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What’s the Best Way to Get Customer Feedback in 2026? Hint: It’s Not Email

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By Rob Pegoraro

Marketing types are turning to different tools to assess our satisfaction, and not all of them will leave you feeling satisfied about your privacy.

LAS VEGAS—The customer-satisfaction business is no longer oblivious to what may have long been obvious to many customers: Getting spammed with customer-satisfaction surveys probably won’t leave the recipient feeling particularly satisfied.

A conference here, hosted by a company that specializes in collecting and analysing customer feedback, made that clear: Customer experience (CX) research needs to move beyond the email survey. “We are more than survey people,” said Sid Banerjee, CSO of Medallia, in the keynote that opened the Medallia Experience conference.

“It’s tiring consumers out,” said Andrew Custage, head of research insights, in a panel at the show. Of course, Medallia had survey data about survey fatigue: 51% of consumers said they’d noticed more requests for feedback, and 36% said they felt too many companies were hitting them up for their thoughts. A slide shown during the panel showed that the company’s survey response rates have slipped from 10.5% in Q1 2024 to 8.6% in Q3 2025.

Custage’s fellow panellist Judy Bloch, a VP and industry executive advisor at Medallia, added that surveys can also fail to surface useful insights: “We’ve gotta expand beyond the surveys; they simply don’t tell us the full story.”

(Credit: Fahmi Ruddin Hidayat/Getty Images)

 

One solution for the survey-fatigue problem is to instrument sites and apps to measure customer journeys (as in, track your usage) much more precisely, then leverage AI-based tools to glean useful insights from all that data.

In another panel at the conference, Aimee Civera, head of “workplace solutions marketing engagement technology” at the investment firm Vanguard, called these heatmaps, session replays, and other forms of customer path analysis “tremendously helpful” for understanding customer interests. For example, she said, that increase in understanding helped Vanguard fix a problem with sales drop-offs on its site: “Now we’re seeing double the amount of sales leads from our website.”

Multiple speakers also endorsed feeding transcripts of customer calls and chats into analytical engines to surface patterns of what works and what doesn’t in a firm’s CX.

“EX”—employee experience—can also be a useful source of CX data, because customer-facing employees can run into problems on their side of the same systems that annoy customers.

“EX is the smoke to the fire that is CX,” said Samantha Scott, senior director of business experience at Verizon Business, in another panel. “If there’s something going on in front of the customer,” she said, “the employee’s going to be the first one to tell you about it.”

(Whether management will act on the resulting insights is another question: All of these customer insights did not stop Verizon from ratcheting up add-on fees last August.)

Surprise: People Don’t Hate Notification-Based Surveys

Or companies can try to hit up their customers for feedback outside of email. Two executives with the grocery-store firm Albertsons Companies outlined how they’ve opened a surprisingly successful survey channel via push notifications in the mobile apps for Safeway and Shaw’s.

“It’s the device push that generates the highest response rate,” said Henrik Christensen, senior director for customer and market intelligence.

He didn’t specify that rate, but his colleague, Michael Flatt, senior manager for customer and market intelligence, said about 50% of app users opt in to receive notifications about new surveys, even though this option will compound notification overload: “The customer doesn’t even have to have the app open” to get these push nags, Flatt noted.

In-app surveys also yield more constructive feedback than quick surveys conducted via touch-screen terminals at checkout lines, which Christensen said suffer from a “proximity bias,” in which people standing in front of a cashier feel compelled to accentuate the positive.

Albertsons has since added the option for customers to leave video reviews via its app, which Flatt said has proved insightful for surfacing problems like strawberries sold way too late.

(That panel didn’t get into other ways Albertsons gathers intelligence about customers, which are explained with striking clarity in its privacy policy: “Cameras and other location-aware technologies” to monitor in-store traffic and spot problems like theft or spills—plus, in some states, feed into facial-recognition systems.)

All of these other channels, Flatt said, allowed Albertsons to back away from email surveys, which, in addition to poor response rates, had one other problem in practice: Email tends to be overwhelmingly negative.

This panel, like the others I watched, ended with a QR code shown on the screens at the front of the room—an invitation for attendees to, yup, complete a survey about their experience.

If you’re itching to fill out a survey, meanwhile, consider taking part in PCMag’s Readers’ Choice. Tell us how you feel about your ISP, the income tax apps and services you use, and the PCs you use or manage at work.

Feature image credit: Teera Konakan/PCMag

By Rob Pegoraro

Rob Pegoraro writes about interesting problems and possibilities in computers, gadgets, apps, services, telecom, and other things that beep or blink. He’s covered such developments as the evolution of the cell phone from 1G to 5G, the fall and rise of Apple, Google’s growth from obscure Yahoo rival to verb status, and the transformation of social media from CompuServe forums to Facebook’s billions of users. Pegoraro has met most of the founders of the internet and once received a single-word email reply from Steve Jobs.

Sourced from PC Mag

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An agency guide to working from home effectively

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By Jamie Clifton

As an inbound marketing agency, Bolt has been fortunate enough that all our team are working from home during this time. This transition hasn’t been without its challenges and has taken some getting used to for everyone involved. Trying to run a business and keep all your employees, clients and customers connected takes real adjustment.

After a few weeks of working from home, it’s safe to say we’ve learnt a lot in a short period of time. Here are Bolt’s key takeaways from working from home effectively:

Hannah Benton, creative lead:

I’ve really enjoyed building my little home office on my dining table, but there are challenges. The dog doesn’t understand I’m not at home and available for playtime or door opening duties constantly. I have to refill the kettle a lot and there are still not enough hours in the day. But the positives are that I still feel connected to the team. Living alone means I really value time on calls with the team and seeing their faces (I do that TV presenter thing where I wave at everyone, cringe). There’s no commute anymore and we get to share more dog pics!

Tom Wright, apprentice web developer:

Good communication is key, even more so at home. As there’s so much distance between people, you can’t just shout across the room. Keeping everyone up to date about what’s happening in the company and our general daily lives really helps to keep motivation high. It means everyone is in the know about client goings-on which is needed when working on large projects.

