{"id":209146,"date":"2026-01-22T15:59:01","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T14:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/?post_type=blog&#038;p=209146"},"modified":"2026-01-22T19:13:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T18:13:07","slug":"looking-ahead-for-2026-a-marketers-guide-to-the-year-ahead","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/blog\/looking-ahead-for-2026-a-marketers-guide-to-the-year-ahead","title":{"rendered":"Looking ahead for 2026: A Marketers guide to the year ahead"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Planning for a new year always raises the same questions. Are we focusing on the right channels? Are we using AI in the right way? And how do we stand out when everyone has access to the same tools?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>2026 won\u2019t be about ripping up the rulebook. But it will reward marketers who think a little differently. Those who understand where human effort still matters most, and where technology can genuinely help.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Based on our research, testing, and day-to-day work with marketers, this article explores what\u2019s changing, what\u2019s evolving, and what isn\u2019t going anywhere. If you\u2019re shaping your strategy for the year ahead, this is a good place to start.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\">\n<h2>In this blog<\/h2>\n<nav>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"#new-year-new-emails\">New year, new emails<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"#the-changing-role-of-content\">The changing role of content<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"#understanding-aesthetics\">Understanding aesthetics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"#bonus-3-things-that-havent-changed-and-arent-going-to\">Bonus \u2013 3 things that HAVEN\u2019T changed (and aren\u2019t going to)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"new-year-new-emails\">New year, new emails<\/h2>\n<p>Every year, we run the <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/guides\/the-great-british-split-test-2025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Great British Split Test<\/a>. We test a series of elements of email design to see whether we can improve the engagement level of our most important channel.<\/p>\n<p>Our most significant finding this year was a swing in favour of media-rich emails over simple text-based ones.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"433\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209147\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml-300x169.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml-768x432.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml-767x431.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml-338x190.webp 338w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-textvshtml-44x25.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>We aren\u2019t able to attribute this to any major change in our audience or our strategy. What I think is going on is the use of AI. Because ChatGPT generates responses by taking the previous word and predicting what will come next based on millions of points of training data, it is more effective at producing standard text than email code. GitHub CoPilot is a more code-focused AI that would do a better job, but its <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2025\/07\/30\/github-copilot-crosses-20-million-all-time-users\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">20 million all-time users<\/a> is a drop in the ocean of OpenAI\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/openai.com\/index\/how-people-are-using-chatgpt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">700 million weekly usage<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>This means that media-rich emails are a strong indicator of human effort. Elsewhere in the research we found more examples that human-written content outperforms AI-written for now.<\/p>\n<p>Given how quickly AI tools and AI adoption are moving, this is a trend we will keep an eye on.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"the-changing-role-of-content\">The changing role of content<\/h2>\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"for-ai-by-ai\">For AI, by AI?<\/h3>\n<p>In 2025, 800 million enquiry prompts were entered into ChatGPT per day. That\u2019s a lot, but it\u2019s dwarfed by the 16.4 BILLION \u201ctraditional\u201d Google searches. So, while <ins><a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/webinars-on-demand\/ai-in-seo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SEO strategies do need to evolve<\/a><\/ins>, the way we have been doing things isn\u2019t dead just yet.<\/p>\n<p>A common question that comes up is \u201cshould I use AI-generated content to rank well in AI Search?\u201d It\u2019s not quite that simple; while AI is the intermediary, the queries are still ultimately coming from humans. Human content writers (like yours truly!) understand the language people use when they ask questions.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve already seen this through the rise of chatbots. When they first appeared on the scene, chatbots used the language of the company that created them. Customers won\u2019t necessarily do the same; there are usually a bunch of different ways to express what they mean. CNN\u2019s chatbot, for example, could only handle unsubscribe requests if the user typed \u201cunsubscribe\u201d and no other words. As you can see below, most people are a bit more polite than that.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"475\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-cnnchatbot.webp\" alt=\"chatbot example\" class=\"wp-image-209155\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-cnnchatbot.webp 500w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-cnnchatbot-300x285.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-cnnchatbot-200x190.webp 200w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-cnnchatbot-44x42.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>CNN chatbot<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"bye-bye-branding\">Bye-bye branding?