Neal Malone, Director of Social Media, Influencer Marketing, and PR

AI Resistance, Creator Rates, and Performance Marketing 

Asking a social media or influencer marketing executive for 2026 industry predictions is like asking a meteorologist what the weather is going to be like next month. They’ll give you their best guess, but when it comes down to it, we could get a massive snowstorm or a series of unseasonably warm days.

Like any good meteorologist, though, we never shy away from a prediction—even if the industry landscape is moving at the speed of a Nor’easter. Here are four social media and influencer marketing thoughts we have going into the new year: 

1. Social media will be a very unwelcoming place for AI

As AI continues to flourish across industries, it’s going to be met with significant resistance on social media. It’s so easy to get swept up in all the ways AI is transforming our world—and in many cases that’s true. But in case you haven’t noticed, social media is quickly becoming a place where anything that even might be AI-generated is deemed “slop” and gets rejected immediately.

Here’s the thing—you can adopt AI in many facets of life while still rejecting it in others. It’s a great collaborator and productivity generator, but it’s just not what people (especially Gen Z) want to see in their feed. So in 2026, get ready for social media to be a safe haven for everyone looking for good ol’ fashioned authenticity and humanity.

2. Creator content will become paid social fuel 

Remember when you could reach large audiences with organic content? Ahhh, those were the days. Fast-forward to today and the platform algorithms have made organic reach almost impossible to predict. Concerning? Maybe. But a more optimistic take is that it’s simply changing how brands should be viewing creator partnerships. 

Partnering with creators used to be about renting access to their followers, but now that you’re only reaching a fraction of their audience organically, brands should instead be viewing creator partnerships as content generators for their paid social campaigns. There’s still a ton of value in brand messaging coming from a trusted third-party voice as opposed to a logo. It’s just that your content now requires a little boost.

The changing landscape means that the connection between creator content and performance marketing is as strong as ever. Brands should be treating authentic, creator-generated content not just as one-off organic posts, but as perpetual assets that can be tested, optimized, and scaled across paid social platforms. You’re going to see more and more brands moving beyond traditional ad formats and instead powering their entire paid social strategy with content that carries the undeniable trust and authentic voice of a creator.

3. The bubble might finally burst for creator rates

Anyone who works in influencer marketing knows firsthand how much time and effort goes into each brand partnership—both on the creator and agency/brand side. It takes immense talent and creativity to do what creators do, and that shouldn’t be overlooked. 

But with organic reach way down and paid amplification almost essential to get the eyeballs you’re looking for, the climbing rates are becoming much harder to justify. For a while now, the inflationary environment around rates has seemed unsustainable, and in 2026, we may see brands finally say “enough is enough, we’ll go find someone else.”

4. The line between social content and TV will only get blurrier 

When you sit down to watch your favorite TV show these days, it’s only a matter of time until you see creator-generated content in some form or fashion. Maybe it’s a brand spot powered by creator content or a social video running as a standalone ad. Either way, you’re seeing the social sphere blend into the traditional media world.

The feeling is mutual, too. Creators are searching for new ways to entertain their audiences, and that means turning their social channels into….well, TV. Episodic content, short films, live events, and reality programming are all extremely popular among creators. Call it blurred lines, call it mutual admiration—you just see a lot of one when you’re watching the other. This trend will only become more obvious in 2026. 

Connelly Partners’ Fall ’25 Intern Class

The close of the Fall Semester brings us a chance to celebrate the fresh energy, sharp insights, and dedication of our intern class. They have spent the past few months deeply involved in the fast-paced world of advertising, contributing across Strategy, Creative, Brand, Data & Analytics, and Education. Here are their key takeaways and favorite moments from their time at Connelly Partners.

Refined Instincts and New Perspectives

Maggie Chambliss, Strategy

Working at Connelly Partners as a Strategy Intern taught me how to refine my instincts for pulling consumer insights and gave me hands-on experience with a variety of brands. Coming from a psychology background, I learned how to leverage my education in human behavior as an advantage that brings new perspectives to the table. I gained a deeper understanding of brand strategy during this internship simply by learning from the best: the CP Strategy Department. My experience working with this team was the highlight of my time at CP because they provided mentorship, valuable advice, and lots of fun. I’m incredibly grateful for a team you can learn a lot from and also laugh with simultaneously.