Ellie-Paige Moore, inbound digital lead:

Flexibility has never been an issue for us here at bolt but working from home for the foreseeable future just adds that little bit more. You see a lot of comments and views of people saying to treat the day as if you were in the office which is definitely still something you should do. But if you need to do a little bit of cleaning that you were going to do in the evening and have a spare minute, I say go for it! It takes our eyes and minds away from the screen for a short while and it does give you that flexibility. So even if you’ve worked your full working day, you’ve been able to do those little jobs around the house meaning your evening is fully dedicated to yourself and relaxation.

Jamie Clifton, head of commercial and strategy:

My main takeaway is walking and talking. Usually, in office-style meetings, you might see people sitting around desks, slumped in a poor posture and yawning because they didn’t sleep well the night before, for example. It’s not necessarily people being disinterested but they’re not in their most engaged position. I’ve seen clients, the team and myself be more enthusiastic when walking and talking during conference calls. The way that we convey ourselves is better when standing up and we come up with more ideas. Are walk and talk meetings the future?

Thomas Coughlan, inbound marketing executive:

Having Cloud storage in place has made working from home a lot easier as all our work is accessible for everyone when they need it. It’s meant that there’s no work left in the office as we can access it wherever we are. Having work saved in Google Drive has meant that storage can be saved on my laptop. Using Google Sheets and Docs allows us to work in the same documents without having to be sitting next to each other. This means we can still collaborate on projects by jumping on a call and working on a document.

A downside of working from home though is with more people working from home, the internet can sometimes be slow or cut out completely for a minute or two which isn’t great when most of the work is done online.

James Coughlan, head of operations:

Having a dedicated workspace and great music is what helps me when working from home. Your own area to work away from distractions reduces the dreaded procrastination, as well as making sure I keep my work-life balance separate. Music also helps me zone into the workspace I’ve created and keeps me on point throughout the day.

Ella Mawer, digital designer:

A positive take away from working from home is that I can skip the commute to work every day. Travelling to work for one hour ten minutes takes up a lot of time and is costly with the money I spend on fuel. Having zero commute has freed up my morning and saved so much money. Usually, time is wasted travelling but now I can use it more effectively, like completing a morning workout, carrying out household chores and getting an early start to the day. I’m completing my daily tasks earlier and having more time in the evening when I’ve finished work to wind down, relax and have more time with loved ones.

Laura Greenhalgh, copywriter:

Wear whatever you want! We’ve all heard it somewhere that we should wear what we’d wear to the office while working from home. It’s supposed to be good for routine and get you in the work mindset but for most people, it just isn’t realistic. You should put on whatever you feel comfortable and productive in. Whether that’s the same pair of joggers all week, your gym leggings, pyjamas or dressing gown – wear it!

Sam Blevins, graphic designer:

Working from home has had its challenges. From sharing workspaces with family to relying on messaging or phone calls for communication instead of the usual face-to-face interaction we’d have in the studio. With that said, I believe we’re pulling together and working as efficiently as we can to ensure morale remains high.

So there you have it, bolt’s key takeaways from working from home. Communication is a major issue that’s required a lot more effort from the team to stay as connected as possible. Comfort and flexibility are everything. Whether that’s being in your pyjamas, listening to your favourite playlist or breaking up with the day with the washing up – you can keep your mind focused and productive. Plus, there’s no commute which means we’ve all got time to spare and money saved up!

By Jamie Clifton

Sourced from The Drum

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They Quit an Influencer Marketing Startup and Built Their Own. Now They’re Projecting to Make $3 Million

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BY MARIAPAULA GONZALEZ

Storytime aims to turn influencer marketing into a scalable, city-by-city marketplace for local businesses.

When Aris Yeager and Philip Davis quit their jobs at influencer marketing software company Lefty to start their own business Storytime in 2024, they weren’t sure whether they were about to raise venture capital—or get sued.

The co-founders had met one year earlier, when Davis hired Yeager as an influencer marketing specialist on his team at Lefty. While working for the Paris-based startup, they saw how luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Sephora manage influencers with huge budgets, 100-person teams, and software that costs about $1,500 a month.

At the same time, Yeager was running into friction as he engaged with local brands as a content creator. The 25-year-old had begun cultivating a flamboyant internet persona—known as Louis to his audience—about three years earlier while attending Northeastern University. Today, he has roughly 3 million followers across TikTok and Instagram and regularly commands five-figure brand deals.

Yeager tells Inc. “there was no easy way” to communicate with the brick-and-mortar businesses he visited daily. That sparked an idea: “I was like, ‘Okay, this needs to be more automated—this whole space.’”

As the U.S. head of growth at Lefty, Davis, 27, wrestled with that inefficiency from the other side. The company’s software worked well for global brands, he says, but fell short for fast-growing, location-based businesses trying to drive real foot traffic. So, when Yeager brought him the problem, they built something that did.

Lefty’s co-founder and former CEO Thomas Repelski wasn’t too thrilled when he found out, though, according to Yeager. “He was like, ‘Yo, you’re building in the same space? What the hell?’” he recalls. “I thought we were gonna get into legal trouble.”

Instead, their ex-boss became one of their earliest investors.

Betting on the power of hyperlocal influencers

About a year and a half ago, Yeager and Davis launched Storytime, an influencer marketing platform that connects local content creators with 450 businesses across 1,000 New York City locations, from restaurant chains to jewellery brands to coffee shops. The startup has so far raised about $1 million in pre-seed funding that values it at $15 million. And while Storytime only began monetizing last April, Davis expects to make anywhere from $2 million to $3 million in revenue by late summer.

For brands, the set-up is simple. After downloading the app, they can tailor campaign details, select reach tiers for influencers, and set offer amounts. Storytime takes over from there.

Any Instagram user with at least 2,000 followers can apply to join the platform as a creator, but not everyone gets accepted. Only those with strong local reach—which Storytime measures through audience city demographic data it collects via Instagram’s API—actually make the cut.

