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 Driving Retail Media Innovation with Skai's Nich Weinheimer

Driving Retail Media Innovation with Skai's Nich Weinheimer

digital asset management 6 Aug 2025

1. How critical is the unification of commerce operations and media buying under a single platform to your digital transformation strategy, and what barriers do you face in achieving that integration? 

Over the past decade at Skai, as we've built our retail media business and aligned our enterprise advertising/marketing technology together in one unified platform, we have infused “retail intelligence” into our approach. And with clients looking to align a variety of “jobs to be done” for managing their retail and media initiatives – especially on channels like Amazon that command north of 70% of the market share – we are being asked to do more than just integrate first and third-party data sources to inform activation. The signals and solutions for strategic digital shelf, marketplace organic and operational reporting, ticketing automation, creative optimization, and revenue recovery are all adjacent and of great importance for context or for direct input into media activation. So as we increasingly see RFPs seek alignment across all these solutions, we believe that having a best-of-breed suite of powered-by solutions available via one contract with Skai will allow the market to enjoy streamlined access to innovation.
 
2. How are tools like competitor analysis, content optimization, and retail insights shaping your go-to-market approach during high-stakes seasons or product/category expansions?

High-stakes seasons/events command a lot of budget and attention, so it’s key to nail the strategy and have access to the right information in order to better approach the competition or the nuances of the category. Aligning the myriad signals coming from competition intradaily can help ensure that your event days are as successful as possible. Content optimization gives you the tools to ensure you aren't missing traffic because you aren't indexing for terms that consumers are using to find products with value propositions like yours; this is of great importance especially when you're in high-traffic events. Additionally, expanding into new adjacent categories may mean adjusting content to attract and convert shoppers in growth categories.
 
3. What role does visibility into metrics such as buy box ownership and keyword trends play in driving sales growth and competitive advantage in your digital commerce strategy?

It's fairly straightforward: If you're not in the buy box, you are missing sales. Controlling your brand presence and any gray-market sellers of your brand is a critical challenge to solve to ensure you aren't losing organic sales or paying for traffic that other sellers are capitalizing on. Keyword trends are important to track as volume shifts and new terms surface that may fit your category or product; it's important to know and estimate volume and stay abreast of trends to ensure your campaigns and organic sales are as competitive as possible. 
 
4. How are you aligning your revenue recovery strategies with reinvestment goals to ensure operational resilience and sustained growth? 

Ultimately, recovered revenue – less the fees for the service – are funds that can be used to improve the bottom line of the business and to reinvest in inventory, ads, teams, or technology. Ensuring Amazon and other retailers are remunerating your brand correctly is simply smart business and AR practice.
 
5. In what ways is your team leveraging cross-channel data to inform real-time media optimizations and strategic decisions?

Our clients are often leveraging our algorithmic “what-if” scenario tools to decide how to shift existing or incremental budgets between channels and/or tactics. Increasingly with Celeste AI (Skai’s groundbreaking GenAI agent purpose-built for commerce media), our clients are discovering effects of interaction between disparate channels -- like Youtube and Amazon -- and leveraging the AI agent’s ability to run complex regressions in a matter of seconds.
 
6. What criteria are most important when selecting strategic AI partners or platforms - speed of insight, scalability, retail integration, or transparency of algorithms?

Trust. Transparency. Legal compliance and infosec. And then from there, it’s understanding how the agent or specific AI toolset has been “coached” to understand context, client specifics, and the jobs to be done.
 
Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.
 Mission-Driven Marketing with Purpose and Results

Mission-Driven Marketing with Purpose and Results

business intelligence 5 Aug 2025

1. What is your core philosophy when crafting brand stories for mission-driven organizations like the CAHP Credit Union?

At Merlot Marketing, our philosophy centers on mission-driven storytelling that shows how a brand’s purpose directly benefits the people it serves. With organizations like CAHP Credit Union, they have such an amazing purpose, that the story almost tells itself.  Our job is to articulate their purpose by understanding the unique needs of their members and grounding everything in authenticity. It’s about more than promoting services; it’s about honoring the values behind them. When the story reflects the heart of the mission and speaks to the people it serves, it inspires trust, loyalty and long-term growth.