<\/h3>\n<p>If AI tools are skimming and summarising your content, then providing their findings in their own words, all in one window, what does this mean for your brand positioning? If a large part of what you do can also be done by somebody else (and let\u2019s be honest, very few businesses are completely unique), but your unique voice is getting lost, what is marketing even for?<\/p>\n<p>I think this is a knee-jerk reaction to the speed at which AI has arrived in our lives. There may be cases where a customer will buy off the back of single \u201cshow me the best\/cheapest\/top-rated [item]\u201d prompt, but the majority will do a bit more research than that. Looking at B2B specifically, there\u2019s no way the complex buying process gets reduced to zero any time soon.<\/p>\n<p>So yes, you need to make sure your content is discoverable by AI. <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/agenda\/become-the-brand-ai-recommends-first-understanding-citation-authority-for-2026\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/agenda\/become-the-brand-ai-recommends-first-understanding-citation-authority-for-2026\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">We happen to have a webinar on this exact topic<\/a>! But keeping your brand voice alive will remain valuable for what comes next.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"understanding-aesthetics\">Understanding aesthetics<\/h2>\n<p>If you want to feel old and out of touch, take a look at <a href=\"https:\/\/business.pinterest.com\/en-gb\/pinterest-predicts\/2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pinterest Predicts<\/a>. I\u2019ve not seen so many words I didn\u2019t understand since I was given a Welsh translation of <em>Harry Potter and the Philosopher\u2019s Stone <\/em>on moving to Swansea after university.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209172\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter-300x156.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter-768x399.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter-767x398.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter-366x190.webp 366w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-harrypotter-44x23.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>All jokes aside, Pinterest Predicts has a very strong track record. They\u2019ve been 88% accurate with their predictions for the last 6 years, and their <a href=\"https:\/\/mtdeco.substack.com\/p\/how-pinterest-nails-88-of-its-predictions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Global Head of Consumer Marketing says<\/a> \u201cPredicts trends tend to have a longer life on Pinterest; in fact,&nbsp;<strong>Pinterest trends last nearly twice as long as trends elsewhere on the internet<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The point is that there\u2019s absolute gold here for visual ways to connect with your audience. You\u2019ll struggle to spend a day without coming across the art style known as Corporate Memphis:<a id=\"_msocom_1\"><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"330\" height=\"206\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-corporatememphisart.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209180\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-corporatememphisart.webp 330w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-corporatememphisart-300x187.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-corporatememphisart-304x190.webp 304w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-corporatememphisart-44x27.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 330px) 100vw, 330px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Corporate_Memphis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>Corporate Memphis Art style, via Wikipedia<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The style itself has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linearity.io\/blog\/corporate-illustrations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a fascinating history<\/a>; created in the 1980s by the Memphis Group, an Italian design and architecture collective, it had a rebirth when Apple dropped skeuomorphic design from its UI in 2013.<\/p>\n<div id=\"image-block_0b59679c4b79fc8c4350ab7cfc6a3931\" class=\"wp-block-quote-block sec-color-2\">\n<div class=\"quote-wrapper icon-quote\">\n<div class=\"quote-icon\">\n<div class=\"icon icon-quote\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"quote-text\">\n<div class=\"quote-content\">\n<p>\u201cA skeuomorph (also spelled skiamorph, \/\u02c8skju\u02d0\u0259\u02ccm\u0254\u02d0rf, \u02c8skju\u02d0o\u028a-\/) is a derivative object that retains ornamental design cues (attributes) from structures that were necessary in the original. Skeuomorphs are typically used to make something new feel familiar and thus easier to understand and use.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"quote-author\">\n                                                    <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Skeuomorph\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/span>\n                                                                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"350\" height=\"350\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209188\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram.webp 350w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram-300x300.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram-150x150.webp 150w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram-190x190.webp 190w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-instagram-44x44.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Instagram\u2019s skeuomorphic logo<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Unfortunately, Corporate Memphis eventually fell foul of the pattern that follows every design trend;<\/p>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Initial adoption by niche players<\/li>\n<li>A big brand notices and takes a risk on it. They reap a huge reward for being different<\/li>\n<li>The market latches on and rushes to catch the wave (Think \u201cWe\u2019re like Uber for [x]\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Universal use; it\u2019s now the standard<\/li>\n<li>Drop-off; start at (1) with a new trend<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Every brand wants to be the one at stage 2 rather than 3 or 4, but internal inertia trips them up. Bringing Pinterest Predict\u2019s track record into the discussion could be just the boost you need.