Here’s how the math works: a creator with 50,000 followers might draw 5,000 views on a post, but if only 10 percent of that audience is in New York, that translates to about 500 local views, according to Davis. Meanwhile, a smaller creator with 5,000 followers could see 2,000 views per post, with half that audience based in New York—or roughly 1,000 local views. “Their local reach is actually going to be twice as high as the much larger influencer,” he says.

Small business success stories

Most businesses pay a flat monthly fee to use the Storytime app. It costs as little as $150 for 15 Storytime creators per month for smaller brands, while larger brands pay about $5 per influencer collaboration, or roughly $2,500 for 500 collaborations.

That predictable pricing appealed to Ana Luisa, a jewellery brand accustomed to expensive influencer partnerships with murky returns. Storytime allows the Brooklyn-based company to keep its influencer spend under $500 each month and reward creators with gifts ranging from a $30 store gift card to a custom, solid-gold charm bracelet.

Ana Luisa measured a 30 percent increase in internal foot traffic metrics during its first two weeks of working with the startup. Eve Gertzman, the brand’s marketing director, says those gains have held steady in the slower seasons: “For us to be able to maintain pretty strong levels of foot traffic, even in these cold New York weathers, we can heavily attribute that to Storytime.”

For Joe and the Juice, Storytime’s value extends beyond foot traffic. Global brand manager Raania Hammoudan says the platform gives her the ability to dictate how local creators post about Joe and the Juice, including which products they feature, during campaigns like its collaboration with tennis star Novak Djokovic last fall. “That is so valuable to us,” she says.

The bigger picture

The shift towards brands working with hyperlocal influencers has been building for about two to three years now, according to creator economy expert Keith Bendes. “The more reach is harder to achieve organically without paid media, the more you’re trying to niche down to find the loyal pockets,” he says.

The question now is whether Storytime’s local-first model can scale. Yeager and Davis say they’re planning to expand into new cities, including Miami, in the near future. The co-founders are also planning to enter industries beyond food and beverage and add more features like paid campaigns across TikTok and Instagram.

The marketplace they imagined almost two years ago is just getting started. “My vision with it is to make it a ClassPass for creators,” Yeager says. “Every single business that’s on ClassPass, I believe could be on Storytime.”

Feature image credit: Getty Images

BY MARIAPAULA GONZALEZ

Sourced from Inc.

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Augmented reality is taking centre stage in brand marketing

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By Tom Emrich,

Augmented reality (AR) isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. It’s coming for brand marketing next, according to Tom Emrich of Niantic.

In 2022, research from McKinsey showed that the metaverse has the potential to generate up to $5tn in value by 2030. This value creation has attracted brands from across the business landscape, with many dipping their toes into the metaverse for the first time last year.

2022 was defined by these metaverse explorations. Brands innovated, learned, and iterated, all with hopes of unlocking the tremendous business value the metaverse promises.

Gazing into the future, I expect that 2023 will be remembered as the year brands realized that the metaverse will enhance our real-world experience. The driving force behind that progress will be augmented reality (AR).

No app required: browser-based AR as the go-to for brand content

Web-based AR, or WebAR, will see a significant increase in adoption in 2023. The simple, compelling promise of WebAR is that it allows consumers to access AR content via their browser, from anywhere in the world, with no app required.

Whether you’re on Android, iOS, or a future headset, all you’ll need is web access to engage with the infinite possible experiences brands can bring to life through this technology.

Why does this matter for brands? For one thing, it affords marketers massive reach. When anyone with a smartphone can access an experience, brands unlock a massive pool of consumers. And consumers are hungry for AR experiences, with at least 54% of mobile AR users engaging weekly, and at least 75% monthly.

Second, WebAR allows for easier access to AR experiences. One of the main points of friction preventing consumers from enjoying AR – the need to download an app – is completely removed. Downloading a new app is a major drawback for consumers, but switching to browser-based technology streamlines the experience.

AR drives increased ROI across the purchasing funnel

As consumers demand more immersive experiences, brands will embrace the full potential of WebAR to extend the life of campaigns and create richer, more meaningful relationships with customers. This year, AR will become a bigger part of the e-commerce experience, driving dwell time, click-through rate, sales and more while matching heightened consumer expectations for shopping experiences.

With global retail e-commerce sales expected to pass $8tn by 2026, WebAR helps brands unlock the full potential of this boom. For online shoppers, it collapses the purchasing funnel without taking anything away from the customer journey. Consumers move from awareness to intent to purchase, all within one experience that can be accessed without an app and seamlessly integrated into existing e-commerce channels.

For example, Saatchi Art launched a WebAR feature on its website called ‘View My Room’ which allowed art buyers to view over one million pieces virtually. This feature lets buyers see how the artwork looked in advance – a key element in purchase consideration – and resulted in an average 17% increase in spending.

Retail brands will lead the charge on AR commerce

This year, expect retail brands to use WebAR to make the bricks-and-mortar experience more digital and the e-commerce experience more physical, all while driving ROI and continuing to delight consumers.

We’re already seeing adoption in e-commerce, with AR enabling customers to see how different clothes look on them, or see how different items would fit into their living rooms. Adding this more physical and personalized element to e-commerce gives customers more information, increases sales, and reduces return rates, leading to a more satisfying experience. In 2023, this will become more commonplace and part of every consumer’s expectations when they enter their customer journey.

Equally, AR can augment bricks-and-mortar locations to keep the shopping experience fresh. Brands can use AR to enhance their in-store experience, and to drive foot traffic with location-based WebAR experiences. These engaging, personalized experiences give consumers a new reason to shop in-store, leading to more business. Retail brands can even gamify the shopping experiences via activations like in-store scavenger hunts which encourage consumers to spend more time shopping and discovering new items.

By Tom Emrich,

Sourced from The Drum

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The Marketing Move My Clients Hate the Most

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BY JOY GENDUSA

It’s the one that consistently makes them more money.

