich, the 87‑year‑old former daytime‑talk host, returned from retirement to front Air’s new AI‑enhanced creative‑team platform campaign, "On Air with Maury Povich." Air, a cloud‑based operations and asset‑management service launched in 2021, has raised more than $70 million from investors...
AI Deduces Personal Traits From Ad Exposure Alone
AI can infer personal traits from ad exposure patterns alone, turning everyday advertising streams into detailed profiles without direct access to private data https://t.co/2QKj8k2XtP
ChatGPT Reveals Key Insight on Attribution Modeling
Nice little gem ChatGPT popped out during a conversation on multi-touch attribution (MTA), marketing mix modeling (MMM), and incrementality testing. https://t.co/aBXe4iLE3u
Marine Serre Unveils Mona Lisa Capsule with Louvre, Upcycled Pieces Priced up to $447
Marine Serre has partnered with the Louvre to release a limited-edition three‑piece capsule that reinterprets Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. The collection, sold for $165, $447 and $142, uses upcycled museum‑shop merchandise and is available in the Louvre boutique and...
Identify and Fix the Top Sales‑Marketing Failure
The number one reason why your sales and marketing is failing and what to do about it by @Timothy_Hughes https://t.co/zCqpY2mGJm DLAIgnite #SocialSelling #DigitalSelling #Sales #SalesTips #SalesLeader #Salesforce #Marketing #Leadership #SocialMedia #MarketingStrategy #MarketingSuccess
Persistence Beats Algorithms: Outlast 90% Quitters
There's no secret algorithm. No hidden shortcut. No perfect time that lives in the past. You're going to post content that gets ignored. Crickets. No growth. No sales. If you can stomach this, you'll outlast 90% of people who quit when...
HubSpot Shares Tumble 20% as AI‑Fueled SaaS‑pocalypse Triggers Soft Guidance
HubSpot (HUBS) saw its stock plunge roughly 20% after reporting a strong first‑quarter revenue beat but issuing second‑quarter guidance below analyst expectations. The drop reflects growing investor anxiety that AI‑driven competition could stall growth in the CRM and marketing‑automation space.