Digital Silk is ending the year with a visibility boost. The award-winning digital agency announced that its Founder and CEO, Gabriel Shaoolian, has been featured in a Forbes Agency Council Expert Panel exploring the services clients value most heading into 2026. The article, published on November 5, 2025, draws insights from 20 agency leaders across the U.S., reflecting the shifting priorities of brands navigating an increasingly competitive digital landscape.

The Forbes piece highlights a clear trend: clients aren’t just looking for incremental improvements—they want foundational shifts. Shaoolian’s contribution centers on website redesign, a service he believes plays a defining role in shaping user experience, site speed, conversion journeys, and long-term digital performance. In an era where digital channels drive the bulk of revenue, a site refresh can influence everything from paid visibility to organic search strength.

Industry Recognition That Signals a Broader Shift

Forbes’ Expert Panels are curated to surface perspectives from verified members of the Forbes Agency Council. They offer a concise view of what agencies are prioritizing and where brands are placing their budgets. In this case, topics ranged from digital strategy and branding to analytics and media performance, underscoring how multidimensional digital operations have become.

Shaoolian’s insight aligns with a growing reality: a modern website is no longer a static asset. It operates as the central hub of an organization’s digital ecosystem. Improvements to structure, messaging, navigation, or checkout flows ripple outward—enhancing campaign performance, strengthening SEO outcomes, and improving return on ad spend.

His commentary appears alongside leaders specializing in branding, creative development, and integrated strategy, supporting a broader narrative: brands want partners who can connect creativity, data, and performance.

Expert Panels as a Foundation for Deeper Thought Leadership

Forbes notes that Expert Panels often serve as a starting point for extended editorial contributions. Digital Silk plans to publish additional pieces that dive deeper into web performance strategy, experience design, and the rising expectations enterprise brands now place on digital platforms.

These upcoming articles aim to build on the themes introduced in the panel, offering more detailed guidance for organizations evaluating their digital priorities for 2026.

Verified Trends From Across the Agency Landscape

The panel surfaces several themes shaping client demand:

• Website redesign as a performance lever

• Clearer brand positioning for competitive markets

• Improvements in user experience and conversion flow

• Data accuracy, analytics hygiene, and attribution modeling

• Digital channel trends reported across agencies

Together, these focus areas form a roadmap for brands looking to strengthen their digital operations while responding to new consumer expectations.

Leadership Perspective

“We appreciate the opportunity to contribute to discussions that reflect the evolving needs of today’s brands,” Shaoolian said. “Expert Panels offer a collective view of what clients are prioritizing and where agencies can support them. We look forward to expanding on these topics in future editorial contributions.”

The Forbes Expert Panel featuring Shaoolian is now live on Forbes.com, offering a snapshot of how agencies are realigning service offerings to meet client needs. Readers can explore the full article or visit Digital Silk’s website for insight into the agency’s approach to strategy, design, and performance.