Google Demand Gen Drops: Conversion Lift Testing & Omni-Channel Bidding; Smart Bidding Exploration: Conversion Lift
Key Takeaways
- Google Demand Gen's AI boosts YouTube conversions 26%; Smart Bidding lifts conversions 19%.
- Brands shift to UGC marketing; market to hit $32.6B by 2030.
- GrowthLoop launches Compound Marketing Engine for Commerce Media Networks using first-party data.
- 84% of Indian marketers expect 5x digital content demand by 2027.
- Claritas' Clair AI certified for Amazon Ads, optimizes ROAS.
Top Stories
Google Demand Gen Drops: Conversion lift testing, omni-channel bidding.
On September 18, 2025, Google launched Demand Gen Drops, detailing new features like improved conversion lift testing and omni-channel bidding. YouTube has seen a 26% increase in conversions per dollar due to AI enhancements.
Google Smart Bidding Exploration: 18% more query categories, 19% conversion lift.
On September 18, 2025, Google introduced Smart Bidding Exploration in Performance Max campaigns, showing an 18% increase in unique converting query categories and a 19% lift in total conversions.
Brands replace paid ads with UGC marketing; market hits $32.6B by 2030.
On Sep 18 2025, Forbes published a guide showing how brands can replace paid ads with a systematic UGC marketing machine. The market is forecast to reach $32.6 billion by 2030.
GrowthLoop launches Compound Marketing Engine for Commerce Media Networks.
On September 17, 2025, GrowthLoop launched its Compound Marketing Engine for Commerce Media Networks in New York, designed to enable enterprises to scale commerce media operations using first-party data, as commerce media is expected to account for 20% of ad spend next year.
Indian marketers: 84% predict 5x digital content demand by 2027.
According to an Adobe study published on September 18, 2025, 84% of Indian marketers predict a fivefold increase in digital content demand by 2027, driven by customer expectations for personalized experiences.
Claritas' Clair AI certified for Amazon Ads, optimizes ROAS.
On September 18, 2025, Claritas received Amazon Ads Partner Network certification, enabling its Clair AI optimization engine to run across Amazon's advertising inventory and improve ROAS.
AI Tools
Monday.com expands AI platform: New agents, enterprise capabilities.
On September 17, 2025, Monday.com unveiled an expansion of its AI-powered work execution platform, including new monday agents and enterprise-scale capabilities within its CRM suite.
Ad Innovation Spotlight
T-Mobile VIP experience at Bad Bunny residency in Puerto Rico.
On September 18, 2025, T-Mobile Puerto Rico partnered with Edalou Paris to offer a unique VIP experience at Bad Bunny's residency in San Juan, enhancing brand loyalty and digital engagement.
Anthropic launches first campaign with Mother for AI agent Claude.
On September 18, 2025, Anthropic launched its first campaign with Mother for the AI agent Claude, highlighting Anthropic's focus on innovative marketing for its AI agent.
Chip Shop Awards 2025 nominations celebrate unrestrained advertising ideas.
On September 18, 2025, The Drum announced the nominations for the Chip Shop Awards 2025, which celebrate unrestrained and original ideas in advertising.
YouTube: AI stickers for Shorts, poll stickers for live streams.
On September 17, 2025, YouTube launched new features to enhance creator engagement: AI-generated stickers for Shorts and poll stickers for live streams.
Consumer Behavior Watch
RJC launches #LoveResponsibleJewellery campaign for consumer trust.
On September 18, 2025, the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) launched its first global retail campaign, #LoveResponsibleJewellery, to enhance consumer trust by highlighting members' commitment to sustainability and transparency.
Metaverse maturing: Gen Z, Alpha users active; community is key.
On September 18, 2025, Tomasz Przeździecki of Serviceplan Group argued that the metaverse is not dead but maturing, with millions of Gen Z and Alpha users actively engaged on platforms like Roblox.
Digital Strategy Insights
Reddit: Key for marketers, second most visited site in U.S.
Reddit is becoming a key consideration for marketers as it emerges as a major source for AI-generated answers and brand discovery, now the second most visited site in the U.S.
Productizing services: Strategic market fit for profitable leads, sales.
On September 18, 2025, Social Media Examiner published an article detailing how to productize services for profitable leads and sales, emphasizing strategic product market fit.
Enhancing CTV: Creativity, storytelling, measurement, embrace complexity.
On September 18, 2025, Sude Akkaya from Ba’ndo discussed four key strategies to enhance Connected TV (CTV) as an audience-first channel, including creativity and deeper measurement metrics.
ChatGPT transforms notes into thought leadership content with 5 prompts.
On September 17, 2025, Jodie Cook published an article on Forbes detailing how to use ChatGPT to transform raw, unorganized notes into polished, publishable thought leadership content using five specific prompts.
UK brands leverage Instagram influencers for growth; regulatory compliance key.
Published on September 17, 2025, a guide outlines how UK brands can leverage Instagram influencers for growth by utilizing trending hashtags, keywords, and competitor analysis, while emphasizing regulatory compliance.
Threads enables direct message requests for all users.
Starting September 17, 2025, Threads is rolling out a new feature that allows any user to send direct message requests to others on the platform.
Leadership Insights
Marketing Vanguard: Insights on marketing leadership, C-suite trust.
On September 18, 2025, Soyoung Kang and Vineet Mehra, founding members of Marketing Vanguard, shared insights on marketing leadership in an ADWEEK podcast, discussing the evolving CMO role and the importance of C-suite trust.
Marketing Trends Today
Netcore: Agentic marketing avoids 20-30% revenue tax via AI.
On September 18, 2025, Rajesh Jain of Netcore discussed how 'agentic marketing' can help businesses avoid the 20-30% revenue tax by building direct relationships with existing customers through AI-driven personalization.
Voice tech: New frontier for shoppable TV; market doubles by 2028.
On 2025-09-18, voice technology was identified as the new frontier for shoppable TV, with the market set to double by 2028.
Positionless Marketing: AI-driven tools boost purchase rates dramatically.
On 2025‑09‑18, Positionless Marketing, powered by Optimove’s platform, was described as a disruptive innovation that replaces the slow, siloed assembly‑line approach with real‑time, AI‑driven tools.
SMB confidence drops 27% despite higher marketing spend; AI adoption lags.
Constant Contact’s 2025 Small Business Now Report reveals SMB confidence has fallen to 18% (down 27% from 2024) despite higher marketing spend, highlighting measurement, attribution, and AI‑adoption challenges.
Meta's business messaging hits $1B run rate; India drives growth.
Meta is capitalizing on India's massive user base to drive its $10 billion global business messaging market, with paid messaging alone reaching a billion-dollar run rate as of September 17, 2025.