By Sara Friedman

That tech bro with the inspirational quotes, your old English lit professor, and that girl from your hometown trying to make it as an influencer — they’re all on Substack.

In fact, it feels like everyone has a newsletter these days (we were here first!).

And the latest adopters aren’t individuals at all, but brands, per Digiday:

• Fashion retailer American Eagle recently launched its free Substack newsletter, Off the Cuff, in order to engage with Gen Z customers.
• The newsletter will include internet trends — the first edition included a section on the popularity of jorts — and will be guest edited by Casey Lewis, the writer of the After School newsletter (meaning cross-promotion with her 74k subscribers).

American Eagle joins fashion brands The RealReal and Tory Burch as well as beauty brands Saie and Rare Beauty on the newsletter platform.

So far, some are finding success: Saie saw 20% month-over-month growth in Substack subscribers this year.

Why newsletters?

Because brands will do anything to cozy up to customers. And for many beauty and fashion brands, their customers are on Substack.

• On Substack, 24% of the audience falls into the 25-34 demographic — the highest audience share by age, according to Similarweb.
• Readers ages 18-24 account for 11.4% of the platform’s audience.

And while brands have already been present on the platform in the form of sponsored posts and founder accounts, this new wave of launches is mixing media with marketing.

Newsletters aren’t the only way…

… that brands are getting experimental. They’re doing just about anything to reach new customers.

• Roblox is opening its Commerce APIs to creators and brands with Shopify as its first partner. The new initiative will allow Shopify merchants to sell physical products inside of gaming experiences.

And, of course, we can’t forget all the metaverse fuss. While it feels like we’re still waiting for the trend to pan out, the global metaverse market in fashion is estimated to grow by $19.5B between 2025-2029.

So keep a lookout in your inboxes for more communication from your favourite brands — just promise to never replace us.

By Sara Friedman

Sourced from the HUSTLE

By Anna King

Brand-building today demands an ever-evolving consumer-first mindset, says Anna King of M+C Saatchi Consulting. It’s more important than ever to keep your brand in shoppers’ minds.

Today’s retail landscape is anything but linear. Shopping journeys stretch across screens, channels, moods, and moments – shaped as much by impulse as by intention. As consumers flow between platforms and purchase triggers, the path to conversion is no longer predictable. To succeed, brands must lead with an ever-evolving consumer-first mindset – showing up with relevance, agility, and precision at every touchpoint.

By Anna King

Sourced from The Drum

By Aaron Baar

The rebranding, first reported last month, is expected to impact about 40% to 45% of the media company’s 40,000-strong workforce.

Feature Image Credit: Courtesy of GroupM

By Aaron Baar

Sourced from Marketing Dive

By Chelsea Tobin

LinkedIn usage and engagement are heating up, and for good reason. It can be a goldmine for finding new freelance clients, building your personal brand, and growing your business. In fact, 44% of marketers say LinkedIn is the most important social media platform for B2B (business-to-business) marketing.

Attracting leads and growing our pipeline is important to growing a sustainable and future-proof business. Here are five reasons why a LinkedIn profile is a freelancer’s best way to do this.

1. LinkedIn Is A Powerful Marketing Tool

LinkedIn may have started as a networking platform and an “online CV”, but it has well and truly evolved since then. It’s now a comprehensive marketing tool that freelancers can use to build their brand and source new clients. LinkedIn offers many different options for posting content, such as articles, carousels, videos, and even newsletters. You can use their newsletter function to build a loyal subscriber base and nurture leads, rather than using an entirely separate email platform.

2. LinkedIn Is Where The Decision-Makers Hang Out

Business owners, CEOs, executives, and founders (or anyone who decides to hire you as a freelancer) are all active on LinkedIn. It offers the opportunity to build your personal brand right in front of them by strategically posting consistent and value-first content.

Unlike Facebook, where users usually only add people they know personally, it’s a regular part of LinkedIn culture to connect with people you do not know. You can send invitations to connect with your ideal clients, send a personalized InMail, and implement a value-first strategy to start conversations with them. Hot tip: 86% of people are more likely to read your InMail if you view their LinkedIn profile first.

3. Proudly Display Your Social Proof on LinkedIn

Thanks to a few special features, LinkedIn can be used as a highly curated and personalized resume with undeniable social proof. These features can help you stand out to ideal clients and build trust when they view your LinkedIn profile.

