Marketing has an uncomfortable habit we rarely acknowledge: We're addicted to short-termism. For more than a decade, dashboards and last-click attribution have quietly dictated strategy. These tools were never built to explain how marketing drives growth; they were built to sell advertising. Somewhere along the way, we let them become the decision system for the entire profession. The cost has been significant.
New artificial intelligence tools are poised to reshape the retail industry, but brands and retailers are still trying to identify the right playbook for incorporating this emerging technology into their business. Surveys conducted in the months leading up to Black Friday showed that anywhere from 33% to 83% of respondents used AI to do their holiday shopping in 2025. In turn, 97% of retailers plan to maintain or increase their AI investments next year, according to a survey from Ameprity.
Someone in my workshop spied the chart below from our recent mega-analysis of global campaigns submitted to Effie, noting the steady decline in the industry's ability to create brand effects (awareness, differentiation, distinctiveness, trust, salience, etc.) as well as a drop off in how emotional ads are. I think it is safe to say that these factors are correlated. In fact, I've previously bet my new house upon it: Feel or fail. Why emotional ads will always beat persuasive ones
The easy button doesn't exist. Tools matter, but they're only about 25% of the solution. The other 75% is expertise, knowing how to apply the right tools to your unique business context. In other words, the difference between good and great measurement is a lot less about the technology you use and a lot more about the framework that guides how you use it.
Attributed revenue, ROAS, conversion rate - traditional marketing metrics track efficiency but often miss the signals that reveal which customers drive growth. Today, first-party customer data is more accessible and valuable than ever. And when combined with AI, it opens the door to a new era of customer-centered performance measurement. Customer analytics shifts the focus from channels to customers, framing analysis and activation around engagement, growth and predicted value.
The report examines the evolving path to purchase and how marketing measurement fits within it, highlighting the failings of most attribution models. Last-touch attribution, while comfortable, simplifies complex consumer journeys into misleading conclusions about effectiveness.
