Hello Marketers!! This Monday, we'll explore where AI actually helps and where it quietly hurts performance, from 3 failed CRO tests to Meta’s latest tools and smarter Google Shopping setups. Plus, there’s more to discover inside and steal a few ideas along the way below…

Reddit is testing optional verified profiles using a subtle grey checkmark that confirms identity without perks, payment, or algorithmic advantages. The goal isn’t status, but clarity. It helps users know who they’re interacting with in moments where identity matters, like AMAs or official brand participation. Why it matters (POV): This gives brands or experts a way to earn trust inside Reddit communities without breaking its pseudonymous culture. Platforms that signal real humans can create higher-quality conversations.

Glossier’s 2025 social strategy doubled down on authenticity, sensory storytelling, and culture-led creator partnerships. Their most-viewed sponsored post passed 10M views by letting a creator simply be themselves, while GRWM (get ready with me) content and collabs (like KATSEYE) proved that lo-fi, intimate formats still scale. TikTok Shop tightened the loop between discovery and conversion, and community feedback directly shaped product and packaging decisions. Looking ahead, Glossier sees the future of social as “intimacy at scale,” with episodic formats, unexpected creators, and tighter links between digital content and IRL experiences. Why it matters (POV): This reinforces a clear change: high-performing social content now feels human and culturally aware. Brands that listen visibly to their community and design repeatable formats can easily gain trust from their customers.

Product titles are the real driver (not keywords) behind Google Shopping performance. Google matches ads based on product attributes, so vague branded names hurt discoverability, especially for new e-commerce brands. Expanding titles with clear attributes (material, size, color, fit, gender, use case) and writing fuller descriptions (500–1,000 characters, with the most important info up front) helps Google match products to real buyer intent. The key rule: lead with what people actually search for, then add the brand and modifiers. Why it matters (POV): This is a reminder that Google Shopping rewards clarity over creativity. Brands that prioritize searchable language and buyer intent in titles and descriptions give Google better signals.

Google rolled out the December 2025 core update, its third of the year. At the same time, Google expanded Preferred Sources globally in Top Stories, giving users more control over which publishers they see, and began testing social performance data inside Search Console Insights. Together, these moves signal that rankings, visibility, and traffic are now shaped by both big, visible updates and quieter, ongoing adjustments. Why it matters (POV): Visibility is increasingly earned through steady improvements, strong brand trust, and consistent audience signals, while users themselves are gaining more control over what they see and who they return to.

Across CRO tests from iStock, IBM, and Prezi, leaning harder into AI language consistently underperformed clearer, benefit-led messaging. iStock saw conversions drop when it added an AI benefit callout at checkout, likely because AI introduces confusion when paired with anti-AI-generated content rules. IBM’s “Customize your AI” CTA lost to the simpler “Take the Tour,” as users responded better to clarity about what happens next than to vague, AI-forward language. Prezi’s attempt to repeatedly brand “Prezi AI” across its homepage also failed, proving that users care far more about what AI does than what it’s called. Why it matters (POV): These tests show that conversion momentum comes from reducing cognitive load and emphasizing tangible outcomes. Brands that treat AI as an invisible enabler, rather than the headline feature, are more likely to convert intent into action.

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New AI-powered tools make it easier for brands to find, evaluate, and turn existing organic creator content on IG and FB into partnership ads. The updated Partnership Ads Hub now surfaces UGC and affiliate content, shows performance metrics, and streamlines permissions, while a new Partnership Ads API enables creator-led ads at scale. Meta says partnership ads drive 19% lower CPAs and 13% higher CTRs on average, proving why creator spend continues to grow rapidly. Why it matters: By reducing friction around discovery, permissions, and scale, this update makes creator-led ads faster to launch, more measurable, and harder to ignore as a core performance channel.

HubSpot’s Q4 2025 research introduces Loop Marketing, a four-stage framework (Express, Tailor, Amplify, Evolve) designed for a world where 60% of searches don’t result in clicks and AI answers questions before users reach brand sites. The data shows: top performers are far more likely to have a documented, consistent value proposition, review positioning quarterly, personalize at scale, and optimize continuously. AI is most effective when used to support clarity, personalization, multi-channel distribution, and faster iteration, not as a replacement for strategy. Why it matters (POV): Teams that combine strong fundamentals with AI-assisted execution adapt faster, waste less effort, and stay visible even when the click never happens.

Up to a third of consumers are expected to walk away from brands as prices rise, while marketers’ confidence in measuring impact is forecast to drop as AI and data transparency increase. AI adoption will continue, but with more scrutiny, slower rollout of agentic systems, and higher stakes around privacy, security, and workforce readiness. Why it matters (POV): Growth in 2026 won’t come from experimentation for its own sake. Brands that invest in trust, segment-aware experiences, and defensible measurement, while keeping humans firmly in the loop with AI, can be better positioned to volatility as budgets tighten and consumer tolerance drops.

TikTok’s partnership with DoubleVerify will bring Authentic Attention measurement to TikTok ads, giving advertisers impression-level insights like viewable time, share of screen, video presentation, and audibility. The move directly targets the long-standing “measurement gap” in social and creator marketing, where spend has scaled faster than credible performance signals. Why it matters (POV): Attention, not impressions, is becoming the currency of social advertising. By offering more granular, trusted measurement, TikTok is making it easier for brands to justify spend, optimize creative, and keep budgets flowing.

TLDR: Patagonia avoided holiday hard selling, turned honesty into trust, and grew revenue 30% the following year to $543 million.

Patagonia understood the holiday expectation (urgency, discounts, pressure), then deliberately violated it. That surprise triggered attention. By admitting the real environmental cost of its jacket, it practiced radical honesty, which builds trust faster than persuasion. The message shifted from transactions to identity (“If you care, act accordingly”), making not buying feel morally right. Overconsumption became the enemy, not other brands.

How to implement:
Identify the default buying behavior in your category, then break it with transparency. Frame behavior, not competitors, as the problem. Replace urgency with values and let customers express identity through choice.

Here are some more examples…

We flip the category incentive, reduce buyer guilt, support identity (“I’m a thoughtful buyer”), and create trust, making the eventual purchase feel earned, not sold.

Trigger upsells by time or behavior, not checkout. Example: “Most people upgrade after 30 days of use.” This triggers after the customer has experienced real value, not at checkout when intent is fragile. The use of social proof makes the upgrade feel like the next logical step, not a sales push.

— Sam C.