The Value of Immersion

Sophia Emile, Brand

During my time at Connelly Partners, I’ve had the chance to explore a wide range of disciplines and grow significantly as an emerging professional. From contributing to New Business initiatives to supporting thought leadership with clients, every experience and conversation has been truly rewarding. Working alongside passionate interns and talented employees across teams has been incredibly eye-opening and inspiring. What I’ve valued most is how much I’ve grown; skills that once felt challenging in my first month now feel natural and intuitive.

The Whole Agency View

Maggie Murray, Education Intern

My Connelly Partners Education internship was a deep dive into the fast-paced world of advertising. From day one, I received hands-on experience, engaging in both internal support and direct client interaction. I honed my management and communication skills by serving as a client liaison, responsible for setting up project meetings and ensuring a smooth flow of information. A core part of my role involved strategic research, where I contributed to several value-add projects that directly informed our clients’ ongoing strategies. Ultimately, the highlight of the experience was the unparalleled opportunity for cross-functional collaboration. By supporting and working alongside every department, I gained a holistic understanding of the Agency’s operations and built an internal network—which was my favorite and most rewarding part of my time at CP.

Strategic Writing in Action

Kenna Lloyd, Copywriting

I have learned so much during my time at Connelly Partners. On the work side, I got real experience with what a copywriter actually does! I wrote for some of our largest clients and worked across headlines, radio, scripts, and digital—which was an incredible range. I joined brainstorms and early concepting, and saw firsthand how strategic writing shapes those initial ideas. Working with the Creative Team here has been the best; it was a great place to learn, and I’m genuinely grateful for everyone I got to work with!

Expanding Technical Horizons

Rheona Mehta, Data and Analytics

My time at CP has been incredibly exciting. I feel so lucky to be part of such a welcoming and immersive environment. From day one, I was encouraged to challenge myself and try new things with the amazing guidance of the Analytics team. I began my time at CP working on reporting and client-facing data work, areas I had similar work experiences in. In my second term as an intern, I had the opportunity to expand my technical skills and shift my focus toward data engineering. Having such a diverse and supportive experience at Connelly Partners is just one of the many reasons why I value my time here and the people who have helped shape my experience.

Looking Ahead

As they complete their semester, our interns leave behind a legacy of enthusiasm and valuable contributions. Their reflections truly capture the spirit of our agency—a place where professional development, cross-functional teamwork, and fun are all part of the daily grind. We are immensely proud of everything they have accomplished and look forward to what’s next for this talented group!

Fred Bertino, Co-Founder & President, MMB

Creativity has always thrived at the intersection of knowledge, imagination and intuition. Every great Chef for example, doesn’t create magic by discovering brand-new ingredients; most have existed for centuries. 

What makes their work remarkable is the imagination, curiosity, and intuition they bring to the kitchen. 

Given the same pantry and recipes, most cooks will follow the rules—but the top chef uses them as a springboard, experimenting with unexpected combinations, inventing flavors no one has tasted before.

Artificial intelligence is the newest ingredient in the creative kitchen. 

While some fear it will replace the human touch, in truth it functions more like a sous chef than a replacement. 

AI provides today’s creators with a pantry overflowing with digital ingredients—data, words, images, sounds—all ready to be mixed, reshaped, and reimagined. But just as a world-class chef transforms familiar ingredients into something transcendent, it’s the human who directs the process, guided by human curiosity and intuition. 

Creativity at its core lies not in the ingredients themselves, but in the mind that wields them. Used well, the result isn’t less human, it’s a new flavor of creativity, born of an artistic recipe that includes imagination and intelligent technology.

Bon appétit! 

Scott Savitt, Sr. Partner, Chief Digital Officer

Let’s be honest: The agency value proposition is in crisis.

AI tools are now generating polished copy, creative variations, and optimized workflows in seconds. In an environment of tightening budgets and rising ROI scrutiny, the flawless delivery that once defined a great agency, the ability to get work done faster, cheaper, and without error, is rapidly becoming an automated commodity.

This shift is the industry’s wake-up call. Agencies focused only on AI for speed and perfect outputs are missing the only thing that truly matters to clients: measurable business outcomes.

Flawless execution is no longer a differentiator; it’s table stakes.

The real differentiator is performance: whether campaigns drive leads, increase sales, or deepen engagement. Agencies that treat AI as a tool to simply crank out reports and deliver work will be commoditized. The winners will be those who own the entire customer journey and link perfect delivery directly to tangible business outcomes.

It’s time to shift from outputs to outcomes. 