People don’t ignore advice because it’s wrong—they ignore it because it’s uncomfortable.

Saving money means spending less today. Eating healthy means passing up what tastes best right now. And effective marketing? That usually means doing more than what feels safe—or sane.

After providing 128,706 business owners nationwide with results-based marketing campaigns, I can tell you this with certainty: The marketing strategies that create real, lasting growth are rarely the ones people want to hear.

I’ve spent over 25 years helping businesses generate leads and grow revenue. Along the way, I’ve noticed something fascinating. There’s one piece of advice I give that consistently makes business owners uneasy. It’s questioned and debated. In fact, they flat-out hate it.

Here it is: To effectively grow your business, you have to market more than your competitors—more than you think is actually sane.

That statement alone turns people off. It sounds excessive. Risky. Maybe even self-serving, coming from someone in marketing. But the truth is it doesn’t matter who you market with—or even whether you do it yourself or hire help. The principle stands on its own.

But you don’t have to take my word for it—I come with receipts.

To reach growth goals, spend more on marketing

Gartner research demonstrates that the average 2025 marketing budget stalled at 7.7 percent of company revenue—and that is the same level as 2024. The recommended average marketing spend is 10 percent, but my mantra is do as much as you possibly can and then some!

You have to be willing to market yourself in quantities that feel insane to others. That’s what it takes to create real growth and momentum.

Take a look at these companies who spent far more than 10 percent within the last year, and it made a huge impact on their revenue:

  • Monzo, a UK-based bank, increased its marketing spend 77 percent in 2025 and surpassed £1 billion in revenue, a first for them.
  • Indian retailer Nykaa decided to increase sales and marketing spend 29 percent and reported a 61 percent increase in quarterly profit growth and a 27 percent rise in revenue as a result.
  • Guardant Health, a cancer screening biotech firm, increased sales and marketing spend 30 percent and reported a 21 percent year-over-year revenue increase.

I also have firsthand experience, so you know I practice what I preach.

To stay on top, be consistent with your marketing

I started PostcardMania in 1998 with no investors and no cash—just a marketing plan I refused to abandon. That commitment took our revenue from zero to over $100 million a year.

Early on, I spent more on marketing than I paid myself—and I still do. I drove the same paid-off Nissan well past our first $1 million because I understood one simple truth: The size and consistency of my marketing directly controlled our growth. Growth was my top priority then, and still is.

Today, I mail about 232,000 postcards weekly and invest roughly $50,000 a week in online ads just advertising my business. Since 2020, we’re averaging nearly 15 percent annual revenue growth every year after a decade of averaging 5 percent annual growth. Just last year, we set a new all-time company record in leads generated. I can point to many factors behind that success—but it all starts with my dedication to marketing more than anyone thinks is sane.

So when I say this works, I’m not speaking in theory. I’ve lived it.

I know committing serious dollars to marketing can feel scary—but discipline beats comfort every time. Trust the process, track everything, double down on what performs, and refine what doesn’t.

Do that consistently, and the payoff isn’t just possible. It’s inevitable.

Never let the economy affect your marketing investment

Unstable economic conditions are not a reason to cut your marketing budget—in fact, they’re the exact reason not to.

When things get tight, most businesses pull back or shut off their marketing entirely. That instinct feels safe, but it’s also one of the fastest ways to hamstring your revenue or even put your business at real risk.

When the pandemic hit, Coca-Cola cut its advertising budget by roughly 35 percent, but Pepsi didn’t make any cuts.

Due to this decision, Coca Cola experienced big losses in 2020. Their quarterly revenue shrunk over $1 billion in a single quarter, dropping 16.9 percent from Q1 to Q2. They went from being up 6.96 percent in 2019 to down 28.48 percent in June of 2020 in year-over-year quarterly growth.

In fact, Coca-Cola revenue was down the entirety of 2020 and didn’t rebound until 2021. Meanwhile, PepsiCo returned to growth mode after being down a single quarter. That growth ended up lasting years as they gained more market share.

I made the same call PepsiCo did. When shutdowns began, I refused to stop marketing—and I refused to lay anyone off. That decision wasn’t easy—PostcardMania’s weekly revenue dropped about 40 percent, a swing of more than $500,000 a week—but it paid off.

I stuck to my guns and kept our marketing budget fully funded. And recovery came fast.

By April, revenue was back to pre-shutdown levels. By July, we set a new company record for monthly revenue—and broke it again in October. Despite the economic chaos, we finished 2020 up 10 percent over 2019. Then the momentum compounded. We entered 2020 as a $60 million business, and today we’re at nearly $120 million.

Marketing aggressively—when it feels uncomfortable or even “insane”—has been a massive growth lever for my company and countless others. And it can do the same for you.

So when you are at that fork in the road to take the shortcut or the uphill one, take the challenge. You’ll be far stronger and happier you did.

Feature image credit: Getty Images

BY JOY GENDUSA

Sourced from Inc.

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Making your B2B comms more human is the best way to connect with audiences

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By Harriet Mumford

People want to hear from people, not faceless corporations, explains Harriet Mumford of Nelson Bostock (part of Accenture Song). And B2B marketers would do well to remember it.

If the last decade has proved anything, it’s this: the B2B marketing space is becoming more about people, stories, and meaningful connections. No more is it simply about product manuals and sales sheets; the landscape of B2B communications is taking on creative traits typically reserved only for B2C brands. And this development is a constantly accelerating force, fuelled by the social media revolution that’s made brands and professionals more visible, accessible, and human than ever before.

Platforms such as LinkedIn have morphed from a digital CV storage space into buzzing hubs of authentic personal and professional interaction. LinkedIn is a place for funny people to be funny, creative people to be creative, and interesting people to be accessible. Suddenly, it’s not just about what you do, it’s about who you are, what you stand for, and how you make others feel.

The big question for today’s marketers: how do you inject the human element into every message, every campaign, and every conversation? The TL;DR version: it’s all about having the right messenger.