2. How will you tailor creative and messaging to resonate with the Credit Union’s unique member base—California peace officers and their families?

We focus on reflecting the experiences and shared values of peace officers and their families. We want to honor their service by speaking their language and communicating with sincerity and respect. Our approach combines emotional connection with practical clarity and language that not only illustrates why the Credit Union matters, but also when offices are open and what services are available. It’s about meeting members where they are and delivering messages that feel both personal and purposeful.

3. How does your agency structure collaboration between strategy, creative, and account management teams?

At Merlot Marketing, collaboration is built into our DNA. An agency is only as good as the collaboration with its clients. There must be alignment in both organizations’ mission, values and purpose.  Our job is to articulate and tell their story in a way that resonates with their customers.  We’re intentionally cross-functional and collaborative, not siloed by department.  We do this purposefully, so strategy, creative and account management are aligned from day one. Ideas flow freely, feedback is shared in real time, and everyone is focused on the same goal: delivering smart, impactful work that drives results. It’s a true team effort, which includes the client, every step of the way.

4. How do you ensure campaigns deliver measurable ROI while also fulfilling emotional storytelling goals?

We start by aligning on clear KPIs that reflect the client’s goals. Whether it’s member growth, engagement or awareness, we set clear KPIs and then use meaningful storytelling to drive connection and action. The right story captures hearts, great service captures minds and together they fuel measurable results. When strategy and creativity work together, performance and success naturally follow.
 
5. What leadership lessons have shaped your approach to running an agency with purpose?

I’ve learned that purpose starts with people. We have an amazing team and leading with an intentional culture empowers teams to do great work with heart and hustle. Our “why” is simple: to produce great work, with great people, for great clients. And our mission keeps us grounded: to deliver passion, creativity and results to every client with whom we’re privileged to work. When your team believes in the work and feels supported, purpose isn’t just a message, it’s a mindset that produces winning results! 

6. Looking ahead, what opportunities do you foresee in public-sector or cause-driven marketing?

There’s an amazing opportunity to humanize public-sector brands.  Often, they are cold and calculated with their messaging and we have an opportunity to bring clarity, empathy and purpose to the forefront. Through thoughtful, mission-aligned campaigns, we can build trust, deepen connection and make these organizations more relatable to the people they serve. What’s awesome is that the people who run these organizations actually do care. That’s the importance of marketing. Ensuring that their customers or clients understand that they are providing more than just a service, but rather a connection that goes far deeper than any transaction.  It’s not just about branding or visibility; it’s about creating meaningful engagement that connects authentically with their audience.
 
Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.
 Why Modern Brands Need a Systems-First Approach

Why Modern Brands Need a Systems-First Approach

digital marketing 5 Aug 2025

1. You have redefined yourself around a “systems-first” model. What prompted this shift, and how does it reflect the needs of modern businesses?

 
The shift came from seeing too many businesses stall—not because they lacked vision, but because their teams operated in silos. Brand, tech, marketing, and leadership often moved in parallel but disconnected ways. We knew there had to be a better model.
 
So we adopted a systems-first approach: one that prioritizes interconnected thinking and operational clarity. Today’s businesses face increasing complexity and pace, and they need more than just good ideas. They need alignment—between their purpose, platforms, teams, and communications. Our systems-first model provides that foundation and gives our clients a smarter, more scalable way to grow.
 
2. Can you walk us through how the Four Pillars—Strategy, Branding, Technology, Growth—interact as a cohesive system?
 
Each pillar reinforces the next.
  • Strategy sets the purpose and market direction.
  • Branding expresses that vision in a way people can connect with.
  • Technology builds the infrastructure to support and scale that experience.
  • Growth ensures it reaches the right audience with measurable results.
Instead of treating these as isolated services, we architect them as a loop—where learning in one pillar improves performance in the others. For example, a growth insight might influence a UX change, which drives a tech update, which informs a brand adjustment. This dynamic system keeps our clients evolving with intention.
 
