James de Feu, the Head of Paid Ads at Zapier, shares his insights on the evolving landscape of advertising, emphasizing the importance of influencer marketing, storytelling, and the integration of AI in ad strategies. He believes that the traditional golden age of paid advertising has passed, and he is embracing this shift by incorporating influencer marketing into his team's strategy. De Feu has allocated a significant portion of his hypothetical advertising budget to influencers, indicating a strong belief in their effectiveness in reaching target audiences, particularly in the B2B space. De Feu acknowledges that while paid ads will continue to play a crucial role, their effectiveness has diminished over time. He suggests that marketers should not abandon paid advertising entirely but rather diversify their strategies to include influencers who resonate with their customer base. This approach reflects a broader trend where influencer marketing is no longer limited to consumer products but is becoming increasingly relevant for B2B brands as well. Storytelling is another key element that de Feu highlights as essential for successful marketing. He points out that marketers often become too focused on optimizing individual ad experiences, losing sight of the power of narrative. By engaging customers through storytelling—sharing their pain points and solutions—marketers can create more meaningful connections. De Feu emphasizes that storytelling has always been a vital aspect of marketing and will continue to be a significant advantage. As the advertising landscape evolves, de Feu stresses the necessity of adapting to changes, particularly with the rise of AI. He advocates for continuous testing and learning to leverage AI for personalizing ads and targeting audiences effectively. This shift towards high-intent, targeted content marks a departure from generic advertising approaches, allowing brands to connect more authentically with their consumers. In summary, de Feu's perspective underscores a transformative moment in advertising, where influencer marketing, storytelling, and AI-driven strategies are becoming increasingly important for brands looking to engage their audiences effectively.

Despite its decline, the deinfluencing trend still occasionally resurfaces, challenging brands and influencers alike. Brands like Stanley and Skims have shown resilience by leveraging strategic influencer collaborations and timely marketing to bounce back from controversies. The lesson for marketers is clear: authenticity and a solid crisis management strategy can mitigate the temporary disruptions caused by deinfluencing.

This post shares 6 ways to leverage your story to stand out in today's market. Customers today want to hear from humans and prefer a personal approach. They expect two-way conversations and need to be heavily educated before any direct communication takes place. Humor also goes a long way — tell stories of times when things went wrong or were imperfect.

No one wants to be ‘influenced’ when they’re scrolling through social media. People want to be spoken to, inspired, educated, and entertained. It’s the creators and communities people choose to engage with, not the big brands or big influencers. The beauty in creator marketing is when brands hand the control over to the creator themselves and see how they interpret it. Brand guidelines shouldn’t completely be cast aside though. Creator briefs are still relevant and should serve as “freedom within a framework”.

Quick point-and-shoot product placements and fast fashion hauls are becoming outdated in the influencer industry. This post predicts upcoming shifts, including increased investment in influencer marketing by 75% of B2B marketers. They will likely engage key leaders and experts in niche industries and host campaigns on platforms like LinkedIn. Brands will use their employees as brand ambassadors to better connect with consumers. As social media usage declines, influencers will gather loyal fans into more intimate digital spaces, like brand forums or broadcast channels.

In a rapidly evolving content marketing landscape, the challenge of effectively distributing content across multiple platforms is increasingly complex. Rand Fishkin addresses this issue, emphasizing that traditional metrics like keyword rankings in Google are no longer sufficient for guiding content marketing strategies. Instead, he suggests focusing on two broader concepts: Reach and Resonance. Fishkin highlights the importance of understanding the audience and the various channels they engage with, rather than relying solely on a single social media platform or specific analytics metrics. He references a conversation with Dale Bertrand, who shared insights from his speaking engagements, illustrating that while some events may not yield immediate client conversions, they can significantly enhance visibility and lead generation in the long run. The discussion also touches on the nuances of marketing attribution, particularly in the context of non-SEO activities. Fishkin argues that all marketing efforts boil down to reaching the right people with the right message in the right places. He encourages marketers to consider the broader impact of their efforts, including the potential for serendipitous opportunities that arise from consistent engagement and practice. To anchor content marketing efforts, Fishkin proposes a formula that includes identifying topics of interest, leveraging relevant stories, and utilizing data journalism. He stresses the importance of creating content that resonates emotionally with the audience, fostering a sense of connection and relevance. Ultimately, he advocates for a balanced approach that values both reach and resonance, encouraging marketers to embrace experimentation and accept that not all efforts will yield immediate financial returns. This mindset allows for greater creativity and the potential for discovering effective strategies that may not be immediately quantifiable.