Make the Full Journey Visible 

Don’t let delivery end with the campaign launch. Agencies must track every interaction, from first impression to final conversion, to see where audiences are leaning in, dropping off, and engaging across channels. It requires access to the brand data and systems that shape the customer journey. This visibility, and the tighter collaboration it requires with clients, is how “on time and on budget” evolves into true business performance. 

For the V Foundation for Cancer Research (v.org), optimizing the digital journey helped ensure more people not only found their site, but also engaged with and supported the mission long term. By partnering on the systems behind that journey, website, donations, CRM, DAM, media/analytics, it made it possible to link platforms directly to performance. By measuring the full funnel and refining key touchpoints, we turned visibility into meaningful donor action. It wasn’t about flawless execution alone; it was about continuously aligning delivery with business outcomes.

Use AI to Accelerate Testing, Not Just Delivery

The worst misuse of generative AI is using it only for speed. Instead of simply generating infinite variations, agencies should be using AI to fuel smarter experimentation. This means rapid A/B testing and micro-optimizations that allow us to quickly and continuously refine the journey, a crucial strategic function that AI makes scalable.

Close the Loop With Continuous Optimization

Clients don’t need more recap calls; they need partners who optimize in real time. Data without action is just reporting, and boring reporting at that. Agencies must go beyond collecting insights to acting on them in real time: shifting spend, refining creative, or tweaking user experiences as they happen. AI can uncover trends at scale, but it still takes human teams to interpret, prioritize, and apply changes that align with client goals. Continuous optimization should be the expectation, not the exception.

Accessibility as a Core Business Driver

Accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox, it’s a driver of performance. A digital experience that excludes segments of your audience can’t maximize outcomes. Inclusive design broadens reach and improves usability for all, which directly impacts traffic, engagement, and conversion. Accessibility and performance aren’t separate conversations; they’re two sides of the same responsibility.

AI has made efficiency a baseline. It will continue to perfect delivery, but delivery can’t be the finish line. The real measure of success is owning client business performance. If agencies can’t prove they move the business, they’ll be replaced by the very tools they brag about using.

Read more here.

We’re proud to announce that Connelly Partners has secured a Silver OAAA Media Plan of the Year award for our work with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston on their Van Gogh: The Roulin Family Portraits campaign.

While the artwork itself is historic, the challenge was current: the MFA needed to cut through a saturated tourism market with a limited budget to attract new international audiences and local visitors alike. The goal wasn’t just to announce an exhibit, but to drive a resurgence of the Roulin Family Portraits that felt unexpected and fresh.

Our Media Team devised a comprehensive Out-of-Home (OOH) strategy designed to mirror the intimacy of the artwork. Just as Van Gogh formed a deep bond with the Roulin family through his painting, our media placements were designed to foster a personal connection between the audience and the portraits.

The plan emphasized high-impact vertical placements that replicated the actual portrait viewing experience. By utilizing formats like digital street furniture and interactive lenticular posters, the media transformed city streets into an immersive gallery, emphasizing the value of the in-person experience over digital alternatives.

The results were a masterpiece in their own right. Following the OOH launch, media-driven ticket sales surged compared to the previous month, and brought more new users to the MFA’s site compared to the previous year. This award serves to remind us of the power of high funnel tactics driving bottom line results.

We helped Coors to bring The Big Chill to life, sparking an unforgettable energy across Cork and Dublin. These sold-out events featured international DJs, mountain-cold refreshment, and a vibe that truly defined the season.

To announce The Big Chill and set the mood, we crafted a standout OOH special build on Dublin’s Camden Street. We utilized icy-neon lighting and dramatic dry-ice effects to transform the iconic Coors mountains into a full sensory moment. This special build, supported by multiple outdoor and social formats, was the pulse that built major momentum across both cities.

Our team was on the ground at the events, capturing vibrant photo and video content that showcased the pints, the people, and the pure Coors chill. By combining cold refreshment with an unforgettable atmosphere, Coors truly owned the winter season.

Gene Begin, Managing Director, CP Education

It was another amazing few days at the AMA Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education. This year’s conference brought together more than 1,600 attendees from 49 states (2026, Alaska?), 14 countries, 99 institutions, and 125+ industry partners to tackle the seismic shifts facing our sector. 

Besides the amazing community that energizes old and new friendships every year I attend, three central themes became clear for me : fostering creativity to energize high-performing teams, re-centering our focus on student success amid daunting macro industry conditions, and strategically integrating and embracing AI’s role in the college search process.

