Perspective
Marketing 2025: Building Trust, Leveraging AI, And Connecting Authentically
By Susan Makau
The marketing landscape is undergoing a seismic shift, demanding a strategic recalibration for brands seeking relevance and resonance in 2025. The International School of Advertising( ISA) Africa ' s recent " Year in Review & Implications for 2025 " event, featuring insights from industry leaders, shed light on key evolutions in consumer behavior, media consumption, and technology that will define success in the coming year.
The Erosion of Trust: A Call to Action
Consumer trust is demonstrably eroding, driven by factors impacting perceived value. According to OnePulse ' s Consumer Report Card- 2024 H2, key drivers include rising prices, perceived quality decline, and substandard customer service. This erosion is particularly pronounced in sectors like personal care, household products, telcos, banks, and e-commerce. To counteract this trend, brands must prioritize radical transparency, unwavering quality assurance, and proactive customer service. Focus on reliability and responsive engagement is critical to rebuilding consumer confidence.
The AI Imperative: Augmentation, Not Replacement
Consumer trust is demonstrably eroding, driven by factors impacting perceived value. To counteract this trend, brands must prioritize radical transparency, unwavering quality assurance, and proactive customer service. Focus on reliability and responsive engagement is critical to rebuilding consumer confidence.
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing marketing, offering unprecedented opportunities for personalization and efficiency. However, authenticity is paramount. While AI can personalize experiences and automate processes, it must augment, not supplant, human creativity and strategic thinking. Over-reliance on AI-generated content without a humantouch risks damaging brand credibility. As Vimal Kaul from Ogilvy emphasized, agencies must integrate AI into every pillar of marketing- strategy, content, data, and technology- for optimal impact. Platforms like WPP Open, offering enterpriselevel AI models and centralized AIenabled workflows, facilitate scalable AI integration. Critically, ethical AI usage, including transparency, bias mitigation, and responsible AI governance, is crucial for maintaining consumer trust.
Forging Authentic Connections: The Power of Community
In an increasingly fragmented and noisy marketplace, emotional and community-driven engagement are more vital than ever. Brands must create deeper emotional connections through compelling storytelling, the strategic use of nostalgia, and robust communitybuilding initiatives. OnePulse ' s report highlighted that emotional connections, nostalgia, and community are stronger drivers of brand affinity than mere price or promotions. Further, consumer advocacy and peer recommendations are surpassing one-off influencer endorsements in terms of influence. Brands should shift their focus to building genuine, long-term relationships through community-driven marketing strategies, empowering brand ambassadors and fostering organic wordof-mouth.
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The media landscape is evolving rapidly, necessitating a dynamic approach to audience engagement. While traditional media like TV and radio continue to hold sway- with TV accounting for 59 % of ad spend in Kenya, according to Harun Muchai from ReelAnalytics- digital platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and WhatsApp are experiencing exponential
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