3. What frameworks or tools do you use during transformation engagements to align teams across product, brand, and go-to-market?
 
We start by creating shared visibility across teams—something surprisingly rare in fast-growing companies. We run collaborative workshops to map stakeholder priorities and align on goals using frameworks like:
  • OKRs (Objectives & Key Results)
  • Customer Journey Architecture
  • North Star Narrative Alignment
 
We use tools like Miro for systems mapping, Notion for project documentation, Figma for design collaboration, and Trello to manage delivery cycles. This toolset becomes the “operating layer” that enables agile collaboration, regardless of discipline or timezone.
 
4. Can you share how your systems-first model helped avoid fragmented or redundant workflows in a recent client engagement?
 
Absolutely. We worked with a growing B2B marketplace that was scaling fast across Latin America and the U.S. Each regional team had their own priorities, CMS, and marketing materials. We quickly uncovered duplication of assets, brand inconsistencies, and mismatched product messaging.
 
By implementing a systems-first model, we introduced a centralized content architecture, unified their CMS into a scalable structure, and rolled out a global design system. With one source of truth across regions, we reduced duplicate efforts by 40%, improved brand consistency, and allowed their teams to collaborate instead of compete for resources.
 
5. For brands operating in multiple markets, how do you manage multilingual and CMS complexity without sacrificing UX?
 
We focus on flexibility in the backend and consistency in the frontend. First, we choose the right techstack, whether it’s the right cms or custom application to the right infrastructure environment, we structure content types in a modular way so local teams can customize without breaking the experience.
 
From a UX standpoint, we create adaptive templates that respond to different languages and reading patterns, including right-to-left scripts when needed. We also account for cultural nuance in imagery, CTAs, and microcopy. That way, every market gets a tailored experience that still feels like the same brand.
 
6. How are you preparing for continued AI and automation disruption in the marketing space?
 
We see AI as a co-pilot, not a competitor. Internally, we’ve integrated AI into multiple parts of our workflow—from content prototyping and concept exploration to visual generation and predictive analytics.
 
We’re also building internal processes to ensure AI supports our team rather than replaces it. That includes training creatives on AI tools, using custom GPTs for brand voice consistency, and developing automation pipelines for reporting and asset versioning.
 
Ultimately, we’re preparing by staying hands-on. AI won’t remove the need for strategic thinking or storytelling, but it will raise the bar for efficiency and creativity. We plan to meet that challenge head-on.
 
Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.
 AI & the New Era of Online Brand Protection – Matteo Amerio

AI & the New Era of Online Brand Protection – Matteo Amerio

artificial intelligence 4 Aug 2025

1. In what ways do you define success in online brand protection today, and how does that differ from older models?

Success in brand protection is no longer about playing whack-a-mole with takedowns. The old model was a volume game—counting how many listings you could manually remove. It was reactive and inefficient.

Today, we define success as achieving mastery over a brand’s online channels. This is a fundamental shift from a manual-hour-based approach to a strategic, data-driven one.

Success is a metric that is unique to each brand. For one, it might be reclaiming lost revenue. For another, it's about preserving brand equity or enforcing distribution policies. Our approach is to provide the data and tools to achieve that specific goal. If the goal is anti-counterfeiting to clean up online marketplaces, we will then measure success by how "clean" a brand's channels are, how cooperative platforms are, and the overall visibility of both authentic and counterfeit content. It’s about moving from simply chasing infringers to strategically controlling your online presence.

2. Can you explain how the Cleanliness Score™ is calculated and how brands can use it to assess their online health?

Think of the Cleanliness Score™ as a daily credit score for your brand's online health. It's a simple, powerful KPI that transforms an abstract problem into a measurable one. 

The calculation is the result of six years of focused R&D.

For brands, this score provides immediate clarity. They can see if their channels are 99% clean or 50% clean, track progress over time, and use this objective data to hold marketplaces accountable and focus enforcement where it's needed most.

3. How does the Deep Semantic Detection capability improve the detection of disguised or non-textual infringements?

Traditional search technology is like looking for a needle in a haystack by only searching for the word "needle." Our Deep Semantic Detection is like a bloodhound—it follows the scent of an infringement, even when the sellers are trying to cover their tracks.