People want positive

Let’s be honest: facts and features are necessary, but they rarely move the heart. Data is the bedrock on which stories are often told, but it’s never the story by itself. The emotional punch, the optimism, the humour, the empathy are what keep brands top of mind. Think of those unforgettable Christmas ads: you don’t remember which products were on offer that year, but you remember the images and the messages. Well, it’s no different in B2B.

Take Currys’ recent ‘Mind the Grab’ campaign. Tackling the tough reality of phone stealing, electronics retailer Currys painted a bold purple line down London’s Oxford Street to highlight the hot spots for previous phone thefts, grabbing attention and sparking conversations. But the brand didn’t stop at awareness: by teaming up with Birkbeck University, it studied how to shift behaviour and piloted in-store support hubs for victims, turning the campaign into real-world impact. Instead of presenting negative facts about rising criminal behaviour, the message was flipped into one that looked to offer solutions.

Then there’s business insurance broker Simply Business’s ‘Young Entrepreneur Fund.’ Given that 75% of UK teens aged 16-19 dream of launching their own business, and 36% already have a side hustle, the initiative gave £50,000 in grants and six weeks of expert guidance to 10 budding entrepreneurs, with musician Professor Green lending a hand. The result: not just inspiration, but real momentum for the next generation of business leaders.

What’s the lesson here? The campaigns that stick aren’t just creative, they’re constructive. They bring optimism, offer practical help, and team up with those who know their stuff with those who want to learn the stuff. The best B2B content pushes positivity while signposting the next actions to take.

The person is the message

Advertising has always been an influencer industry. Athletes, musicians, actors have all been the faces and voices of endless products for years. Customers put stock in human endorsement and, even in the B2B realm, a single authentic voice is a sure fire way to spark engagement, drive decisions, and build trust.

The Influencer Marketing Hub Benchmark Report tells us the industry has grown by 29%, leaping from $16.4bn to $21.1bn. Why? Because people want to hear from people, not faceless corporations.

Influencers, brand ambassadors, subject matter experts, even micro-influencers connect with audiences on a human level that brands find difficult to achieve. Their recommendations feel genuine, not scripted. Think about how much more likely you are to trust a recommendation from a close friend who knows you than a review from the very brand trying to sell you that product.

Choosing the right influencer builds a bridge between brand and client that feels effortless and authentic. But tread carefully: the wrong messenger can send your campaign off the rails. Remember the infamous Kendall Jenner/Coca-Cola moment, or Sydney Sweeney’s recent American Eagle drama? The messages fall flat, fail to resonate, or cause a backdraft of bad blood that can backfire on the brand.

Authenticity is everything. Content that feels forced, or worse, fabricated, erodes trust faster than it can be recovered. Just look at recent incidents where Wired and Business Insider had to pull AI-generated articles featuring unverifiable case studies. When real stories are replaced by fictional voices, credibility suffers.

In B2B, trust is your currency, humanity your cache. By seeing the person as the message, brands can speak directly to an audience’s experience, without needing to force an issue.

Think small for big impact

B2B outreach often feels like shouting into the void or blasting emails to an anonymous list. We’ve all deleted enough ‘Hi (Insert First Name)’ emails without ever reading them. But the most effective communications target smaller, more tightly defined groups: a specific team, an industry niche, or even an individual decision-maker. Broad, one-size-fits-all messaging rarely hits home as fishing with dynamite is nowhere near as effective as using proper bait. Targeted, thoughtful outreach builds stronger relationships and better results than generic blasts ever could.

That’s where micro-influencers come in. Unlike the mega-influencers with millions of followers (and a fraction of meaningful engagement), micro-influencers have close-knit, highly interactive communities. The stats don’t lie: micro-influencers see a 6% engagement rate on Instagram, compared to just 1.97% for their larger counterparts.

This is something that brands can use to their own advantage. Consider BOX’s campaign with Rob Mayhew, known as ‘adland’s favourite social media star.’ With over 140,000 followers on TikTok and 90,000 on LinkedIn, Rob’s creative, satirical takes on the world of work resonate deeply with his audience, people who know the challenges of modern workplaces. BOX leveraged his voice to address tech issues in relatable, trustworthy ways, turning a sponsored post into a genuine conversation. Talking directly to people who connect with their influencer, rather than just consume their content while suffering from ‘scrolliosis’.

More than content

There is no secret to B2B success. Simply, make campaigns personal, optimistic, and above all, human. When you prioritize authentic connections, whether through campaigns that uplift, influencers that inspire, or messages that speak directly to the needs of your audience, you create more than content. You build trust, loyalty, and partnerships that stand the test of time.

So, next time you’re reviewing campaign results, remember: don’t shoot the B2B messenger. Instead, choose one who believes in your story, speaks your language, and engages your audience. That’s how business gets personal, and how brands win in today’s B2B world.

By Harriet Mumford

Sourced from The Drum

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Beehiiv Launches AI Media Library & Getty Images Integration

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The Gist

  • AI-driven media. Beehiiv launches a unified AI-powered media library for assets.
  • Getty integration. Users on higher plans access licensed Getty Images directly.
  • Publisher efficiency. Newsletter teams can streamline workflows and enhance content quality.

Beehiiv wants AI-powered asset management to become essential infrastructure for newsletter publishers competing on visual quality and speed.

The company on Feb. 12 launched an AI-powered Media Library for its newsletter platform, introducing built-in editing tools and direct integration with Getty Images for premium, fully licensed visuals, according to company officials. Getty Images access is limited to Max and Enterprise plan subscribers, who receive three and 10 image credits per month, respectively.

beehiiv medial library

Table of Contents

Recent Beehiiv Developments

Beehiiv executed a significant strategic expansion in November 2025, positioning itself beyond its newsletter roots to become what CEO Tyler Denk called “the operating system for the content economy.” The company’s November 13 Winter Release introduced an AI-native website builder, native podcast hosting, real-time website analytics and a digital products marketplace with a zero-commission model.

