TLDR Marketing 2025-09-24

Streaming platforms lead US ad receptivity, with The New York Times, Amazon, Apple TV, Netflix, and X ranking highest. Consumer openness to ads rose to 58% from 47% last year. Marketer investment plans for 2026 favor podcasts and streaming, clashing with consumer interest in OOH, sponsorships, and publications. Hispanic consumers show above-average receptivity to Online Video and Stories. Over 70% of marketers use generative AI, yet 60% of consumers distrust it.

59% of parents report higher social media use since having children. Usage spikes around events like Black Friday, holidays, and back-to-school. Parents also shop collaboratively with children, with 67% influenced by what kids see online. While parenthood fuels online activity, brands are advised to target parents through their hobbies and interests, not only their role as caregivers.

EU lawmakers are considering changes to the e-Privacy Directive that triggered the constant cookie consent pop-ups online. Ideas include browser-based consent settings or broader exceptions for essential cookies, reducing the need for repeated prompts. Industry leaders are pushing for alignment with GDPR's risk-based model, while privacy groups raise concerns that data protections could be weakened.

ChatGPT drives high-converting traffic but often generates faulty URLs, which can waste potential visits. An Ahrefs study found ChatGPT 5 links to error pages nearly three times more than Google Search. To recover lost traffic, start by tracking ChatGPT-driven 404 pages in Google Analytics using filters for session source and error page titles. Next, create helpful 404 pages that guide visitors when they land on hallucinated URLs. Use 301 redirects only for broken URLs that generate measurable traffic.

A custom social feed was built by outlining a framework with features like voting, saves, topic filters, timestamps, breaking news alerts, and weekly reading stats. Lovable handled the technical build with Supabase, PWA support, and responsive design, while conversational feedback shaped iterations and aesthetics. Specific news and culture sources were added, unwanted ones excluded, and a widget was placed on the phone's homepage. The result is a curated, distraction-free content hub distinct from traditional social media.

Most marketing teams were early adopters of ChatGPT and Claude, using them for campaign briefs, social copy and more. But AI can do more than content generation.

With Connect AI, securely link real-time data from Google Analytics, Salesforce, Marketo, and more in minutes to AI assistants for better reporting and faster decision-making.

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Tapestry is an app that gathers content from blogs, RSS feeds, YouTube channels, and other sources into a single chronological timeline. No algorithm interferes with the feed. It prioritizes privacy with no tracking, allows muting of topics and spoilers across feeds, and offers customization of layouts, fonts, and icons.

LinkedIn's Company Intelligence API shifts B2B measurement from lead-level tracking to company-level insights that reflect how real buying decisions are made. Early adopters reported a 287% increase in companies reached, 75% more MQLs, 96% more SQLs, and a 43% reduction in acquisition costs. The tooling allows marketers to see the full buyer journey, prioritize high-value accounts, improve attribution accuracy, and link campaigns directly to pipeline growth and revenue.

Go Fish Digital is hosting a webinar that will cover how brands can get cited by top publications to boost brand visibility, SEO, and inclusion in LLM responses. The panel will discuss how PR drives visibility, the links and mentions that carry weight with LLMs, and how to influence knowledge panels and entity-driven results. The event takes place today at 2 pm ET.

This study examined the cognitive impact of using ChatGPT for essay writing. It compared participants who used an LLM, a search engine, or only their own brain across multiple sessions. EEG data revealed that reliance on the LLM reduced neural connectivity and engagement compared with the Brain-only and Search Engine groups, and participants using the LLM showed weaker memory recall and lower ownership of their work. While LLMs offer immediate assistance, extended use may impair cognitive effort and learning skills.

Brands often fall into the “Tyranny of the OR,” choosing single-dimensional strategies rather than embracing paradoxical promises that deliver both seemingly conflicting benefits. Unsuccessful examples include Cracker Barrel returning to its original premise and Jaguar abandoning its legacy for a new identity, each potentially missing opportunities to balance heritage with innovation. Research shows consumers dislike trade-offs that force them to sacrifice something they value, preferring brands that satisfy multiple, even contradictory, needs at once. Successful brands like McDonald's, Apple, and Coke have grown by solving paradoxes rather than choosing one side.

Examples of gamified emails built via Zaymo.

The head of content, social, and integrated marketing at Microsoft shares what's worked for their EGC program.

The new beta for Google Ads lets app marketers apply seasonality signals to Smart Bidding, enabling proactive bid boosts during major promotions without waiting for algorithm changes.