Fostering Creativity: Connecting the Dots From Noise to Wisdom

Author and podcaster Todd Henry kicked off the first full day of sessions with a keynote focused on creativity, bravery and brilliance. In a world drowning in noise, he walked through his framework for filtering that noise into data, information, knowledge, understanding, and finally wisdom. Throughout this process, he identified creativity as our vital differentiator. 

Henry highlighted the famous Steve Jobs quote: “Creativity is just connecting things.” This suggests that creativity is less about a sudden spark of genius and more about the skillful, relentless mixing of a rich, diverse set of life experiences.

To ensure our teams remain prolific, brilliant, and healthy, Todd suggests we need to cultivate a clear creative rhythm. This rhythm can be built on five core elements, which he organizes with the acronym FRESH:

• Focus
• Relationships
• Energy
• Stimuli
• Hours (time for ideas and creative “back burning”)

Henry argues that by actively managing these five areas, a person can move from being an “accidental creative” (reliant on chance) to a prolific, brilliant, and healthy creative professional who can deliver great ideas “on demand.” Consistent creative performance is not about waiting for inspiration, but about establishing a sustainable rhythm and structure around these fundamental daily practices.

Student Success: Our Right to Exist

Higher education is currently navigating significant headwinds. A few mentioned at the conference include:

• Economic conditions are impacting student decisions.
• Health and wellness are a growing concern for students.
• The demand signal is shifting, with the percent of jobs requiring bachelor degrees declining, according to data from Indeed.
• We’re facing a perception crisis: two-thirds of Gen Z audiences do not feel they need a degree, and 51% of them who went to college think it was a waste of time and money.

Amidst undeniable macro-level challenges, it was refreshing to hear that the ultimate anchor for all of us in higher education is student success. Ted Mitchell of ACE articulated this perfectly during the panel of higher ed organizational leaders: “Student success is the one thing we can all do. It provides higher ed the right to do what it does.”

Fighting against these headwinds can seem overwhelming. Yet. If you center why we do what we do on the success of each individual student, current and future, we become grounded and able to focus on the immediate impact we can have in this moment.

The AI Revolution in College Search

The most dramatic shift is the increasing role of AI in the college search process. A survey conducted by U.S. News & World Report of 1,600 high school, college, and graduate students shows that students are actively integrating AI into their research:

• 12% of students are using AI Chatbots for their college research.
• More than 50% of high school students reported that AI agents were important for comparing schools.
• Students use AI comparisons for critical factors like: basic college stats, costs, academic programs, debt and financial aid, and graduation rate.
• Only about 10% are using AI for college application development.

Furthermore, the ways Gen Z consumes information are changing. Speaker Vanessa Lea Otero from Ad Fontes Media shared that more than 50% of Gen Z get their news from “news influencers.” The data on traditional search methods also shows how much is evolving in both online search and traditional referral methods. 

• Use of Google in the college search process is down from 71% to 64%.
• Social search is increasing: Instagram is now tied with YouTube at 17% use, TikTok is used by 15%, and Reddit by 10%. YouTube experienced a 6% drop year-over-year.
• The use of AI is having a significant impact on human touchpoints, causing a huge drop in the number of students meeting with their counselors.

What This Means for Marketers

AI is quickly becoming a trusted initial source for comparative data. This means university website content must be immaculate, transparent, and easy for AI to parse. Content sources feeding AI tools include our website, as well as Reddit, Wikipedia, and trusted 3rd-party sites. We must ensure that the facts and figures AI agents pull from our sites and these trusted partners are accurate, up-to-date and paint the most compelling picture of our institution’s value. Periodic audits of our institutions’ digital footprints must be conducted on a regular cadence. 

We also must acknowledge the rise of social channels as essential search tools. This requires a fundamental shift in our marketing strategy to re-assert the value proposition of a college degree in a way that resonates with today’s audience. Developing branded content on social media is crucial but so is using authentic advocate and influencer marketing to be presently available on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube when social searches occur. 

Finally, the drop in counselor meetings signals an urgent need to pivot the role of admissions staff. Their focus must shift even more so from transactional information delivery to high-value, relational, and empathetic guidance that AI cannot replicate.

The AMA Symposium has given us a clear mandate: Embrace the change. We must be more creative, more intentional about student success, and more strategic about how we integrate AI into our marketing funnels to meet students where they are.

Nadine Cole, Managing Director, CP West

The era of Happy Family Checking into Hotel and Friends Clinking Glasses is officially over. Generic, overused stock images have dominated hospitality marketing for years—leaving every hotel, resort, and destination looking and feeling the same.