It works by mimicking the complex path a determined buyer uses to find fakes. They don't just search "counterfeit Brand X watch" on a marketplace. They start on Google, find a discussion on Reddit, follow a link to a seller’s page, and then browse related items on a platform.

Our technology automates this "graph traversal" process. This approach excels for two key reasons:

  1. It uncovers hidden networks of infringers who intentionally avoid using trademarked terms.
  2. By following these intelligent pathways, itidentifies infringing content much faster and more accurately than traditional searches, cutting through irrelevant noise.

So while they might use vague phrases like "clover-style jewelry" instead of "Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra," our system connects the dots and finds them anyway.

4. Can you walk us through how risk clustering and SKU detection improve threat prioritization and resolution?

When you're facing thousands of potential threats, you can't treat them all equally. Our strategy for intelligent prioritization relies on two core pillars: a sophisticated scoring system for ranking threats and granular data for precise, automated actions.

  1. Risk Clustering: We move beyond a simple "high risk" flag with a more advanced, two-part scoring system. This ensures our clients' resources are focused on the threats that deliver the fastest, most significant impact.
  2. SKU Detection: This provides the critical layer of data granularity needed for modern enforcement. This capability is especially powerful for managing grey market distribution and executing highly targeted enforcement strategies.

5. How customizable is the Corsearch Zeal 2.0 platform for brands with different risk profiles or industry-specific needs?

Corsearch Zeal 2.0 wasn't built with customization as an add-on; it's foundational to its architecture. The core logic engine is tailored to each brand's unique risk profile from day one.

This customization is both deep and practical. The Risk Score is calibrated using a "brand bible" we develop with each client, defining what constitutes an infringement for their specific products. The Enforceability Score is tuned based on the brand's exact enforcement rules and the known policies of the platforms they need to police. This means the sorting and prioritization of threats isn't based on a generic, one-size-fits-all algorithm. It’s a bespoke enforcement engine configured for a brand’s unique needs, whether they're in luxury goods, pharmaceuticals, or fast-moving consumer goods.

This deep adaptability extends beyond the core logic and into the entire workflow. Brands can configure everything from product categories and custom data labels to reporting dashboards. The platform adapts to the client's team structure and objectives, not the other way around. We provide a powerful, configurable engine; our clients build their ideal command center on top of it.

6. How does Corsearhc Zeal 2.0 adapt to evolving threats, such as generative AI content misuse or new marketplace behaviors?

Our defense against emerging threats is a proactive, data-driven feedback loop, not a static rulebook.

For new marketplace behaviors—like infringers using new visual tricks to hide logos—we constantly monitor platform data. Our Cleanliness Scores and platform cooperativeness metrics act as an early warning system. Because our AI models are designed for rapid retraining, we can quickly adapt our detection capabilities to recognize and neutralize new tactics at scale.

Regarding Generative AI, we see it as another vector of attack, but not an unbeatable one. AI-generated fakes are often trained on flawed or "dirty" data, as counterfeiters lack access to official brand assets. This process inevitably creates subtle but detectable errors—mistakes in packaging details, incorrect logo placement, or flawed product renderings.

Essentially, we fight AI with more sophisticated, specialized AI. Our systems are trained to spot these tell-tale imperfections. By maintaining this agile, data-centric approach, we ensure we are always prepared to analyze and counter new threats the moment they emerge.

Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.

 B2B Marketing Trends 2025: Insights from ROI·DNA's Surj Gish

B2B Marketing Trends 2025: Insights from ROI·DNA's Surj Gish

artificial intelligence 4 Aug 2025

1. What are the biggest differences in B2B marketing expectations or behaviors across EMEA, APAC, and North America and how does your team adapt accordingly? 

There are a couple of primary differences between regions: cultural nuances and technical variations. 
  
We have experts on the ground in key regions like Japan, Singapore, Australia, and throughout Europe, which allows us to adapt our approaches based on lived experience and a true understanding of the people in these areas. 
  