<\/p>\n<p>Between the new dominance of media-rich email, and AI engines drawing on more sources than ever for the answers to questions, powerful and distinctive design is probably the most important it\u2019s ever been.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"bonus-3-things-that-havent-changed-and-arent-going-to\">Bonus \u2013 3 things that HAVEN\u2019T changed (and aren\u2019t going to)<\/h2>\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"marketing-teams-need-to-balance-their-priorities\">Marketing teams need to balance their priorities<\/h3>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209198\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja-300x195.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja-768x499.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja-767x498.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja-293x190.webp 293w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-exposureninja-44x29.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/live\/Mld5fVFbWoU?si=Z4idQVUE8s8Q3LK8&amp;t=423\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Exposure Ninja on YouTube<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Our SEO partners, Exposure Ninja, tackle the balance of lead generation vs. sales enablement early on in their 2026 strategy session:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><em><strong>Dale:<\/strong> It seems like b2b is a lot about sales enablement\u2026 Does that mean the marketing team\u2019s time should go towards creating this material\u2026 or should it be more focused on lead generation, on brand awareness?<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Charlie: <\/strong>You need both! If you don\u2019t have anything generating leads, who are you giving the marketing material to?!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<p>I\u2019d like to take this argument further. Marketing isn\u2019t only about short-term wins. It also has to account for how today\u2019s work will drive leads 6, 9, and even 12 months down the line.<\/p>\n<p>My favourite personal experience of this is a Head of IT at a mid-size hotel chain. He decided to buy from the telecoms reseller I worked for at the time, on the evidence of his experience at 5 annual conferences. At any point up to that day, we would have dismissed him as a casual browser, possible more interested in the little sandwiches than in the latest developments in Ethernet First Mile telecoms!<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"target-the-right-people-not-all-the-people\">Target the right people, not all the people<\/h3>\n<p>No matter how brilliant your product is, it\u2019s not going to be for everybody. And that\u2019s good!<\/p>\n<p>Working out exactly who your product is for is the keystone of marketing. Once you know that, you can discover where they spend their time, and that\u2019s your channel strategy in the bag.<\/p>\n<p>The easiest way to find out where your customers spend their time is to ask them! A simple \u201cwhere did you hear about us\u201d form can yield great results. Event registration pages are a good place for this: people are generally expecting to fill out several fields for an event, whereas for a download you should really stick to email address only.<\/p>\n<p>Your other best friend in this endeavour is <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/blog\/the-a-to-z-of-utms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UTM tracking<\/a>.&nbsp; Simply put, a UTM is a little bit of extra length in a URL that you tailor to each place you use it:<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"352\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209206\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-300x137.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-768x351.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-767x351.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-416x190.webp 416w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-140x65.webp 140w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-utmtracking-44x20.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/gatorleads-url-builder\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UTM builder<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve had this in place for a while, you\u2019ll have a clearer understanding of what content each audience is interested in. Maybe your email list is mostly blog readers, while webinars perform best on Instagram. This is your guide to what content to post where for best results.<\/p>\n<p>However, while there will be distinct differences between channel audiences, don\u2019t ignore the crossovers. Nobody cares about your brand as much as you do, so reaching your audience at multiple touchpoints will make you much more likely to stand out.<\/p>\n<p>Across 2025 we saw a marked rise in the power of <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/guides\/harnessing-the-power-of-whatsapp-marketing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">WhatsApp as a marketing channel<\/a>, and it\u2019s showing no sign of slowing down. A multichannel strategy gives you the best chance of success here; \u201cHey [name], since you downloaded our guide to marketing aesthetics, here\u2019s a podcast on the same topic\u201d is far more engaging than a cold message with no context.<\/p>\n<p>Our Digital Marketing Manager, Andy Gilhooley experienced the power and convenience of <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/blog\/whatsapp-strategy-of-the-african-jungle\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">WhatsApp as a business channel<\/a> on his summer holiday to South Africa. Directions, check-in options and baggage tracking all on an app he already uses daily, as do many of us.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to crafting your message, remember that you have access to a completely unique resource: your own customers. Rather than guessing how people talk about discovering and using what you sell, listen to the people already using it.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"email-is-the-humble-workhorse\">Email is the humble workhorse<\/h3>\n<p>All marketers (including yours truly!) are magpies; we love<ins>,<\/ins> love, LOVE shiny new things.