LinkedIn allows colleagues and clients to leave a recommendation on your profile, which is a powerful testimonial to potential clients. If you add skills (make sure they’re relevant to your freelance services) to your profile, anyone on LinkedIn can endorse you for these skills. Again, ask your colleagues and clients (past or present) to do so, as these skill endorsements are powerful social proof.

4. Organic Reach Still Exists On LinkedIn

Despite the ever-present argument that organic reach is dying on social media, LinkedIn has stood the test of time. Freelancers have an exciting opportunity to utilize their personal profiles to get visible and earn reach they may not be able to on other social media platforms.

The best news is you don’t need a large following to earn significant reach on LinkedIn. If you post high-quality, value-first content, share your expertise, and participate in meaningful conversations, you can create large waves of influence in your industry, regardless of your follower count.

5. The LinkedIn Mindset Is Different

People who use LinkedIn are professionals looking to collaborate, network, learn, and invest in themselves. This platform isn’t where you unsupportive aunties or friends with no ambitions hang out!

Your regular users of LinkedIn know that it’s a hub for B2B marketing and business transactions, so their mindset is more primed and open to seeing businesses promoting themselves. This mindset makes it much easier for freelancers to sell their services. As long as you’re also offering value to others and engaging in meaningful ways, you’ll never be out of place.

Every freelancer should add LinkedIn to their marketing strategy. Consistent and strategic use of LinkedIn could be the secret weapon that helps grow your personal brand and client base to new heights.

Feature Image Credit: Getty

By Chelsea Tobin

Find Chelsea Tobin on LinkedIn. Visit Chelsea’s website.

Sourced from Forbes

By Lindsey Gamble

Instagram has a new Suggested Fixes feature. When users publish a Reel, they may see a lightbulb icon at the top right of the post creation workflow. When tapped, Instagram suggests fixes to improve the Reel’s performance before sharing, such as adding relevant hashtags or a location tag to reach more people.

Why it matters: Instagram is offering creators proactive tips to help increase the reach of their Reels before they hit publish. So far, the suggestions are simple, and it’s unclear how much impact they will have.

Although, Instagram head Adam Mosseri has said hashtags play a minor role in discovery, which makes the suggestion to add hashtags seem contradictory.

Despite this, the feature has a lot of potential if Instagram provides stronger, smarter suggestions in the future, possibly by using AI to deliver more personalized advice based on a creator’s content.

By Lindsey Gamble

Sourced from www.lindseygamble.com

By Elizabeth Buchanan

Feature Image Credit: Getty Images

By Elizabeth Buchanan

Elizabeth Buchanan is chief commercial officer of Rokt.

Sourced from FastCompany

Sourced from www.theglobeandmail.com

Meta Platforms  META-Q -0.60%decrease  aims to allow brands to fully create and target advertisements with its artificial intelligence tools by the end of next year, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The social media company’s apps have 3.43 billion unique active users globally and its AI-driven tools help create personalized ad variations, image backgrounds and automated adjustments to video ads, making it lucrative for advertisers.

A brand could provide a product image and a budget, and Meta’s AI would generate the ad, including image, video and text, and then determine user targeting on Instagram and Facebook with budget suggestions, the report said.

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Meta also plans to let advertisers personalize ads using AI, so that users see different versions of the same ad in real time, based on factors such as geolocation, according to the report.

The owner of Facebook and Instagram, whose majority of revenue comes from ad sales, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Social media firms such as Snap, Pinterest and Reddit are increasingly investing in AI and machine learning tools to attract advertisers in an intensely competitive and crowded digital ad market.

Technology firms such as Google and OpenAI have also launched video and image-generation AI tools, but their widespread adoption in advertising remains in doubt as marketers weigh concerns over brand safety, creative control and quality.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg stressed that advertisers needed AI products that delivered “measurable results at scale” in the not-so-distant future. He added that the company aimed to build an AI one-stop shop where businesses can set goals, allocate budgets and let the platform handle the logistics.

Feature Image Credit: Jeff Chiu/The Associated Press

Sourced from www.theglobeandmail.com

By James Peckham

An advertiser could provide an image of a product and ask AI to create a photo, text, or video ad and target it to specific audiences through services like Facebook or Instagram.

Expect to see more AI-generated ads in your Facebook, Instagram, and Threads feeds in the future. According to The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, Meta is on track to offer a fully AI-powered ad service by the end of 2026.

According to the report, Meta is developing a tool that takes advertisers through every step of the process, from ad ideation to publication. An advertiser could provide an image of a product and ask AI to create a photo, text, or video ad, for instance. It would then publish them and target specific audiences through services like Facebook or Instagram.

