Alright so, what’s next? Predictions for the rest 2025 (part deux)

[this article is a follow-on from Friday's deep dive, How are my marketing predictions holding up, 6 months later?]

Now that the dust has settled from the chaos of Q1-Q2—and we’ve all accepted that AI is here, retail media is wild, and LinkedIn is a vibe (I guess), it’s time to look forward.

Here’s what’s really coming for us in the latter half of the year. Hold onto your ad budgets. This ride's about to get wild.

The return of the McBling internet aesthetic.

Otherwise known as Web 1.0, or Old Web. Expect a wave of lo-fi, chaotic, early internet-inspired campaigns. Think pixel fonts, neon palettes, janky pop-ups, a Myspace-esque nostalgia (but with budget).

Why? Because high-gloss now looks too AI-generated. Brands and consumers alike are craving a rough-around-the-edges, “yes a human made this,” feel.

Watch for: Zine-style email newsletters, 2000s style microsites with personality, brands hiring meme curators and creators over content strategists.

DIY marketing goes mainstream.

The creator playbook is being stolen, again, by brands. With tools like Sora and DALL·E getting easier to use, in-house teams are skipping agencies and building faster. Expect more rough cuts, selfie-style spokespeople, and reactive campaigns made in a day.

The implication? Agencies will either get faster or get ghosted.

Expect more “non-ads” that are ads.

Brands will blur the lines further between what’s content, what’s UGC, and what’s actually sponsored. Look for TikToks that don’t look like ads, fan accounts that feel too polished to be real, and campaigns launched via gossip. Performance will be judged by whispers, not CTR.

Case in point: We’ve all seen those “campaigns” no one actually clocked were real until the CMO owned it on Threads.

Performance and brand will finally hook up.

Just like that Love Island couple you were rooting for the whole time. They’re past the awkward flirting stage, and brands have realised their most efficient conversion drivers are upstream: brand salience, emotional memory, platform fit. Expect more brand storytelling in performance environments (yes, even in programmatic banners).

Watch for: Brand-coded DCO (dynamic creative optimisation), CTV ads optimised for recall and response, TikToks with actual narratives, not just hooks and CTAs

The (continued) rise of quiet marketing. 

Consumers have been overwhelmed since 2020, let's be honest. Expect a wave of minimalist, slower, almost meditative content. No voiceovers, no jump cuts… just vibes and value. ASMR-like unboxings. Soft storytelling. Emails that read like journal entries.

Goodbye: Shouting to get attention. Hello: Whispering and still being heard.

AI ethics go mainstream. 

Consumers are getting smart. They’re asking: Was this written by AI? Are you using my data fairly? Are you exploiting creators? Brands who aren’t transparent, or worse, who fake their humanity, will start bleeding trust at an exponential rate.

Prediction: By December, “100% Human-Made” becomes a bragging point, not a warning.

B2B gets kinda weird.

B2B marketing is entering its weird girl era. Expect more memes, fictional mascots, and campaigns that look like Adult Swim sketches. It’s no longer enough to say “we’re not boring”; you have to be memorable.

Watch for: Headlines like “Why Our SaaS Platform Is Just Like a Sourdough Starter”

Social shopping makes a comeback. 

We’ve been promised it before, but with TikTok Shop and Meta testing live commerce again, Q4 might actually be the moment people start buying while scrolling. Especially if platforms link up rewards, affiliate programs, and creators better.

Watch for: “Drop culture” applied to TikTok Shop Creators building storefronts inside platforms, Flash sales wrapped in memes.

Final forecast: The rest of 2025 is going to be weirder, faster, and more experimental. Audiences want novelty, not noise. Marketers who can adapt quickly—and aren’t afraid to look a little unhinged—are the ones who’ll win.

Want to track this with me until December? Let’s see what sticks, what flops, and what the algorithm gods throw at us next. Bookmark this. I’ll meet you back here in six months time.

-Sophie Randell, Writer