Technical differences are often manifestations of cultural differences. For example, privacy laws in the European Union reflect a higher level of concern for data privacy, which affects the effectiveness of account-based strategies. We adapt to these concerns by rethinking targeting with an eye for context and focusing on networks like LinkedIn, where there is a combination of high-quality targeting data and clear consent. 
 
2. How do you support ABM and ABX strategies, and what kind of client impact have you seen since its launch?   

We’ve been doing account-based B2B marketing since before it became popular. The ability to focus on specific accounts or groups of accounts based on fit and value has been game-changing. However, it’s not a cure-all—factors like business maturity, sales support, and internal alignment all play a role in ABM success. As a result, we still run targeted demand generation campaigns where they make sense. 
 
3. How are you evolving your demand generation and paid media strategies to match the pace of change in the B2B tech buyer’s journey?  

The pace of change continues to accelerate, and we’re here for it. The easy answer is AI and automation, and we’re certainly investing in these areas to deliver faster, work smarter, and scale more effectively. But we’re also listening more closely than ever to our clients. One of the most important things we heard was the need for customized solutions instead of off-the-shelf tools. 
  
This feedback led to the creation of our AI Lab and a suite of proprietary tools: Hotwire Spark and Hotwire Ignite. Hotwire Spark helps clients understand how AI tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or Perplexity are answering questions from potential customers and influencing purchase decisions. Hotwire Ignite enables faster, smarter prioritization of target accounts. 
 
4. What are enterprise tech companies looking for most in an agency partner today and how do you deliver differently?  

Obviously, serious expertise is table stakes at this point. Over the past year, we've seen clients place much greater emphasis on the partnership and people aspects of their agency relationships. They want to work with engaged, committed teams—not at arm’s length. They want to actually enjoy the experience. 
  
This has always been our approach. We’ve been focused from the start on being a true partner, delivering strong results and being genuinely enjoyable to work with. 
 
5. What’s the next frontier for global B2B growth marketing, and how are you preparing for it?  

This is a tricky one. A lot of people would point to using AI to scale, and that’s a solid answer. Like many, I see huge potential in scaling pseudo-1:1 campaigns with AI tools. 
  
But honestly, one of the biggest challenges we still see is the weak link between sales data—actual contracts—and campaign performance. That data is often outdated or inaccurate, which makes smart optimization tough. 
  
Just as we’ve been building our own AI tools, we’re also tackling these data issues head-on by creating custom solutions for each client. Every engagement starts with a data onboarding and integration process that leads to tailored performance dashboards. 
 
6. What key trends should CMOs and B2B marketing leaders be watching over the next 12–18 months? 

A big shift we’re already seeing is in the search landscape. SEM is typically a major part of program spend, but search isn’t limited to traditional search engines anymore. We now think of holistic search as a combination of organic and paid results, plus AI-generated responses—from ChatGPT answers to in-SERP AI results. More and more, people are seeking answers outside of standard search engines. 
  
It’s a massive undertaking, but there’s a huge opportunity for brands that can invest in and effectively manage efforts across all three areas: organic, paid, and AI results. With our decades of deep expertise and proprietary tools like Hotwire Spark, we’re well-positioned to help our clients win.
 
Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.
  Omri Shtayer on AI Agents and Data-Driven Growth

Omri Shtayer on AI Agents and Data-Driven Growth

artificial intelligence 1 Aug 2025

1. From a strategic perspective, how crucial is the depth and recency of data in the effectiveness of AI-powered insights for your organization's growth initiatives?

No organization should ignore the potential of AI to improve marketing effectiveness and productivity. That being said, marketing leaders shouldn't  expect these tools to deliver the results if they’re being starved for data – that’s when you run into the unfortunate syndrome of chatbots “making stuff up” in an attempt to answer a question. The data being fed to the AI tool  needs to be as complete and recent as possible, so that the AI tool stack is well informed and knowledgeable about your company and your market.

That’s particularly critical as we move from chatbot interactions to deploying AI Agents that we expect to do work on our behalf, more autonomously over time. We need them to execute tasks based on hard data and well-defined plans.