In this interview, Alice Chen, Director of Social and Community at Away, discusses their strategy of creating bespoke briefs for influencers and moving swiftly to capture cultural moments. Examples include their successful campaign with Jake Shane, which used a viral video format, and their Pride collaboration with Willie Norris, which deeply resonated with the community. Chen also stresses the value of treating influencers as true partners and allowing the social team to innovate and react quickly.

This page contains 4 reports highlighting key trends in influencer marketing and the evolving expectations of consumers and influencers. Food and drink content is the most popular, favored by 30% of consumers, followed by beauty at 26%. 67% of consumers prefer honest and unbiased collaborations. Entertainment value is ranked second at 48%, followed by educational content at 29%. Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers prioritize authenticity and personal values, while Gen Z values follower count and quantifiable metrics.

87% of consumers expect influencers to advocate for social issues. However, only 25% said the most memorable brands speak about causes and news that align with their values. 42% of consumers will unfollow brands that partner with influencers who don't share their values, impacting revenue as 68% follow brands for product updates. This shift shows the expectation for influencers to lead social media activism, especially as brands face backlash for perceived performative activism.

Nathan Jun Poekert, former Head of Social at American Eagle, says that campaign assets often underperform due to rigid playbooks, misguided trend-chasing, and the misuse of content creators. Brands frequently fail by not adapting to the ever-evolving social media landscape and by neglecting audience-driven strategies. Poekert advises marketers to prioritize data-backed content that resonates with audiences over traditional campaign footage.

This interview with marketers from a renowned copywriting agency discusses strategies for crafting compelling social media captions. The interviewees stress the significance of authenticity, clarity, and relatability in engaging audiences and building brand credibility. Brands can create more impactful and memorable content by focusing on genuine communication and avoiding overly sales-oriented or artificial language.

Most marketing today works by grabbing attention, making you emotional, and turning emotion into action. For this to work, your audience has to trust, like, and relate to you – which is where humor comes into play. One tactic is to make fun of yourself, as IKEA did with a playfully misassembled ad. You can also make extreme and humorous analogies to show how your customer’s life would look without your product. Alternatively, brands can take a bold stance against something in their industry they don’t agree with, as Verizon did with its “one size does not fit all” messaging.

TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube have facilitated the rise of a diverse range of voices, challenging mainstream media. Alternative voices often present partisan views and have significant followings, especially among younger audiences. Influencers like Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan, and Dylan Page illustrate this shift. These influencers often focus on video formats and cater to younger demographics with political commentary or lifestyle updates. Traditional media needs to improve trust, diversity, and digital storytelling to remain competitive.

To ensure the adoption and success of a design system, creators need to adopt a marketer's mindset, craft a compelling narrative, engage with different stakeholders, and demonstrate its value consistently across the organization. Strategies include developing target audience-specific pitches, utilizing engaging communication channels, establishing clear success metrics, and fostering a community of internal advocates to create a self-sustaining culture of use and improvement.

Key trends from Cannes Lions include embracing RMNs for data and attribution capabilities and scaling audience reach via partnerships on platforms like CTV. Publishers are prioritizing deeper funnel engagements and urging marketers to focus on purchase completion metrics. Sustainability, guided by the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, is prompting the adoption of eco-friendly practices. Cultural convergence, seen in installations like Stagwell's "Sport Beach," suggests leveraging sports fandom for audience engagement.

Many marketers prefer rebrands over big ad campaigns because rebrands allow them to stay relevant and agile in a rapidly changing market. By investing in brand building, companies like Kraft Heinz and Wayfair can better understand consumer behavior and create a holistic strategy across multiple channels. This approach helps to maintain a strong identity and connect more deeply with their audience, rather than relying solely on short-term performance marketing.

Kieran Flanagan, CMO of Zapier, shares the 10 current rules of marketing. He emphasizes the importance of picking the right channels for your products, as channels will never bend to fit with products. Today’s marketing channels favor individuals vs. brands. Creators likely will take 15-20% of what Series D and public companies spend on paid advertising today.