An example used in the report is that those who live in a snowy location could see an ad for a car driving up a mountain, while those who live in a city may get one where the car drives through an urban environment. It may even allow advertisers to tailor specifically to your location.

Advertising accounted for over 97% of Meta’s overall revenue in 2024, the Journal says. Meta believes combining AI with all the targeted data it has on users will help it become an even bigger destination for advertisers, particularly mid-size companies with smaller budgets. As CEO Mark Zuckerberg said last month, “[It’s a] redefinition of the category of advertising.”

We’ll have to see if this results in a quality drop if footage is generated with no human input.

Feature Image Credit: Jens Büttner/picture alliance/Getty Images

By James Peckham

I’ve written tech news for over a decade, and as a Reporter at PCMag, I cover the latest developments across the gadgets and services you use every day. Previously, I worked for Android Police, TechRadar, and more.

Sourced from PC MAG

Sourced from 3BL

Cutting Through the Noise: Why Brand Strategy Is the Secret Weapon for Social Impact

n a world where attention is a precious commodity, capturing the hearts and minds of an audience has never been more challenging or more critical. As social feeds flood with headlines, causes, and calls to action, even the most urgent messages can get buried in the scroll. For organizations committed to social impact, the question isn’t just what you stand for, but how you get people to stop, listen, and act.

That’s exactly the topic explored in a recent episode of the RENEWables podcast featuring Eric Ressler, founder and creative director of Cosmic, a creative agency focused on empowering mission-driven organizations to rise above the noise.

A Podcast for the Impact-Driven Age
In this episode, Ressler shares his belief that strong brand strategy and compelling digital experiences aren’t optional for today’s change-makers—they’re essential. While many nonprofits and advocacy organizations still treat branding as secondary, Ressler argues that in the age of information overload, your visual identity, messaging, and online presence may be the most powerful tools you have.

And it’s not just about looking polished. It’s about making sure your message resonates, your mission is clearly understood, and your audience feels inspired to engage. When attention spans are short and distractions are endless, the organizations that communicate clearly and authentically are the ones that make the biggest impact.

“If we want to compete in the digital space where attention is limited, we need to meet people where they are—with a message that breaks through.” — Eric Ressler

Why This Matters More Than Ever
While the episode focuses on storytelling and branding, its underlying relevance is hard to miss. Across the globe, nonprofits are navigating tighter budgets, donor fatigue, and increased competition for engagement. At the same time, they’re being asked to respond to complex issues like climate change, equity, education and mental health with speed and scale.

In this context, effective communication isn’t a luxury, it’s a strategic necessity.

Cosmic’s work bridges this gap by helping social impact organizations clarify their theory of change, craft purposeful content, and create experiences that connect emotionally and visually. It’s a holistic approach to brand-building that doesn’t just support the mission—it amplifies it.

Listen & Learn
If you’re leading, supporting, or partnering with a mission-driven organization, this episode is a must-listen. Whether you’re a marketer looking for sharper messaging, a nonprofit executive rethinking your outreach, or simply someone who believes in the power of good design for good causes—Eric Ressler’s insights offer fresh perspective and practical takeaways.

Tune in to RENEWables Podcast Episode #59 featuring Eric Ressler here: https://biostarrenewables.com/resource-library/renewables-59-empowering-social-impact-organizations-to-catalyze-real-world-change/

Don’t just share your message. Make it matter.
Learn how to harness the full potential of your brand to create lasting social impact—one digital interaction at a time.

Sourced from 3BL

The B2B commerce landscape is undergoing a profound transformation driven by advancements in AI, shifting buyer expectations, and increasing economic pressures. Companies effectively leveraging digital technologies while staying consumer-focused will gain a competitive edge while those slow to adapt risk falling behind in an evolving market.

This article explores seven major trends expected to define the future of B2B commerce based on insights from Forrester, IDC, and leading industry examples.

1. Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizes B2B Commerce

AI has shifted from experimental technology to a vital instrument embedded in every aspect of B2B operations. Organizations are utilizing AI to enhance product recommendations, optimize search relevance, and implement AI-powered strategies like dynamic pricing.

Key applications of AI in B2B commerce include predictive analytics and generative AI. With predictive analytics business can detect customer churn risks, enabling proactive retention strategies. From drafting automated responses to helping sales teams make informed decisions in real time, generative AI is reshaping the customer experience.