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p>Do you remember the Clubhouse app? It offered mass live-broadcast podcasting, (which always sounds a lot like FM radio to me). It was hailed as the new everything app, although even in its first year the BBC were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/technology-56180581\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">highlighting potential pitfalls<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As we got back to normal after COVID, both downloads and Google searches for Clubhouse dropped rapidly from their initial peak.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-column hide-mobile is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full borderradius20\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"350\" height=\"350\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209214\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse.webp 350w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse-300x300.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse-150x150.webp 150w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse-190x190.webp 190w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhouse-44x44.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"888\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend.webp 888w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-300x75.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-768x191.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-767x191.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-763x190.webp 763w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-44x11.webp 44w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousetrend-817x203.webp 817w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 888px) 100vw, 888px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Google Trends &#8211; Clubhouse<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Not only that, but this peak was also skewed towards a white, male, 18-34 audience:<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"407\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209232\" style=\"width:770px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo-300x159.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo-768x406.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo-767x405.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo-359x190.webp 359w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-clubhousedemo-44x23.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.demandsage.com\/clubhouse-statistics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Demandsage<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Compare this to email, which is almost equally used among every age cohort:<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"572\" src=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209256\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista.webp 770w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista-300x223.webp 300w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista-768x571.webp 768w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista-767x570.webp 767w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista-256x190.webp 256w, https:\/\/spotler.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/blog-lookingahead2026-statista-44x33.webp 44w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/1489294\/email-service-usage-by-age-and-gender\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/1489294\/email-service-usage-by-age-and-gender\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Statista<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>To put it in simple terms, my niece isn\u2019t on Facebook, and my mother-in-law doesn\u2019t use TikTok, but they both have email addresses.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"your-best-year-ever\">Your best year ever?<\/h2>\n<p>With so much change happening so quickly, it\u2019s easy to feel like you\u2019re falling behind. The good news? You\u2019re probably not.<\/p>\n<p>There isn\u2019t enough space here to dive into everything that\u2019s coming up in 2026. Businesses of all types will battle with how to adopt AI effectively, while maintaining a genuine human connection with their audience. Consumers\u2019 expectation will keep growing as social commerce delivers an \u201calways-on\u201d shopping experience, and <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/ai\/predictive-ai\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">predictive marketing<\/a>&nbsp;will show customers what they need almost before they\u2019ve thought of it.<\/p>\n<p>Many of the things that drive results today will still drive results in 2026. Clear messaging. Strong design. And <a href=\"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/guides\/omnichannel-marketing-strategy-how-to\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">channels<\/a> that reach the right people at the right time.<\/p>\n<p>AI will continue to shape how marketing works. But it won\u2019t replace the need for human judgement, creativity, and experience. If anything, those skills will matter more than ever.<\/p>\n<p>Plan for the future, but don\u2019t panic about it. Marketing has always evolved. This is just the next chapter.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"_msocom_1\"><\/a><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The crystal ball is out once again! What does 2026 hold for marketers and their audiences?What about the use of AI, marketing channels and tools?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":209295,"template":"","cat_industry":[],"cat_topic":[1002,1688],"class_list":["post-209146","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","cat_topic-email-marketing-en-gb","cat_topic-strategy-en-gb"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/209146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/blog"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/76"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/209146\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":209380,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/209146\/revisions\/209380"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/209295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=209146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cat_industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cat_industry?post=209146"},{"taxonomy":"cat_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spotler.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cat_topic?post=209146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}