"The sense of a stable middle ground will continue to erode across several aspects of marketing in 2026. Studies indicate the middle class is thinning, altering important consumer milestones. Monoculture is also on the wane as people spend more time engaged with algorithms hypertailored to their interests. On the industry front, marketing services are gravitating toward two polarities in the wake of historic consolidation: White-glove models and plug-and-play ones built around artificial intelligence."
""There has been a rampant uptick in the past few years of putting the focus on shareholder value," said Dustin Black, executive creative director at Preston Spire. "Culturally, the difference between decision-makers and makers has never been greater." The advancement of generative AI could encourage mediocrity - "slop" was deemed a 2025 word of the year for a reason - but also benefit marketers moving against the grain."
Marketing will polarize as the stable middle erodes and consumer behavior fragments. The middle class is thinning, disrupting established milestones and reducing mass-market monoculture as audiences spend more time with hypertailored algorithms. Agency services are consolidating into two models: high-touch white-glove offerings and scalable AI-driven plug-and-play products. Employee job prospects are worsening amid consolidation and a heightened focus on shareholder value, widening the gap between decision-makers and creators. Generative AI risks producing median, mediocre output, but also enables contrarian brands to deploy bold, attention-grabbing messaging. Brands may shift investment to emergent channels and younger cohorts and test tactics at major global events.
Read at Marketing Dive
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