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How AI Is Upending Marketing
PLUS: Everything Marketers Need to Know About AI Search
Zihan Lyu
June 07, 2025
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Hi there!
Highlights from today's newsletter:
🎯 Exclusive insights from SXSW London and Shoptalk Europe 2025
🔍 Have Google's AI Overview ranking factors been revealed?
📱 Unilever's data-driven, social-first future With Ryu Yokoi
EDITOR’S PICK
The ClickZ team touched down in two cities this week — and we came back with fresh takes worth your scroll.
From the boldest brand moments at Shoptalk Europe to the emotion-led creativity on display at SXSW London, our editors were on the ground to spot the ideas shaping marketing’s next chapter.
Catch the highlights in our two dedicated event publications:
Here are two of many exclusive insights from the week 👇
#EXCLUSIVE EVENT INSIGHTS
What happens when a mountain guide reinvents the running shoe from the ground up — and then refuses to follow the industry playbook?
At Shoptalk Europe, HOKA co-founder Nicolas Mermoud shared how a downhill disaster sparked a billion-dollar brand built on feel, not flash. From maximal foam to zero ad spend, HOKA’s breakout was about propulsion, emotion, and trusting what runners feel before they explain it.
This was a case study in how breaking category logic can build not just fans, but brand believers.
#EXCLUSIVE EVENT INSIGHTS
At SXSW London, Canva’s Global Head of Experiential Jimmy Knowles made it clear: events aren’t campaigns — they’re catalysts.
Instead of sticking to expo norms, Canva staged a local takeover that felt more like a block party than a product demo. From print-your-own kits to creator collabs in Shoreditch, this was brand presence redefined.
The secret? Global brand structure, local soul — with AI powering the engine quietly in the background. The result: a model for B2B brands chasing lasting memory.
WHAT WE ARE READING
 | AI is transforming marketing by enabling small and midsize businesses to create ads with minimal budgets, thanks to tools from companies like Meta and Google that automate ad creation, targeting, and personalization. This shift could impact the balance of control within the advertising industry, as brands weigh the benefits of AI-generated content against potential loss of creative oversight. |
 | Unilever is transitioning to a data-driven, socially-focused marketing model, leveraging consumer insights, creators, and eCommerce for a competitive edge. This shift emphasizes the importance of agility, omnichannel integration, and trust-building with consumers. By integrating media signals with marketing strategies, Unilever adapts to rapid market changes and retail media platforms like Walmart and Amazon, aligning digital practices with consumer expectations. |
 | Ad agencies are adapting their websites for AI search visibility through Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), crucial for maintaining online relevance in the AI era. AEO is essential as AI search reshapes how consumers find information, requiring marketers to prepare for changes. |
EXCLUSIVE INSIGHTS FROM CLICKZ
💭Insights from Kate Hurrell (Victoria Beckham)
💭Insights from Bonnie Szucs (Bubble Skincare)
WHAT WE ARE LISTENING TO
🎙 The Digital Marketing Podcast by Exposure Ninja
Branded web mentions now carry three times the ranking weight of traditional backlinks in Google’s AI Overviews, according to Ahrefs' analysis of 75,000 brands. With branded mentions scoring a 0.664 correlation—compared to just 0.218 for backlinks—SEO strategy is being rewritten.
This episode breaks down why classic link-building is losing relevance, how AI ranking favors brand-first optimization, and why even one unlinked Forbes mention might outrank dozens of backlinks. It also explores tools for tracking AI visibility and explains why breaking down silos between SEO, PR, and content is now non-negotiable.
Backlinks aren’t dead—but they’re no longer king.
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