These strategic tensions reflect a rapidly changing consumer landscape shaped by digital fatigue, rising expectations for personalization, and a growing reliance on AI agents to handle everyday decisions. In this context, brands must reassess how they engage with audiences, both offline and through intelligent digital intermediaries.
The return of touch
Digital saturation is driving consumer interest in tangible, real-world brand experiences, especially among digital natives. Younger generations, who grew up with e-commerce, mobile apps and virtual entertainment, now view physical experiences as something new – and as a means of cultural connection. At the ANA conference, 70% of marketers agreed that brands should increase their investments in physical touchpoints in the coming year.
Marketers identified three primary areas for physical engagement:
- Brand-hosted community events (70%).
- Experiential shopping environments (66%).
- Temporary pop-up stores (56%).
This renewed focus on IRL experiences is not just a marketing preference, but reflects consumer behavior. Harris Poll data shows that brick-and-mortar retail is becoming a cultural driver:
- 77% of Gen Z and Millennials have trips or trips planned around a visit to a specific store or brand location.
- 73% say shopping at a hyped event or pop-up feels like you’re part of a cultural moment.
- Even traditional formats are back in favor: 79% of millennials look forward to receiving branded catalogs in the mail, while 64% of Gen Z say they use them as room decor.
Physical brand encounters now serve as social signals, the report said. They create opportunities for content, community and connection. This makes them powerful additions to digital storytelling. As a result, campaigns in 2026 should not view offline activations in isolation from digital efforts, but rather as amplifiers that increase shareability, engagement and emotional resonance.
AI agents range from task performers to experienced directors
The same consumers looking for real-world engagement are increasingly leaving digital decisions to AI. It goes beyond personalized recommendations and smart assistants, but also includes the complete delegation of routine tasks. Gen Z in particular is leading this shift. Sixty-three percent expect a future where people direct AI agents to manage tasks like shopping, travel planning and research, rather than doing it themselves.
This change requires marketers to rethink how they reach audiences who may never manually search or visit a product page. Instead, AI agents will surface options and make selections on behalf of consumers. This raises questions about trust, accuracy and influence. According to the report, 71% of marketers agree that the industry’s most pressing need is to establish ethical and privacy standards for AI-led discovery and agent-mediated purchasing.
Marketers also identified two key strategies for adapting to this new environment:
- Optimizing content for conversational AI interfaces, including structured question and answer formats and metadata that support agent understanding (53%).
- Reshaping the path to purchase to enable AI-driven selection, rather than consumer-driven searches (53%).
These moves reflect a broader shift in the digital marketing landscape. Marketers now need to think about how brand information is interpreted, filtered and passed through systems – not just how it is presented to people. This means aligning content strategies with technical standards and investing in oversight mechanisms that ensure brand integrity and consumer trust remain intact.
The long-term challenge is not to replace human creativity; it’s about ensuring that AI tools can work in the service of human values. Consumers may want convenience, but they still expect brands to represent who they are, what they care about and how they want to live.
Navigate through 2026
The report makes clear that to win in 2026, marketers must do two things: bring back meaningful personal brand moments and get smart about the way AI reshapes discovery. That means putting real effort into experiences that are emotionally and culturally connected, and ensuring your brand is ready for AI agents that influence what people see, choose and buy.
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