Think about data being like fuel for an aircraft. Skimp on fuel, and you won’t get high performance. You may not make it to your destination.

2.In what ways do you believe specialized AI tools can provide a competitive advantage in areas like SEO, sales, and market trend analysis?

Specialization in the software and the data is how we make AI more productive and impactful for marketing and sales. In addition to providing AI tools with high quality and up to date data, we want to focus it on the problem we aim to solve.

Similarweb’s mission is to provide marketers with more and better data, but the beauty of adding AI agents into the mix is that we don’t have to worry as much about overwhelming the users. Similarweb’s AI agents can cover a lot of ground very quickly, meaning, they can accomplish in minutes what otherwise would be time consuming research tasks.

With a conventional user interface for a data system, we work on developing individual screens and charts and dashboards to help users understand and navigate through the data. But given the limitations of our poor human brains, as consumers of that data it still takes time to look at each screen, understand what it means, and maybe download data into spreadsheets for additional analysis.

Instead of looking at one screen or one spreadsheet export at a time, they can look at all the data and make sense of it for us. We get the answers we’re looking for, all together, not in bits and pieces.

That doesn’t mean you let them do all the thinking for you. You and your colleagues still have to review the analysis the agent has produced and determine whether it is sound and makes sense for the organization. You might want to do some spot checking of the underlying data, just as you would for a new employee whose work you don’t entirely trust. However, the odds that the data will be correct and the output will be useful are a lot higher if you work with an AI agent that is specifically trained on marketing and the data that is important to marketers.

 

3.The "AI Meeting Prep Agent" is cited for reducing research time. How critical is the efficiency gained from such tools in optimizing the productivity of sales and business development teams within your enterprise?

The AI Meeting Prep Agent is a good example of focusing the technology on a common business task or challenge. A good salesperson will go into a meeting prepared to achieve the best outcome, and it’s something they do many times every week, or even every day. The AI agent functions as a capable assistant who finds out your goals for the meeting and produces a thorough briefing on the people you will be meeting with and the opportunities and challenges of their business, based on news reports and company data as well as digital signals.

The reception from Similarweb Sales Intelligence customers has been very enthusiastic, with customers sharing feedback about saving hours of work and going into meetings better prepared. We have a similar story with our AI Content Strategist, which crunches data on SEO and competing companies, identifies content gaps, and makes specific recommendations.

In addition to the agents announced at the end of May, we’re working on a lead generation agent, a competitive intelligence agent, a stock research agent, and an ad creative agent — while scanning the horizon for other opportunities to build or buy additional products. We also have several projects under way to create agents for our own internal use.

4.How can rapid AI-driven insights into emerging market shifts directly inform and accelerate your strategic decision-making processes?

Everyone who works in digital marketing knows how fast things change. Even before the current panic over changes in Google search (search clicks decreasing as summary AI Overviews appear in the results more often), digital marketers were continually forced to adapt to changes in the algorithm. The same concept applies for marketing on Facebook, LinkedIn, or X. All of this has to be considered before marketers begin to evaluate changes in the competitive landscape. For example, look at how fast Temu went from nothing to a major ecommerce player – becoming the #2 most visited ecommerce website in the US by August 2024 – and how fast it retreated from the US market in the face of new tariff policies in the past few months, throttling back paid advertising so that it dropped to #11 in May.

Change is constant in marketing, and often it feels like a full-time job to stay on top of. Even with access to good data, marketers could use help sorting through it. This is where AI agents can assist. They take us beyond providing dashboards of data to providing analysis and making recommendations.

5.Looking ahead, what specific opportunities do you foresee in adopting and scaling AI Agent technologies across diverse departments within a large enterprise, and how do you plan to address them?

I love that question because the answer is: we’re just getting started imagining all the possibilities. The whole MarTech industry is going to shift to competing over who can deliver the best agents. And by best, I don’t mean the ones with the flashiest demos, I mean the ones that deliver practical results.