The Authenticity Gap in Hospitality

Today’s traveler is discerning. They crave experiences that feel real, meaningful, and tailored to their interests. They’re not looking for staged smiles—they want to see a story they can picture themselves in.

Yet too often, hotels rely on big-stock libraries. These images are shared across industries—one day a luxury pool photo appears on a resort website, the next on a dentist’s homepage. The result? Your brand loses individuality and your audience tunes out.

CP Luxe: A Shift in Approach

CP Luxe is hospitality-only stock, built to solve this problem. Every image is crafted specifically for hotels, resorts, destinations, and experiences, so your visuals feel exclusive, authentic, and on-brand.

When time or budget doesn’t allow a standalone shoot, CP Luxe is a smart way to add personality, texture, and depth to campaigns. Additional AI services make it easy to scale your visuals while keeping them differentiated and true to your brand’s voice. AI doesn’t replace creativity or strategy—it amplifies them, letting you produce high-quality imagery consistently, without compromising authenticity.

Why It Matters for Your Brand

Exclusivity matters. Authenticity matters. Connection matters. By using visuals that are tailored to your brand—and only your industry—you signal to your audience that you understand them, respect their expectations, and deliver memorable experiences.

The era of generic stock is over. CP Luxe is here to help brands stand out, tell their story, and captivate guests.

Liberty Bank could’ve just made a commercial about their new #1 JD Power ranking in customer satisfaction. Instead, we used it to light up a local baseball field so kids can keep playing long after the sun goes down. Because that’s what it means to be “Community Kind.”

Read more from Ads of the World.

Hillary Williams, Director of Brand Leadership

Takeaways From CP’s Women’s Leadership Panel

Last week, we brought two of Boston’s leading minds in AI to CP for an honest conversation about how Language Learning Models (LLMs) are rapidly transforming our world on a day by day basis. 

• Jenna Switchenko, PwC Partner, FS Risk & Regulatory Data, Tech & AI Consulting 
• Lauren Murphy, COO at Maven AGI

I moderated the discussion with Jen Hansen, CP’s Director of Analytics, and over the past few days, five points have stuck with me.

1. Forget How to Work WITHOUT AI

Jenna shared that if her LLM wasn’t working during a business trip, she would pivot to a completely different task, avoiding computer work altogether. Why? Because doing the work without her LLM assistant would be three times as slow, and the time suck simply wasn’t worth it. AI is no longer a helper, it is a productivity requirement. Jenna working without her LLM would have been like trying to send emails with no internet connection … pointless. 

2. The Speed of Evolution Is Terrifying ( … and Exciting)

As part of our prep for the panel, we discussed how answers to each question would have looked different a mere four weeks ago. That’s how fast this space is moving. This mandates an “Always-Beta” mentality and as Lauren tells her team, “every day is your day one.” We can’t afford to wait for formal training. We must build time into our week to play, experiment, and constantly relearn or we’ll be left behind. 

3. The New Career Risk Is Stagnation

Stop stressing about AI taking your job. Jenna advises to instead, stress about someone who has embraced AI taking your job. If you aren’t actively digging in, testing new platforms, and refining your prompts, someone else certainly is. Career growth now more than ever depends on your curiosity and adoption, not just your tenure or intelligence.

4. EQ Is Your Most Valuable, Unautomatable Asset

In a world drowning in machine-generated content, humanity, empathy, and emotional intelligence have never been more important. AI handles the volume; we deliver the voice and the soul. Lauren’s advice for recent graduates? Take the time to master the art of connection, learning how to impactfully look someone in the eye and shake their hand. 

5. You Must Remain the Master of Your Craft

To use AI successfully, you can’t delegate your entire brain to the machine. You must remain the master of your content and your perspective. As Jenna said, your name is still on whatever goes out the door. The human layer of an effective prompt, editing, questioning, fact-checking, and strategic refinement based on expertise is what transforms a generic AI output into your brilliant, brand-safe piece of communication. The question will be how do current young professionals gain the necessary level of foundational knowledge through “learning by doing” what AI now does for them? This learning gap is one of the biggest challenges in our AI era.

When thinking about how to wrap this post up, I wanted to find a way to synthesize all five takeaways in a concise and meaningful way. I turned to AI and after effectively prompting, editing, fact-checking and refining, here’s where “we” landed:

The greatest lesson from our Women’s Leadership Panel? As AI handles the speed and volume, our human intelligence becomes our most valuable asset. Many thanks to Jenna Switchenko and Lauren Murphy for reminding us that EQ, expertise, and a master’s craft are the unautomatable difference-makers.