Founded in 2024, beehiiv targets independent creators, publishers and startups seeking to manage and monetize direct audience relationships. It now serves legacy publishers such as TIME, Newsweek and the Texas Tribune. In January 2026, beehiiv introduced Dynamic Content, enabling code-free email personalization.

On Dec. 17, 2025, beehiiv released Automations v3 alongside a redesigned Workflow Builder. The update delivered behaviour-based triggers, subscriber-level insights, a Journey Overview dashboard and a Performance Overview showing email-level contribution metrics.

Beehiiv’s ad network has become a significant revenue driver, paying publishers over $1 million monthly and attracting advertisers including Google, Netflix, Notion and Roku. With revenue projected to nearly double to $50 million in 2026, beehiiv now has more than 40,000 monthly active users and nearly 15,000 paying subscribers.

How AI-Enhanced DAM Platforms Are Becoming Strategic Content Command Centres

AI-enhanced digital asset management systems have evolved from basic storage into strategic content command centres that reshape how newsletter publishers manage creative workflows. Modern platforms integrate centralized media libraries with AI capabilities that automate labour-intensive tasks while maintaining brand governance.

AI-powered DAM systems reduce manual effort by automatically tagging images and videos with relevant keywords and descriptions. Enhanced search functionality leverages AI to understand intent and context beyond simple keywords, delivering relevant results even as asset libraries scale.

Beehiv Media Library Feature Breakdown

Capability Description
AI Image Generation Generate visuals on demand via text prompts
Built-in Image Editor Crop, rotate, resize, filter and annotate assets
Getty Images Integration Access licensed visuals directly (Max/Enterprise plans)
Global Asset Sharing Share assets across multiple publications
Enhanced Search & Filters Filter by date, file type, publication and dimensions

More About Beehiiv

Beehiiv targets independent creators, journalists and publisher-led businesses seeking to manage and monetize direct audience relationships. The platform provides newsletter creation, a no-code website builder, campaign analytics, A/B testing and AI-driven automation. These capabilities help publishers deliver a stronger customer experience by enabling personalization at scale.

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Sheryl Hodge is assistant managing editor at Simpler Media Group, where she plays a vital role in keeping the editorial operations running smoothly across the company’s three sites: CMSWire, Reworked and VKTR. Known for her organizational skills and attention to detail, Sheryl acts as the glue that binds the publications together, ensuring that workflows remain seamless and deadlines are met. Connect with Sheryl Hodge:

Sourced from CMSWIRE

 

 

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Why Cannes is all about User Experience

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By Kai Henniges

Cannes is all about the experience. If you invite your partners and clients to a yacht party, they’ll have a great time, they’ll feel looked after and leave tipsy and happy. Invite them to an intimate lunch in a nice restaurant, they’ll feel valued, special, and probably also leave tipsy and happy. Some prospects will only experience Cannes remotely, online from their desk in their office.

All of these experiences are valuable, but they work for prospects at different points in the funnel.

For me, Cannes Lions embodies the importance of experience. Experience matters, and it affects the way we feel, and our perception of brands. This year, experience was the common theme underpinning the conversations at Cannes. Beyond events, too often advertisers, publishers and platforms forget about experience and focus on just the numbers.

Another example: two of Cannes Lions’ big 2018 awards winners was Spotify – which won Media Brand of the Year, and ‘Today at Apple’, the tech brand’s programme of in-store events. What links these two winners? Experience.

Spotify has refined its experience so that as a user I no longer need to curate my music choices, the platform has already done it for me. Apple used its large retail presence to deliver customer experiences that surprised and delighted. These are worthy award winners, because they had a vision beyond the immediate conversion, to the value of enjoyment, and longevity. We can learn from this.

Digital advertising ignored user experience for too long. By optimising on abstract metrics, the impact on internet users became too much. People were annoyed at retargeting, they were outraged at their data being treated with neglect. People felt helpless to protect their identities online. The result: GDPR and ePrivacy, a backlash against social platforms, ad blindness, ad blocking, brand safety… all-in-all, a general distaste for online advertising. The fall-out of this dominated the conversations at Cannes this year.

If we had focussed more on delivering advertising as a natural part of the online experience, perhaps we wouldn’t be in this pickle. Video is something users want, that much is clear, but we must be considerate with how we deliver it. The rise of Outstream video advertising embodies this interruptive experience; if you’ve ever had an ad push text apart in front of your eyes you’ll know what I mean. Sound-on auto play video is another example.

This is where context comes in. Delivering video in relevant environments gives users moving image that complements their goals. It adds to their experience. We should create an advertising eco-system that learns from the UX world, where details matter.

In the context of Cannes, a yacht party or fancy lunch works. It fits in with the environment, and people enjoy it. Marketers understand that, but we need to translate that understanding to everything we do – including the way we design online experiences. This is a collective responsibility, advertisers should consider how they buy inventory, and publishers need to think how they integrate advertising into their pages.

The brand activation at Cannes, the award winners, and the conversations were all underpinned by the concept of experience. Whether you took part in Cannes from the bow of a boat or the monitor on your desk, the real takeaway is that experience matters online, just as much an offline. If we can get experience right, we’ll get advertising right.

By Kai Henniges

Kai Henniges, CEO and co-founder, Video Intelligence.

Sourced from The Drum

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How To Evolve Omnichannel Marketing Strategies: 19 Expert Tips

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Sourced from Forbes

Omnichannel marketing was once assessed by how many platforms a brand could show up on and maintain a presence over time. As consumer expectations have evolved, however, so too has the definition of “omnichannel.” Audiences no longer experience different channels as separate touchpoints, but as a single, continuous relationship that carries context, intent and trust from one interaction to the next.

This shift has made a cross-channel marketing strategy less about scale and more about cohesion, requiring brands to connect data, emotion and experience across the moments that increasingly shape loyalty and decision-making. Below, 19 members of Forbes Agency Council share how the meaning of omnichannel marketing has evolved over time along with strategies brands are using to market more effectively in response.