Our customers are just getting started sifting through all the AI-related pitches that are coming their way to determine what’s real and what’s smoke and mirrors. As they get more comfortable with this agent-driven generation of AI technology, they will be better equipped to ask for what will be useful to their organizations.

Don’t get me wrong, we’re already seeing strong demand and a pipeline of desirable AI agents that will keep us busy for a long time to come. I think the “scaling” limit is less about scaling technology than it is about learning to work with it productively. Enterprises will need to scale their leadership in AI adoption, educating employees on embracing their new AI team members and putting them to work productively.

At the same time, skepticism is entirely warranted. Every MarTech product is going to claim to be an AI product as part of the same old tech hype cycle. Tech buyers will need to sort out what’s real. It’s my job to ensure Similarweb comes down on the right side of that.

Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.

 David Abbey on Scaling Influencer Marketing with AI

David Abbey on Scaling Influencer Marketing with AI

artificial intelligence 30 Jul 2025

1. How is your marketing team managing manual processes in terms of influencer relationships, and how are you addressing scalability challenges?

A lot of brands still rely on spreadsheets, manual outreach, and disconnected tools to manage influencer programs which makes it nearly impossible to scale efficiently. Once a brand grows from 10 to 50+ influencer partnerships, the wheels start to fall off. Teams get bogged down in manual follow-ups, managing approvals, handling gifting logistics, and compiling performance reports. It ends up consuming their entire bandwidth. That’s where automation changes everything. Influencer marketing platforms, like Endlss, that combine outreach, gifting, commission tracking, and communication in one place have become essential to keeping programs scalable. With the right tools, marketing teams can manage 3x the creator volume without needing to grow their headcount, freeing up time for the work that actually drives results.

 

2. How is your organization evolving its influencer marketing strategy to shift from brand awareness to measurable revenue generation?

Influencer marketing used to be all about reach and impressions, but the most forward-thinking brands today are treating it like a true performance channel. Instead of chasing vanity metrics, they’re focused on driving measurable, attributable growth. To meet that demand, more teams are adopting attribution tools that link creator content to conversions—whether through custom landing pages, affiliate links, or dynamic tracking infrastructure. On our end, we’ve built SmartLinks into the core workflow, so each creator’s impact is measured in real-time, and with partners of ours like Creator Commerce, together we provide co-branded shopping sites to elevate the consumer experience with a trusted shopping experience that increases conversions. Weekly performance reports make it easy to see which partnerships are generating returns and which need to be re-evaluated. That kind of visibility helps transform influencer marketing from a brand play into a predictable revenue stream.

 

3. How are you approaching influencer selection and outreach to ensure alignment with your brand values and audience segments at scale?

Alignment is everything in influencer marketing and not just in terms of values. The right creator should reflect the brand’s tone, speak to the right audience segment, and have a track record of driving action. Brands are getting more precise with how they vet creators, looking at engagement quality, audience breakdowns, content style, and past performance before making a move. With AI-powered messaging, every brand can personalize outreach in their own tone of voice—tailored to each creator’s audience, style, and past content.

But finding the right fit at scale is a different challenge. That’s where AI and smart filters are transforming outreach. With AI-powered messaging, every brand can personalize outreach in their own tone of voice—tailored to each creator’s audience, style, and past content. Combined with branded application forms and full creator analytics, brands are scaling high-quality outreach without losing that human touch. Inviting existing customers to apply is low hanging fruit when you want to scale effectively, and authentically—people who already know and love the brand often make the best partners.

 

4. What limitations have you encountered with traditional tracking methods (e.g., promo codes, UTM links), and how are you planning to evolve your attribution strategy?

Traditional tracking methods come with real friction. Promo codes can get leaked or shared in unintended ways, making attribution muddy. UTM links often break in-app or get stripped entirely, especially on mobile. This creates a gap between creator activity and the sales data that marketers rely on to optimize spend. To move past these limitations, we’re focusing on more robust attribution tools that work reliably across platforms and devices. SmartLinks, for example, generates unique tracking for each creator and integrates directly into conversion and payout workflows. Clean attribution is foundational to scaling today’s influencer programs responsibly. Whether it's to manage budgets or reward high performers, teams need to trust the data.

