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- Breaking: Anti-AI Marketing Goes Viral
Breaking: Anti-AI Marketing Goes Viral
Major brands are choosing sides in the AI revolution - see who's winning and why
Aleric Heck
October 28, 2025
In partnership with
Today, we're exploring game-changing developments that could reshape your entire marketing strategy, from Mondelez's aggressive 30-50% cost cuts to Aerie's viral anti-AI campaign that's become their most popular post in years. Plus, I'll share insights on the new "agentic commerce" trend that's sending traffic from AI shopping assistants up 4,700% year-over-year.
📍 Quick Preview:
Major brands rejecting AI in advertising - and why it's working brilliantly
How to cut marketing costs by 30-50% without losing your soul
The rise of AI shopping assistants and what it means for your products
New AI tools that actually deliver on their promises (I'm particularly excited about Averi's workspace approach)
📈 Today's Top AI Marketing Story
The Anti-AI Movement: Why Brands Are Winning by Rejecting AI
Here's something I didn't see coming: major brands are explicitly rejecting AI in their advertising - and it's working brilliantly. Aerie (American Eagle's intimates brand) just announced they'll never use AI-generated bodies or people in their campaigns, and the Instagram post announcing this commitment became their most-liked post in over a year with 40,000+ likes.
The numbers are staggering - Aerie saw a 75% increase in engagement between October 6-19 after making this announcement. They're not alone either. Dove pioneered this stance last year, Heineken is running billboards mocking AI companions, and Polaroid is placing ads near Apple stores saying "AI can't generate sand between your toes."
Why This Matters: This reflects deeper consumer sentiment. While 76% of Americans follow influencers, only 17% trust them for product recommendations. There's a growing "anti-algorithm movement," particularly among Millennials and Gen Z who crave authenticity.
⚡ Quick Action Tip: Consider whether your brand values align with authentic human connection. If they do, making a public commitment to human-created content could differentiate you powerfully. But be warned - industry analysts suggest this might be a short-term play as AI integration becomes inevitable.
🚀 AI Marketing Quick Hits
Mondelez Slashes Marketing Costs 30-50% with AI
Oreo and Cadbury's parent company is using generative AI to cut content production costs dramatically. They're already using AI-generated content for Chips Ahoy and Milka social media, with Oreo product pages on Amazon launching next month. The key? They're avoiding human likenesses and focusing on product animations after learning from Coca-Cola's "soulless" AI Christmas ads backlash.
Why This Matters: Shows how major CPG brands are moving AI from experimental to core production
Action Item: Test AI for product-focused content while keeping humans for emotional storytelling
Amazon Launches "Help Me Decide" AI Shopping Assistant
Amazon's new AI analyzes your browsing history and preferences to recommend the "best" product with alternatives. Available to millions via mobile and browser, it appears automatically after browsing without purchasing.
Why This Matters: Changes how customers discover and evaluate products
Action Item: Ensure your product data is structured, accurate, and AI-readable
Traffic from AI Shopping Assistants Up 4,700% Year-Over-Year
AI-driven sessions to retail sites show 32% more time on site, 10% more page views, and 27% lower bounce rates. Over 50% of consumers expect to use AI shopping assistants by year's end.
Why This Matters: "Agentic commerce" is reshaping online shopping fundamentally
Action Item: Optimize product descriptions for AI discovery, not just traditional SEO
Averi Launches Industry's First AI Marketing Workspace
Unlike traditional tools that lose context between tasks, Averi maintains continuous knowledge across your entire marketing lifecycle - from strategy through execution.
Why This Matters: Solves the "context death" problem of using 10-20 separate AI tools
Action Item: Evaluate whether your tool sprawl is creating efficiency losses
🔍 Featured AI Tool Spotlight
Mailmodo AI - Complete Email Marketing Through Conversation
I'm genuinely impressed by Mailmodo's new conversational AI platform. Instead of juggling multiple tools for planning, creation, automation, and analytics, you literally just tell it what you want in natural language.
What You Can Do With It:
Generate complete campaign strategies and content calendars through chat
Auto-create subject lines, templates, body content, and CTAs
Build automated customer journeys without technical expertise
Get AI-powered performance insights and optimization suggestions
What caught my attention is how it reduces campaign launch time from days to minutes. The conversational interface means even non-technical team members can create sophisticated campaigns.
Key Features:
Natural language campaign creation
End-to-end workflow coverage
AI Co-Pilot for performance analysis
No coding required for automation
Official Website: Mailmodo.com
The AI Ad Audience Builder KeywordSearch.com
Supercharge Your Google & YouTube Ad Campaigns with AI-Powered Audience Targeting
If you've been following the latest in digital marketing, you know that precise audience targeting is the difference between wasted ad spend and explosive ROI. And you know we're obsessed with using AI to make the impossible, possible!
Now imagine having AI that analyzes millions of data points to build your perfect ad audiences in just 60 seconds – transforming your campaigns from guesswork to guaranteed performance.