1. Recognize Customers Across Channels

Omnichannel doesn’t mean doing everything, everywhere. A consistent brand experience across all platforms strengthens brand identity and helps customers recognize and trust the brand everywhere they encounter it. People now expect a brand to recognize them across channels, not restart interactions from zero. Competitive differentiation is increasingly based on experience, not presence alone. – Tripp Donnelly, REQ

2. Offer Deep Engagement Throughout The Brand Ecosystem

“Omnichannel” marketing has evolved from a static checklist of disparate channels (traditional media, social platforms, basic advertising) into a dynamic, multi-touch ecosystem designed for seamless brand awareness and education across every customer interaction. There is a need for deeper engagement in a fragmented media landscape, where consumers encounter brands through countless touchpoints. – Jay Deutsch, BDA, Inc.

3. Carry Emotional Intent Across Platforms

Omnichannel has shifted from being everywhere to delivering the same emotional impact and experience everywhere. Brands invest millions to create a feeling in major ad moments, then abandon it in their loyalty efforts, promotions and everyday interactions. That gap breaks trust. The evolution is about carrying emotional intent from the media into experiences that actually sustain loyalty. – Andrew Mitchell, Brandmovers Inc

4. Use Data To Craft Seamless Cross-Channel Experiences

Omnichannel strategy has evolved from simply being present across various platforms to emphasizing the importance of delivering a unified, seamless audience experience across the channels where your audience is. This shift highlights the significance of data in achieving effective continuity in marketing across multiple channels, rather than just the quantity or variety of media channels used. – Jeff Kaplan, TARA Media

5. Show Up On The Right Channels, Earn Trust And Guide

Omnichannel has evolved from simply being on every channel to actually connecting those moments in a meaningful way. Today, it’s about showing up where your audience is, earning their trust over repeated interactions and quietly guiding them toward a decision throughout their entire buying journey. – Ajay Prasad, GMR Web Team

6. Leverage Identity-Based Targeting And Attributions

The most significant evolution is the shift to identity-based targeting and attributions. It moves past simply being on multiple channels. Today’s strategy must link every touchpoint back to a single persistent customer identity using identity graphs. This is critical because it allows brands to reach the right person with personalized messages and accurately attribute revenue to the right channels. – Ajay Gupta, Stirista

7. Connect Channels Into A Single Unified Journey

The term omnichannel is becoming obsolete. While it emphasizes the need for multiple touchpoints, it also signals a siloed approach. In 2026, brands need a strategy that connects their channels into one, unified experience for their audiences. Today’s consumers want to move simply and seamlessly across touchpoints, and research shows Gen Z and Gen Alpha will demand it. – Dani Mariano, Razorfish

8. Plan More Integrated, Flexible Strategies

With omnichannel marketing now extending to different outlets that range from digital to terrestrial radio to sponsorships, the evolution is significant. This evolution is due to brands that must plan more integrated, flexible strategies that meet consumers at multiple touchpoints rather than relying on a single channel approach. – Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, Hawthorne Advertising

9. Unify Identities Across Touchpoints To Personalize Content

Omnichannel with personalization wins. This means connecting data, unifying identity, then using that to adapt content, offers and experiences across every touchpoint—store, site, app, email, social, marketplaces and even packaging. The hard part is knowing your customers inside and out. Then, mastering the channels becomes the easy part of omnichannel marketing. – Stephen Rosa, (add)ventures

10. Move From Siloed Presence To Data-Driven Integration

“Omnichannel” has shifted from multi-channel presence to identity-driven continuity—delivering a connected experience powered by unified customer data. It matters because brands can no longer think in silos; audiences expect relevance and consistency across every touchpoint, making data quality and integration the real foundation of success. – Paula Chiocchi, Outward Media, Inc.

11. Deliver A Consistent Narrative At Every Touchpoint

Omnichannel has evolved from being channel-centric to experience-centric. It’s no longer about being everywhere, but about delivering a consistent narrative across paid, earned, owned and AI-driven touchpoints. This matters because trust and recognition now depend on message continuity, not channel volume. – Boris Dzhingarov, ESBO Ltd

12. Recognize Omnichannel As The Baseline, Not Extra

I’ve not heard the term “omnichannel” for some time. Not because it’s not relevant, but simply because the best marketing campaigns are all omnichannel. Thinking with a siloed mentality is outdated and ineffective, and omnichannel shouldn’t be something extra; it should be everyday marketing thinking. – Mike Maynard, Napier Partnership Limited

13. Prioritize Consistency Over Breadth Of Coverage

Omnichannel has shifted from being everywhere to creating a seamless brand experience. Today, consistency across platforms matters more than coverage. Brands win when their story feels connected, not scattered. – Manuel Machado, CCOMGROUP Inc.

14. Showcase Value By Teaching Instead Of Selling

Omnichannel used to be about being everywhere. Now, it’s about showing up with value. As consumers tune out marketing noise, they gravitate toward channels where they learn and feel more in control of decisions. That shift makes it essential for brands to turn to integrated, education-led strategies that immerse buyers by teaching, rather than selling. In turn, your brand builds trust and stands out. – Kim Lawton, Enthuse Marketing

15. Guide Decisions By Removing Friction In Buying

Omnichannel has evolved from coordinating channels to guiding decisions. It is no longer about being everywhere or even being consistent; it is about removing friction as customers move from awareness to confidence. Brands that win today design omnichannel strategies around decision moments, not media plans, so every touchpoint answers the next question a customer has. – Robert Burko, Elite Digital Inc.

