As technology changes, so does consumer behavior, meaning we need to be ready to change with it. Digital marketing is evolving constantly and with the addition of artificial intelligence (AI) and changing privacy regulations, brands have had to reshape how they interact and connect with consumers. This leaves the marketing industry in a place to change with the times or fall behind. Over the next five years, we need to be ready to work developments including AI-powered Advertising, Privacy First Marketing and First Party Data and Commerce Media to remain engaged with the market.
AI is taking the world by storm, and if it continues at the rate is has been, it will become a widely adopted tool to automate campaign planning, optimization and measurement tracking. It has the capability to go beyond an assisting tool, instead being used to manage entire advertising campaigns, from selecting audiences and testing creative variations to allocating budgets and optimizing bids in real time. The American Marketing Association (AMA) believes AI will automate most of the transactional sections of marketing, leaving more time to focus on the creative process, strategic planning and ensuring a brand is able to maintain authentic story telling (O’Brien, 2026). However, it is a mixed bag on how the financial implications of AI will impact marketing. McKinsey reported 75% of advertisers expect AI to increase overall spending whereas the remainder anticipate it to improve return on advertising spending (ROAS) by at least 10% (Trotter et al. 2026). AI could help enhance digital advertising, making campaigns more efficient, minimizing need for manual tasks and allowing advertisers to curate more personalized messages on larger scales all while continuing to improve campaign performance.
With the growing privacy regulations and consumers becoming more concerned with how their information is being collected and used, advertisers are expected to rely more on first party data and technologies designed to preserve privacy rather than third party cookies. Experian is predicting first part data use and integration of measurement with campaign activation will be essential for successful marketing strategies (Experian, 2026). Recent research on Google’s Topics API suggests, contextual advertising and privacy conscious targeting will be increasingly important as digital marketing acclimates to a post cookies era (Romero et al, 2024). With new regulations, like the EU’s AI transparency requirements, we can see the need to prioritize trust and transparency with consumers as well as responsible use of AI while still delivering relevant advertising experiences.
There has been growth in commerce media, and it is expected to continue growing in coming years. The ability to integrate shopping and advertising through retail, streaming, travel companies and the development of connected television has driven a new channel to increase ROI on advertising. Rather than advertising and shopping being separate experiences, brands are able to connect consumers directly to the point of sale through their campaigns. Experian identified commerce media as one of the fastest growing areas in digital advertising (Experian, 2026) Amazon Ads had similar reports, showing consumers are discovering the same products across multiple digital platforms, requiring brands to deliver consistent personalized experiences (Amazon Ads, 2026). This development is expected to continue improving advertising effectiveness, providing stronger measurement capabilities and clearer ROI metrics.
The future of marketing is dependent on brands’ ability to identify and implement these developments. Successfully combining these with ethical data practices and high-quality compelling creative will allow brands to build long-lasting customer relationships and achieve better marketing outcomes.
References
Amazon Ads. (2026). 5 top marketing trends of 2026 to help brands connect with consumers.
Experian. (2026). 2026 digital trends and predictions.
O’Brien, J. (2026). 2026 future trends in marketing report. American Marketing Association.
Romero, J., Cuevas, Á., & Cuevas, R. (2024). Digital advertising in a post-cookie world: Charting the impact of Google’s Topics API.
Trotter, J., Brodherson, M., George, Q., & Srinath, A. (2026). The agentic advertising economy: From attention to action. McKinsey & Company.
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