Introducing KeywordSearch - AI-Powered Audience Building for Google & YouTube Ads
Key Features of KeywordSearch
Built by marketers who've managed millions in ad spend, KeywordSearch.com delivers the tools that actually move the needle:
1. One-Click AI Audience Builder
Simply describe your business or campaign goal, and watch as AI creates laser-targeted audiences based on proven data patterns.
2. Instant Google Ads Sync
No more manual audience setup. Sync your AI-generated audiences to Google & YouTube Ads with literally one click.
3. YouTube Ad Spy Database
Access 100,000+ competitor YouTube ads with full targeting insights – see exactly what's working in your industry.
4. Keyword Topic Auto-Expansion
Turn a single keyword into hundreds of related, high-performing variations using our AI expansion engine.
5. From Concept to Campaign in 2.6 Minutes
Our users average just 2.6 minutes from initial idea to fully synced ad audience. That's hours saved on every campaign.
6. Proven Results at Scale
Join 15,000+ marketers who've discovered 3.9 million keywords and transformed their ad performance.
🛠️ More AI Tools Worth Exploring
LTX Studio - End-to-End Video Creation
Complete narrative video creation from concept to final edit
Scene-by-scene AI storyboarding with consistent characters
Cinema-quality camera controls
Pricing: $15-125/month
PRVIEW - AI for PR/Marketing Events
Automated research for awards and speaking opportunities
Intelligent deadline tracking across thousands of events
Built by PR pros for PR pros
Launched today at TechCrunch Disrupt 25
Notch AI - Digital Ad Creation & Optimization
Converts static content into animated ads
Creative Brain models your brand from existing data
StyleGuard ensures brand consistency
White-label client collaboration
Kling AI - Best Value AI Video Generator
Impressive quality at competitive pricing
Realistic lip-sync capabilities
"Elements" feature for granular control
Trade-off: 5-30 minute generation time
Averi AI Workspace - Marketing Operating System
Maintains context across entire marketing lifecycle
Integrated expert network for specialized tasks
Replaces fragmented tool stacks
Pricing: Free + from $45/month
The AI Marketing Newsletter is Sponsored by:
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💡 Pro Tip of the Day
Balance AI Efficiency with Human Authenticity
Here's what I'm seeing work best: Use AI aggressively for production efficiency and data analysis, but maintain human oversight for emotional resonance and brand voice.
Implementation Steps:
Identify repetitive tasks perfect for AI automation (data analysis, initial drafts, format variations)
Create quality thresholds - Bayer requires 80% best practice compliance before any AI-assisted creative goes live
Establish human checkpoints for brand voice, emotional appeal, and cultural sensitivity
Measure both efficiency AND engagement - cost savings mean nothing if performance drops
Success Metric: Track not just time/cost savings but also engagement rates and brand sentiment. The sweet spot is 30-40% efficiency gain without any drop in performance metrics.
⚡ KeywordSearch.com Feature Spotlight
Speaking of balancing efficiency with results, this ties perfectly into smarter ad targeting. While everyone's focused on AI content creation, the real game-changer is using AI to ensure your ads reach the right audience.
KeywordSearch.com's AI Audience Builder transforms hours of manual research into minutes of smart automation:
Generate laser-focused audience lists using AI analysis
One-click sync to Google & YouTube Ads (seriously, it's that simple)
Access 100,000+ competitor ad examples for inspiration
Pre-built targeting templates for every niche
What I love about this approach is it lets you focus your human creativity on crafting great ads while AI handles the complex audience targeting that actually determines success.
Special Offer: Start your unlimited 5-day free trial and see why 15,000+ marketers trust KeywordSearch for smarter targeting.
📊 Key Market Stats You Should Know
92% of businesses now use AI-driven personalization (up from 78% last year)
4,700% surge in traffic from AI browsers to retail sites (July 2025 YoY)
30% drop in AI influencer brand partnerships (unexpected reversal)
$40 million - Mondelez's investment in generative AI for marketing
21.3% CAGR - Growth rate for AI marketing analytics through 2029
The marketing world is splitting into two camps: those racing to automate everything with AI and those doubling down on human authenticity. The smartest approach? Use both strategically.
Let AI handle the heavy lifting of data analysis, audience research, and content variations. But keep humans in charge of strategy, emotional storytelling, and brand voice. The brands winning right now aren't choosing sides - they're using AI as a multiplier for human creativity, not a replacement.
Ready to put these insights into action? Start with better audience targeting. Your unlimited 5-day free trial of KeywordSearch.com awaits, and you can create your first AI-powered audience in just 2.6 minutes. Click here to begin →
Until tomorrow's developments,
Aleric & Greg
KeywordSearch.com
P.S. Curious how AI can supercharge your ad targeting? Take KeywordSearch for a test drive with our unlimited 5-day free trial and see for yourself.
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