16. Build Credibility In The Right Places With Strong Content

The big shift? AI is now infused into every app, search tool and platform your buyers use. That means brands no longer need to address every channel individually. Focus on building credibility and creating solid content in strategic places. AI handles the proliferation. You get true omnichannel reach without the omnichannel headache. – Christine Wetzler, Pietryla PR & Marketing

17. Reinforce The Same Story To Inspire The Same Action

Omnichannel has shifted from “be everywhere” to “be consistent and useful everywhere your audience actually is.” It is no longer about channel count. It is about connected signals, shared data and one clear experience across touchpoints. That matters because brands cannot afford scattershot efforts now. You win when every channel reinforces the same story and moves people toward the same action. – Lars Voedisch, PRecious Communications

18. Bolster Internal Operational Capacity; Deliver Consistently

Omnichannel shifted from channel coverage to experience alignment. The real challenge isn’t reaching customers everywhere. It’s keeping your internal systems stable enough to deliver consistently across those channels. Brands fail when back-end workflows can’t support front-end promises. Strategy now starts with operational capacity, not channel expansion. – Meeky Hwang, Ndevr, Inc

19. Engage Sales Teams To Work In Concert With Marketing

Omnichannel is still as relevant as ever. Omnichannel is a content engagement strategy used to reinforce or support a customer journey; they are not one and the same. The biggest gap in successfully deploying omnichannel strategies is the lack of sales engagement. If the sales team is not engaged and working in concert for a holistic customer experience, then marketing is just yelling into the void. – Tyler Back, Mitosis

Feature image credit: Getty

Sourced from Forbes

 

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Marketing Teams Got Smaller In 2025 Even As Hiring Expanded, New Study Shows

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By Allwork.Space News Team

A new analysis of job postings shows marketing listings dropped 8.2% in 2025 — even as the number of hiring employers rose more than 5%.

After a strong start early in the year, the U.S. in-house marketing job market cooled over the course of 2025. Hiring did not disappear, but it became more selective: more employers posted roles, while overall job volume declined, signalling a move toward smaller, more senior-leaning marketing teams.

The findings are based on an analysis of more than 240,000 active in-house marketing job listings posted between January and December 2025, conducted by Taligence in collaboration with Aspen Technology Labs. The data covers full-time, in-house marketing roles only.

More Companies Hiring, Fewer Roles Per Team

Total active marketing job listings reached 241,749 in 2025, down 8.2% from the prior year. New postings fell even further, declining 10.2% year over year.

At the same time, the number of employers posting marketing jobs rose to nearly 39,000, an increase of more than 5%.

This divergence points to a clear pattern: companies continued to hire marketing talent, but did so with fewer openings per organization. Hiring momentum peaked in the first quarter, dropped sharply in Q2, stabilized in Q3, and softened again toward year-end, in part due to seasonal pauses around the holidays.

By late December, active marketing job listings stood just under 32,000, slightly higher than the same time in 2024 but down from the end of the third quarter.

Senior Roles Prove More Durable

While overall job volume declined, senior-level marketing roles showed greater resilience. Director-level and above postings increased modestly year over year, reaching nearly 30,000 roles in 2025. The number of employers seeking senior marketing talent also grew, even as the creation of entirely new senior roles remained relatively flat.

In the fourth quarter, senior postings rose compared with Q3, and year-end active senior roles were more than 12% higher than a year earlier.

Demand for experienced leaders fluctuated less than the broader market, reinforcing a transition toward “player-coach” profiles capable of leading leaner teams.

Entry-Level Hiring Remains Under Pressure

Job openings for entry-level through manager roles peaked early in the year and steadily declined thereafter. These roles struggled to recover following a sharp contraction in Q2 and ended 2025 well below their January baseline.

By contrast, higher-level titles such as Group Director, Senior Director, and Vice President recorded year-over-year growth and regained momentum in the second half of the year. The widening gap suggests employers prioritized decision-making and execution over junior headcount.

Hiring Timelines Lengthen, but Stabilize

By year-end, the average marketing job posting remained open for 39 days. That was longer than in 2024, indicating more deliberate hiring processes, but slightly shorter than at the end of the third quarter. The data suggests hiring slowed compared with last year, without further deterioration late in 2025.

Pay Transparency Improves as Salaries Rise

More than half of marketing job listings disclosed salary ranges in 2025, continuing a steady improvement in transparency. The median advertised salary reached $88,400 by late December, representing a 7.1% increase year over year.

Compensation gains were strongest in specialized and revenue-aligned disciplines. Product Marketing posted the highest median pay, while Field Marketing, Growth Marketing, and Brand Marketing saw the largest year-over-year salary increases.

Demand Shifts Toward Growth and Product Functions

Growth-oriented roles led hiring gains, with Growth Marketing, Partner and Channel Marketing, Field Marketing, and Product Marketing all posting double-digit growth. Brand and Content Marketing also expanded, though at a slower pace.

In contrast, Communications and PR, Analytical Marketing, and generalist marketing roles declined year over year, underscoring a move away from broad marketing functions toward roles tied more directly to revenue and customer acquisition.

Remote Hiring Holds Steady

Remote roles accounted for roughly 14.5% of all marketing job listings at year-end, a modest increase from the prior year. The data suggests remote work has stabilized as a structural feature of marketing hiring rather than an expanding trend.

Geography: New York Gains, Seattle Slips

California, New York, and Texas continued to lead the country in overall marketing job volume, followed by Florida, Illinois, and Georgia. New York posted the strongest year-over-year growth among large states and also saw notable salary increases.

At the city level, New York City and San Francisco recorded sharp job growth, alongside Austin, Atlanta, and Miami. Seattle dropped out of the top ten markets after a significant contraction, highlighting uneven recovery across major metros.

What the Data Signals Going Into 2026

By the end of 2025, the marketing job market was still active, but more restrained. Employers hired with intent rather than scale, favouring experienced talent and specialized skill sets while keeping teams lean.

Senior roles, growth-focused disciplines, and higher pay transparency defined the year, while entry-level hiring lagged behind. As 2026 begins, marketing hiring appears less about rebuilding headcount and more about maximizing impact within tighter organizational structures.

By Allwork.Space News Team

The Allwork.Space News Team is a collective of experienced journalists, editors, and industry analysts dedicated to covering the ever-evolving world of work. We’re committed to delivering trusted, independent reporting on the topics that matter most to professionals navigating today’s changing workplace — including remote work, flexible offices, coworking, workplace wellness, sustainability, commercial real estate, technology, and more.

Sourced from Future of Work

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