Despite AI’s potential, some businesses still struggle to achieve meaningful results due to disconnected data and fragmented systems. Establishing a robust AI adoption strategy remains critical as companies aim to fully integrate AI into their operations.

2. The Rise of Smart Procurement Systems

Industrial B2B organizations are beginning to deploy AI-driven procurement agents to automate purchasing decisions. These agents can analyze massive amounts of data to quickly evaluate factors such as costs, ESG compliance, and supplier data, ensuring informed decision-making. Per Forrester, almost 30% of B2B firms will integrate AI buying agents¹.

For example, Siemens has applied AI procurement tools to streamline supplier management, achieving cost efficiencies while adhering to sustainability mandates. Businesses prioritizing ESG-compliant procurement tools will find themselves better positioned as these practices become industry standards.

3. Challenges in Chatbot Adoption

While advances in conversational AI technologies are evident, many organizations remain hesitant to adopt them broadly. According to Forrester, only 20% of brands are projected to implement conversational AI for commerce by 2025¹.

A key concern lies in the limitations of traditional, deterministic chatbots—systems designed to follow predefined paths and respond within a fixed decision tree. These chatbots often fall short in handling the complexity and variability of real-world human interactions. In contrast, agentic AI systems offer a more dynamic alternative. By learning autonomously and adapting in real time, they can navigate evolving conversations and create their own paths forward. For businesses, investing in this next generation of conversational AI agents unlocks more natural, responsive client interactions while helping to overcome persistent integration and user experience challenges.

4. Augmenting Human Relationships with AI

AI’s role in enhancing efficiency does not diminish the need for human expertise in B2B interactions. While AI simplifies tasks like personalization and data processing, strategic partnerships and high-value sales still rely on relationship-building. According to IDC, integrating AI efficiencies with high-touch customer engagement will drive the strongest business results².

Leading organizations are integrating AI as a supportive tool alongside traditional methods. For instance, PROS Collaborative Quoting empowers sales teams by combining AI tools with human oversight for seamless, bi-directional client interactions. This hybrid approach preserves trust while boosting efficiency.

5. Redefining Sales Strategies with AI “Coworkers”

Sales teams are finding that partnering with AI agents can provide support in managing customer data, analyzing patterns, automating repetitive tasks, and optimizing sales strategies—ultimately enhancing productivity. Forrester predicts that by 2025, 40% of businesses will adopt these virtual assistants³.

An example of this is the 2024 collaboration between PROS and Microsoft to create smart quoting solutions. These tools enable sellers to generate emails with accurate, personalized quotes attached, demonstrating how AI coworkers can simplify daily tasks and enhance responsiveness, solidifying the role of AI coworkers moving forward.

6. Composable Architectures Offer Agility and Growth

To manage the growing complexities of B2B commerce, IDC recommends businesses move toward composable architectures and API-first solutions². Unlike traditional systems, these modular platforms provide flexibility, scalability, and seamless integration with other tools.

With composable architectures, businesses gain the agility to adapt quickly to market demands, streamline workflows, and create personalized customer experiences. Businesses should leverage pre-defined out of the box experiences and workflows, followed by bespoke and unique experiences leveraging some of their core commerce componentry. Organizations leveraging these advanced platforms can innovate rapidly while maintaining competitive advantages in an evolving commerce ecosystem.

7. Compliance Moves to the Forefront of Strategy

As data privacy regulations and sustainability standards evolve, forward-thinking businesses recognize the importance of embedding compliance mechanisms directly into their strategies. IDC highlights that proactive compliance is no longer optional; it is a necessity for avoiding financial and reputational harm².

Advanced risk monitoring tools, automated reporting, and responsible AI frameworks are helping companies meet regulatory requirements. Businesses that integrate transparency, ethical AI practices, and sustainability efforts into governance structures will benefit from enhanced trust and reduced risks.

Looking Ahead

The future of B2B commerce lies at the intersection of AI, strategy, and execution. Companies that prioritize innovation, implement customer-centric solutions, and adapt to compliance standards will emerge as industry leaders. Those that hesitate to modernize risk becoming less competitive in today’s fast-moving market.

If your organization is considering integrating AI to transform operations and customer interaction, now is the time to act. Whether it’s optimizing procurement, redefining sales processes, or adopting composable architectures, today’s investments will set the foundation for tomorrow’s success. Competitive advantage is no longer a choice; it’s a business imperative.

Feature Image Credit: Dowell via Getty Images

By John Bruno

Sourced from Forbes