 

5. How are you evaluating new MarTech platforms to determine their potential impact on operational agility and cross-functional collaboration?

When evaluating MarTech tools today, agility is at the top of the list. Marketing teams need tools that are fast to implement, intuitive to use, and flexible enough to support cross-functional workflows. If a platform takes weeks to implement or requires engineering support to operate, it’s already a blocker. The best tools today integrate seamlessly with existing systems, whether that’s ecommerce platforms like Shopify, payment processors like Stripe, or internal communication tools. Endlss replaces four different tools in one, so brand, finance, and CX teams can all work from a single system. At the end of the day, the best platforms don’t just do more; they reduce friction across every team.

 

6. What competitive advantages do you see in adopting lean, AI-powered influencer marketing platforms compared to legacy tools with heavier infrastructure and higher costs?

Legacy influencer marketing platforms were often built with large enterprises in mind. They’re powerful, but also complex, expensive, and heavy to manage. For fast-moving teams, that’s become a real disadvantage—especially when speed and efficiency are critical. Lean, AI-powered platforms are flipping the script. By automating outreach, tracking, and gifting workflows, brands can move from idea to execution in 20 minutes, not weeks. And because these tools are often modular and self-serve, they’re far more cost-effective. What we’ve seen is most brands using Endlss are cutting their software spend by 50% or more while getting campaigns live that day, not weeks. That kind of agility has become a major competitive edge, especially for brands trying to maximize output with lean teams.

Get in touch with our MarTech Experts.

 Stagwell Expands Experiential Marketing with Jetfuel

Stagwell Expands Experiential Marketing with Jetfuel

financial technology 22 Jul 2025

1. How does the acquisition align with your long-term strategy to diversify and strengthen its experiential marketing capabilities?

While TEAM delivers best-in-class large-scale experiences, Jetfuel complements it with retail-focused activations that drive path to purchase—from hyper-local in-store events to national mobile tours. With strong ties to enterprise clients like Walmart and Sam’s Club, Jetfuel strengthens Stagwell’s shopper marketing capabilities.

2. What integration processes are being prioritized to ensure creative agility is preserved while leveraging the broader infrastructure and resources?

We acquire agencies for their unique strengths—not to absorb them, but to amplify them. Jetfuel will stay true to its core while gaining access to the Stagwell network, including our centralized client services team and a broader stream of RFPs that can accelerate their growth. We set out to bring many of our experiential offerings under one roof and did so by bringing Jetfuel and Gold Rabbit under TEAM.

3. How are you planning to merge data, content, and physical experiences to create more effective and measurable experiential campaigns?

TEAM leverages data and insights to deliver high-impact, highly targeted brand experiences at scale. Jetfuel adds to TEAM’s capabilities by bringing valuable shopper marketing intelligence, enhancing our overall retail offerings. Together, we can build campaigns that adapt in real time—targeting the right audiences and driving real-world conversion.

4. With rising demand for authenticity in brand engagement, how is experiential marketing evolving to address shifting consumer behaviors and expectations?

Today, relevance matters more than reach. Consumers connect with brands that show up with purpose and in meaningful spaces. We build authenticity by aligning with their sentiment and expectations.

5. What cultural synergies are most compelling in driving this acquisition forward?

Jetfuel and TEAM are both community-first, action-biased, and results-driven. Jetfuel strengthens Stagwell’s experiential platform through a shared focus on cultural relevance and performance. Abe and his team are a strong addition—they execute impactful campaigns and bring a data-driven approach that connects awareness to attribution and conversion.

6. What trends in consumer engagement and live brand experience are shaping your investment roadmap for experiential growth?

Retail is rebounding as consumers return to physical spaces with higher expectations. Community is becoming a core value—people engage with brands that feel personal and participatory. Commerce is more immersive than ever, blurring the lines between content, experience, and transaction. We're focused on the intersection of engagement and action, where ideas translate into measurable outcomes. JetFuel accelerates this momentum by delivering culturally relevant, data-driven experiences that drive conversion across the funnel.
 
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