With how quickly things are changing in tech, marketing playbooks are quickly becoming relics. This article covers an alternative: the RINse and Repeat framework. The first critical step is building a rich understanding of your customers and market with a narrow-to-broad-to-narrow approach. Next, generate novel ideas for campaigns that capture attention in new ways, including new channels you haven’t tried yet. Lastly, narrate the impact and avoid over-indexing on conversion metrics that often under or overstate campaign success.

Providing every influencer with a free high-cost product is impractical. Inviting influencers to events or asking them to return products after use can be effective. Building customer trust requires long-form content and long-term influencer relationships, which takes time. Targeting influencers with followers who can afford the product is important for authenticity. Influencers using competitor products can be addressed by offering trials and ensuring they believe in the product's value. Calculating ROI is harder for expensive products, so focus on goals beyond direct conversions and evaluate success over a longer period.

To succeed in the YouTube Shorts feed, ads should mimic the platform's organic content style. Brands can leverage everyday people and influencer partnerships to create authentic, engaging content that resonates with viewers. Incorporating elements like direct-to-camera addresses and calls to action can encourage interaction.

Rand Fishkin from SparkToro explains why paid advertising often overcharges marketers.

Emotions are crucial to user experience and should take precedence over user counts. Storytelling should drive action by focusing on individual struggles and specific details. Businesses should prioritize emotions in product development, as they are essential to decision-making.

The influencer marketing industry is set to grow to $24 billion by the end of the year. 75% of respondents have ramped up their content production recently, with 26% intending to allocate over 40% of their marketing budgets to influencer campaigns. Small influencers are preferred, with 44% opting for nano-influencers and 26% for micro-influencers. TikTok, used by 69% of brands, leads as the top channel. Payment methods have also shifted, with 41% of brands paying influencers directly rather than offering free products.

AI-enabled marketing today accounts for nearly 45% of all advertising globally. By 2032, AI will influence 90% of all ad revenue. Agencies are facing pressure to adapt or risk irrelevance. This is leading a shift towards value-based pricing models, where costs are determined by the value of services provided to the advertiser.

Thought leadership content on LinkedIn can be a cost-efficient way to grow your business. Warmly, an outreach tool, used the “build in public” tactic, leading to 8X growth in inbound demo requests. Air, a creative operations platform, created a physical book on creative ops and also leaned into influencer marketing. June.so, a product analytics platform, used product research and insights to generate organic engagement and signups.

This case study looks at the challenge of balancing brand storytelling with effective sales strategies on e-commerce websites. Successful sites need to merge engaging narratives with a smooth, intuitive shopping experience. However, many brands struggle with this balance, often focusing too much on visual appeal or functionality. As customers increasingly arrive directly at product pages via social media or search engines, these pages become crucial in shaping their purchasing decisions. Many sites fall short in key areas like search and navigation.

A “vertical” in the influencer world refers to a niche or category that a creator specializes in, with brands traditionally sticking to these lanes. To maintain engagement, brands should blur the lines between their products and creators. Understand your audience, including their preferred content, creators, and communities. Take calculated risks by choosing influencers outside your niche, but avoid those who don't align with your brand values or genuinely like your product. Consider adjacent conversations relevant to your audience, even if they don't directly tie to your product, as seen with Fidelity Investments partnering with a cooking creator.

Science has shown that well-told stories are more engaging, memorable, and persuasive than many other kinds of content. Four story types that both engage and sell include impressive-detail stories that set a brand apart, founders' stories about the company inception, “how it works” stories, and values stories.

The traditional “surprise and delight” approach to influencer gifting is losing popularity as creators express discontent with wasteful and unprompted packages. Brands are advised against cold mass gifting. Personalization, social listening, and thoughtful communication are becoming crucial to forming strategic relationships. Reducing the quantity of products sent can also create exclusivity and enhance brand buzz.

Classic content marketing focused on high-volume keywords and Google rankings is outdated. You now need an audience-first approach that identifies where your audience spends their time and fits into those spaces. Find your audience's sources of influence through surveys, interviews, and broad data sources. Use keyword research, audience research, and social media listening to find resonant topics. Select the right content format based on audience behavior and preferences. Monitor competitors and find opportunities for co-marketing and guest posts. Finally, distribute content effectively and continually test and repurpose.